NBC Sports chief Rick Cordella and two of the divisions most valuable players – veteran executives Sam Flood and Molly Solomon – break down the culture of the sports division that is busier than ever given NBC’s increased investment in live sports. Cordella is the newcomer of the group with a tenure of 20 years and counting at NBC. Flood, who is executive producer and president of production, has been with NBC Sports since 1986.
Solomon, executive producer and president of NBC Olympics and Paralympics, signed on in 1990. Here the trio discuss how NBC’s legacy of innovation drives their work today. They emphasize the importance of storytelling in sportscasting, how the Olympics have become synonymous with NBC and how Snoop Dogg became America’s guide to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Cordella and Solomon also assure fans that they will take their game up even higher in 2028 when the Summer Olympics unfolds in Hollywood’s hometown. Sam Flood: Our biggest agenda and goal is to always look to get better every week. Our theory is, if you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse.
Ultimately, sporting events are about memorable moments. How do you highlight those memorable moments and get the audience to engage at a higher level because of how we cover it. And that’s a combination of the great talent, the great production philosophy and the hard work that goes into not being satisfied after every show.
What little things can we do to elevate the experience for the audience? Molly Solomon: There’s an innovative culture [at NBC Sports] that also has an expectation of a high level of execution. It’s incredibly wonderful to work for people who have high expectations, and then give you the room to be creative and supply you with all the technology and support that you need.
And then something wonderful breaks out. I think you see that every single weekend at NBC Sports. Rick Cordella: What we do is always about the game, but it’s also about how do we entertain people because people look to sports to kind of get away from their day-to-day lives and fall into the drama of a great competition and the storytelling that happens within the athletes and teams and people around the periphery of those sports that we’re watching.
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