Strict rules for Announcers (in 2010)

[Lackin]

I saw this article online that has a few bullet points that Vince wanted the announcers to follow in 2010. Some makes sense but there are some weird ones.

World Wrestling Entertainment has strict guidelines for their announcers that they must follow because ultimately the company wants everybody to sound the same in terms of how they describe the action.

A user on Reddit was able to obtain some information as it pertains to these rules and posted about them for wrestling fans to see.

There are eight pages of notes that are dated May 11, 2010. There have probably been some changes for the announcers in the last five years (and this just likely one week worth of programming), but a lot of what’s there remains consistent with what we hear on WWE TV every week.

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Here are some of the more interesting notes:

– Announcers are told to watch the monitor and not what they might see in the ring. That’s something announcers have been doing for years as they get to see what the viewer sees and ultimately it’s them they are calling the action for and not the people in the crowd.

– Vince McMahon specifically doesn’t want them saying “grandaddy of them all” for WrestleMania because he feels like it makes WrestleMania feel old. This is something he still believes in because he no longer uses numbers when talking about WrestleMania.

– Don’t use pronouns like “he” or “she” to describe talent. They want announcers to use the wrestler’s names or nicknames like “The Viper” for Randy Orton as an example.

– Some of the words to avoid: belt, strap, the business, our industry, feud, backstage, pro wrestling, pro wrestler, interesting (that’s a weird one), me, I, U.S. (they want them to say United States), hospital, faction and they don’t want them to say “the title is on the line” either.

– Announcers are told that they don’t need to call every move that a Superstar makes because it is television, not radio. They are told to call high spots and all three counts because they want to portray the idea that any time a ref counts that a match could end.

– This part raised a few eyebrows: “Fully understand the history and heritage of the business as it gives what we are doing today more credibility.” Considering the company ignores history a lot (remember… they don’t actually want you to say belt, strap, pro wrestling or pro wrestler!!!) and only bring things up when they are relevant, it shows that WWE are as hypocritical as you imagined.

– It said that “announcers are not the stars.” That’s generally true, but in late 2010 and early 2011 they turned Michael Cole into a heel announcer with storylines, so that idea changed a bit at that time.

– They don’t want announcers to scream. It was written in all caps too times because they want to have the announcers build up emotion before getting to those bigger moments. There are obviously some exceptions when major events are happening.

It’s well worth spending a few minutes to read just because it will give you an insight into how Vince McMahon wants his television show produced, or at least did five years ago.

SOURCE

 

[Solidus1]

Some make sense, others are just stupid.

– Some of the words to avoid: belt, strap, the business, our industry, feud, backstage, pro wrestling, pro wrestler, interesting (that’s a weird one), me, I, U.S. (they want them to say United States), hospital, faction and they don’t want them to say “the title is on the line” either.

This annoys me. Every time someone says "WWE World Heavyweight Champion/Championship", it's such a mouthful and doesn't sound natural. I'd much rather they said "WWE Title" or "WWE Champion" or simply "Champion".

 

[Wacokid27]

A lot of that's just about branding.

I'm a huge fan of the one that says "know the history" and the comments on it (but they ignore history all the time!!!.....I'm paraphrasing and adding a whiny tone in my head). Yes, WWE ignores history constantly when it doesn't serve the storyline they're promoting. I'm not a big fan of it, but knowing the history and heritage of something is a huge part of building a propaganda machine based around it. WWE is a marketing company based around pro wrestling (or, as they call it, sports entertainment) and the people at the announce desk (who are providing the verbal backdrop of the show) need to know why it's important that certain things are happening in the match, if for no other reason than so they can twist the events of the match, angle, segment, etc., to serve the story that WWE is telling today.

Obviously, I think they do this too much, which is a weakness of the creative staff and an insult to the memories of the people who follow the promotion. But, guess what? WWE's not worried about pleasing me. I'll watch anyway.

wk

 

[Stopspot]

A lot of that's just about branding.

I'm a huge fan of the one that says "know the history" and the comments on it (but they ignore history all the time!!!.....I'm paraphrasing and adding a whiny tone in my head). Yes, WWE ignores history constantly when it doesn't serve the storyline they're promoting. I'm not a big fan of it, but knowing the history and heritage of something is a huge part of building a propaganda machine based around it. WWE is a marketing company based around pro wrestling (or, as they call it, sports entertainment) and the people at the announce desk (who are providing the verbal backdrop of the show) need to know why it's important that certain things are happening in the match, if for no other reason than so they can twist the events of the match, angle, segment, etc., to serve the story that WWE is telling today.

Obviously, I think they do this too much, which is a weakness of the creative staff and an insult to the memories of the people who follow the promotion. But, guess what? WWE's not worried about pleasing me. I'll watch anyway.

wk

Part of the reason why the commentry on beast in the east was so good was that Cole and Saxton talked a lot of history. Bull Nakano winning a wwe women's title match in Japan, Balors first show in Japan being in the same arena and so forth. WWE definitely shouldn't be afraid to dust off the old history books.

 

[Prince Bálor]

Announcers should just have free reign instead of being told what or what not to say.

That's why Cole and Saxton did a good job in Japan, but aren't able to be themselves on RAW.

 

[Leo C]

Part of the reason why the commentry on beast in the east was so good was that Cole and Saxton talked a lot of history. Bull Nakano winning a wwe women's title match in Japan, Balors first show in Japan being in the same arena and so forth. WWE definitely shouldn't be afraid to dust off the old history books.

I also think Vince wasn't in their ear.

 

[Stopspot]

Announcers should just have free reign instead of being told what or what not to say.

That's why Cole and Saxton did a good job in Japan, but aren't able to be themselves on RAW.

No. They absolutely should not have free reign. The announcing team is how you convey the story to the TV viewers. They will always need directing, but they don't need as strict directing as they have now. They need to be told what points to make and were to direct the story. JR did not have free reign, Lawler has always worked off of a script and so forth.

 

[Wacokid27]

I absolutely agree that the commentary team should have a freer hand and that them knowing the history is hugely important. I loved the fact they were able to talk about some Japanese wrestling history, not to mention bringing in Balor's history in Japan.

JR didn't have free reign, but I think he had more freedom than Cole, Saxton, etc., have today. I seem to remember reading that Joey Styles wanted to leave commentary for behind-the-scenes because he was used to having complete (or nearly so) freedom in ECW and Vince wanted more control over commentary in WWECW.

From much of what I've seen, heard, read, etc., the guy who has the most freedom on commentary today is JBL (I don't know if it's because Vince trusts him or thinks he's a kindred spirit since they're both big-time conservatives or what). JBL is also the one who's the most likely to reel off a random piece of history that has a connection to the match on a show.

wk

 

[Stopspot]

I absolutely agree that the commentary team should have a freer hand and that them knowing the history is hugely important. I loved the fact they were able to talk about some Japanese wrestling history, not to mention bringing in Balor's history in Japan.

JR didn't have free reign, but I think he had more freedom than Cole, Saxton, etc., have today. I seem to remember reading that Joey Styles wanted to leave commentary for behind-the-scenes because he was used to having complete (or nearly so) freedom in ECW and Vince wanted more control over commentary in WWECW.

From much of what I've seen, heard, read, etc., the guy who has the most freedom on commentary today is JBL (I don't know if it's because Vince trusts him or thinks he's a kindred spirit since they're both big-time conservatives or what). JBL is also the one who's the most likely to reel off a random piece of history that has a connection to the match on a show.

wk

Isn't Vince supposedly in JBL's ear all the time. JBL is referred to as "Vince's voice" for a reason.

 

[I'll See Ya Kia]

I think Stopspot is right. It can be really confusing to sit and down and talk without stopping for a long period of time without people thinking you're crazy. Announcing is really hard and I know the people who do it study really well. Doing promos or segments may not need much redirecting if they are truly short, so I agree with what many of you have said here.

 

[Wacokid27]

Isn't Vince supposedly in JBL's ear all the time. JBL is referred to as "Vince's voice" for a reason.

I thought he was called that because he's the one always spouting off from the Authority's standpoint, rarely dissenting from what HHH, Steph, etc., want.

I was referring to hearing, etc., that JBL gets his points down and is able to weave them in along with his soccer/rugby drop-ins and his (actually interesting to people like me) tidbits about pro wrestling history.

wk