Michael Phelps 2008 Olympics video... and Brian Williams revealed

Lately I've taken to going to the Dollar stores-- Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, etc.. These are the discount stores. Usually they offer inferior grade products at very low prices. But sometimes you find the same products as the supermarkets - Crest, Colgate-- at much cheaper prices. I was checking out at the cash register and noticed a 2008 Beijing Olympics video for $1.00. Yes, one dollar. Hence the name of the store. I took the plunge. And the ending had a nice surprise-- especially for media fans.

Arrived home and discovered the entire video was devoted to Michael Phelps. Phelps did the near impossible feat of winning 8 gold medals at a single Olympics. I'm not a huge swimming fan. I decided to watch it. Gotta get my money's worth, right?

Michael has a freakish body, so well-suited to swimming. He's 6'4" but has the torso of a 6'8" man--and broad shoulders. His lower body is the opposite-- compact, like a man only 6 feet tall. He's double jointed in the elbows. The guy has so much flex in his body-- his arms and legs move like a fish waving its fins to glide through the water. The underwater camera shows his flexibility as he powers through his races.

But now to the ending. Bob Costas did most of the interviews of Phelps after his Beijing achievements. Michael's mother appeared and spoke very well. Michael had the role model of a loving mother, a single mom determined to provide for her children, to inspire him.

But then came the surprise ending. Brian Williams appears and screen and does a final interview with Michael. Brian tries to employ youthful lingo. "Are you cool with that?" Brian Williams asks the question twice; likely he inquired about dealing with the crowds and the fame.  Then Brian Williams asks what songs Michael has on his iPod.

"I had 'Lil Wayne" for the last song," says Michael.

"Oh, Weezy," adds Brian. He's clearly trying to keep up with the youth culture.

Maybe Williams catches the ridiculous turn things are taking. He smiles impishly and says something to the effect "who wouldn't be listening to Weezy before a race...." adding a slight ironic twist to the statement. Michael laughs, and the interview ends soon afterward.

Brian Williams gets revealed as something of a poser. Of course, he got caught years later for a bigger sin-- making stuff up about reporting under enemy fire. He's tried to add luster to his war reporting and the soldiers on the scene revealed the Brian Williams account as distorted and false.

Brian had ego problems got revealed by the Phelps interview, almost a premonition of later problems. He tried to present himself as hipper and younger when he interviewed Michael Phelps. Brian Williams' status as middle-aged man news reporter made him inadequate, perhaps overmatched by the glow of Michael Phelps-- full of youth, beauty and talent.

Of course, Brian William's 2008 Olympic interview mistake, a slight faux pas, has little or no consequence compared to what came later. The same insecurities, though, predicted the total fabrications to come a few years later. Those mistakes, not-quite-Walter Cronkite bragging,  almost cost him his broadcast career. The war story lies did end his tenure as  Evening News anchor at NBC.

Super Bowl Sunday: Is it just a fantasy?

Fan interest for football is at a phenomenally high level. Like most pro football fans, I never played the game. I never liked putting a helmet on my head. Never wanted to bang into people. Football attracts fans in ways they may not even understand.

Marshall McLuhan, my media guru, successfully predicted football would overtake baseball as the most popular sport. Modern media is all about engagement. Football, where players do different things simultaneously, works like magic for the television audience. Simultaneous events mean engagement of the viewer. The cameras cut from one event to another: quarterback dropping back, cut to wide receiver being defended by the cornerback, cut to linebacker closing in to tackle the quarterback, all within the space of a few seconds. All within the space of a single play.

McLuhan correctly recognized the importance of the "instant replay." Taped replay allows us to watch the play again and again, studying in great depth. Instant replay has been added to actual playing of the game itself. Coaches have been granted the power to request a play be reviewed by the referees. The referees can reverse the on-field decision based on replay. The fans study the replay and participate with the referees's decision.

Baseball, formerly the national pastime, moves forward in a logical, straight-line sequence. Batter hits ball and only then can he run. The ball gets fielded. The batter runs to first base. Football moves forward simultaneously-- occurs on many different levels in the same moment. Fans achieve more in-depth involvement in the football game.

Engagement! Engagement! Engagement! So said McLuhan when explaining the electronic media environment. Our new media life, life itself you might say, is all about electronic engagement. We stay engaged in our cellphone, on Facebook, on Twitter and on Instagram and things like Snapchat. I don't even know what Snapchat is! Guess that reveals my age...

Football wins. With fantasy football we get an deeper involvement. We actually own the team and the players, even if it's just a fantasy. Football wins the electronic competition by keeping us deeply engaged.