# Is Rebecca Haarlow the Travis Outlaw of broadcasting?



## HOWIE

I know that a lot of people were all for trading away Travis Outlaw when he first came on board with the Portland Trailblazers, he'd have flashes of greatness, but let's face it, he really didn't come out swinging or impressing people. Oh great, another high school player, wasted pick, best we could hope for was him to be an added player to a trade, blah, blah, blah.

Let me ask you this, how do you feel about Travis Outlaw now?


Got me thinking about some trash that has been thrown out about Rebecca Haarlow. She is in her rookie season with the Blazer broadcasting crew, she is going through some growing pains as everyone does while they try to find their niches. I have heard a lot of talk like the comment from below that I read off of Mike Barrett's Blog.



> Pulled from *Barrett's Blog on Blazers.com
> 
> the comment is from a fan....not Barrett.*
> 
> Rebecca Harlow is the worst sideline/sports reporter. Sure she's hot but not why most fans watch the game! Lose Rebecca and keep winning games Blazers


Maybe the fact that she is attractive takes away from her knowledge and enthusiasm of the game. Maybe it's just Portland fan having to have something to complain about with the team playing so good. :whoknows:

In all serious I think that she is getting better at her job every broadcast. Seriously, this is her rookie season with the team, sure she'd be nervous in the beginning, wouldn't you? You can't tell me with a straight face that she isn't improving. I'd even go as far to say that she could turn into our *Jermaine O'Neal of broadcasting* with her complete package. Yes I think she is that good, have you seen some of the other sideline reporters out there? I suggest you watch League Pass and see just how lucky Portland is to have her. 

Did you know that her father *John Haarlow *played at Princeton with *Geoff Petrie* (1st ever pick of the Portland Trailblazers.) and she's been around the game all her life. 



> Haarlow is a graduate of *Princeton University*, where she was a first team All-Ivy heptathlete and captain of the track & field team. She earned a degree in history, with a focus in American Studies and the U.S. Civil War. A native of Hinsdale, Ill., the Trail Blazers rookie comes from a family of five. Her parents John and May reside in Hinsdale with the family dogs Jessie and Quincy, while her two brothers, John and Mike, live in Chicago









Just an FYI, she is back in action tonight, she'll be working her role on the sidelines, maybe she'll find *ZackAddy* tonight and get his thoughts on the team. :biggrin:


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## sa1177

Sorry Howie but I think you are wrong here.....beautiful girl and great person but she has alot to work on in terms of her reporting. She is clearly smart and does have some basketball knowledge but her reporting skills are severely lacking IMO.


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## HOWIE

sa1177 said:


> Sorry Howie but I think you are wrong here.....beautiful girl and great person but she has alot to work on in terms of her reporting. She is clearly smart and does have some basketball knowledge but her reporting skills are severely lacking IMO.


So you're telling me that she hasn't improved at all this season? Sure she has some improvements to do, don't we all? Maybe if she toned down the looks people wouldn't think she is so lacking?

I'll admit when I first saw her on TV I thought she was to bubbly, but she has improved, it takes time we don't all come out being superstars, well unless you're Hap or Ed O. :biggrin:


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## MrJayremmie

I like her. I think she is a pretty good reporter. Leave her alone.


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## blazermaniaisback

she is good... and I just made this remark in another thread last week about her but someone needs to tell her what colors the opposing team's jerseys are so she doesn't match them. Its something I have noticed it a few times.


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## Stepping Razor

Post of the year.


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## B_&_B

I agree with Howie. I think she's doing a solid job and will only get better with time. 

Antonio Harvey took a beating from guys on this board when he first started. I think he's doing a great job now.


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## gatorpops

HOWIE said:


> I know that a lot of people were all for trading away Travis Outlaw when he first came on board with the Portland Trailblazers, he'd have flashes of greatness, but let's face it, he really didn't come out swinging or impressing people. Oh great, another high school player, wasted pick, best we could hope for was him to be an added player to a trade, blah, blah, blah.
> 
> Let me ask you this, how do you feel about Travis Outlaw now?
> 
> 
> Got me thinking about some trash that has been thrown out about Rebecca Haarlow. She is in her rookie season with the Blazer broadcasting crew, she is going through some growing pains as everyone does while they try to find their niches. I have heard a lot of talk like the comment from below that I read off of Mike Barrett's Blog.
> 
> 
> 
> Maybe the fact that she is attractive takes away from her knowledge and enthusiasm of the game. Maybe it's just Portland fan having to have something to complain about with the team playing so good. :whoknows:
> 
> In all serious I think that she is getting better at her job every broadcast. Seriously, this is her rookie season with the team, sure she'd be nervous in the beginning, wouldn't you? You can't tell me with a straight face that she isn't improving. I'd even go as far to say that she could turn into our *Jermaine O'Neal of broadcasting* with her complete package. Yes I think she is that good, have you seen some of the other sideline reporters out there? I suggest you watch League Pass and see just how lucky Portland is to have her.
> 
> Did you know that her father *John Haarlow *played at Princeton with *Geoff Petrie* (1st ever pick of the Portland Trailblazers.) and she's been around the game all her life.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Just an FYI, *she is back in action tonight, she'll be working her role on the sidelines, maybe she'll find ZackAddy tonight and get his thoughts on the team*. :biggrin:


Or maybe we can get his thoughts on Harlow. Well maybe that not such a good idea after all. :biggrin:


gatorpops


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## maxiep

Count me as a Rebecca Haarlow fan. I think she's been good and has gotten better as the season has gone along. 

The job isn't too demanding, but it does take enthusiasm and the ability to develop a relationship with the players, staff and coaches so they'll tell her what's going on. To me, that's a primary factor of success for the job. I've already seen improvement in leaps and bounds since the beginning of the season. I expect to see her vastly improved at the end of the season than she is right now.

I could care less how she looks, but the fact she's attractive I think hurts her in the minds of people looking for reasons to dislike her. Many assume she's a bimbo, and her friendy, somewhat ditzy, demeanor only reinforces that belief. I'll just say this: You can't fake Princeton. You can fake many other elite schools (Stanford, Duke Cal, UVA, Cornell, Penn, etc.) but not Princeton.

Also, compared to Ann Schatz (who I always thought did a very good job), she's a fashion maven. If she wanted to be taken more seriously by the non-thinking masses who thinks she was hired simply because of her looks, she could tone down the war paint and dress in something closer to business wear. She could also smile a bit less, be less of a "fan" and deliver the info bits and interviews in a more straightforward manner. I think Melissa Stark's work on MNF would be a good model for her.

If I had to nitpick, it's that she still appears uncomfortable in front of the camera. She's always smiling, but her eye-blinking shows that she needs to relax a bit. 

My guess is the networks have taken notice and it's unlikely we keep her for more than two years. She's attractive, smart and yet she seems approachable and personable. She has that quality that producers crave. I think in Hollywood, it's called the "Q factor" or something close to that. It's the thing that makes Tom Hanks a star. We'll be seeing her nationally very, very soon.

Keep up the good work Rebecca and Go Blazers!


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## SodaPopinski

Here's an idea. Who cares?

She's ... a ... sideline ... reporter. Get over it, yourselves, whatever.

I can't think of one time I've ever watched a game in any sport and thought to myself - "God, what an awesome sideline reporter. He or she really made it worthwhile to watch!"

As long as she can piece together a sentence and doesn't drop the microphone, I'm all for it.

It's funny to me how some people have higher standards for their team's sideline reporter than they do for their president.

kwitchurbichin

-Pop


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## Schilly

I think she does a fine job as a reporter.


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## BBert

Nice article Howie. But couldn't you find a better picture of her? She's better looking than that. :biggrin: What I think is unfair is I've seen people complain she was only hired for her looks, but she's not good looking enough. Sheesh. Some people will go pretty far to invent something to complain about.

I think she does just fine. If they are going to have a sideline reporter, she's better than most. I do agree that it's all about the game, so by all means she should focus on asking questions that bring up salient basketball points, which I believe she can do. 



B&B said:


> I agree with Howie. I think she's doing a solid job and will only get better with time.
> 
> Antonio Harvey took a beating from guys on this board when he first started. I think he's doing a great job now.


Harvey took a beating, and he deserved it. He has progressed from intolerable to bearable. Haarlow is already an all-star compared to when Harvey started out. I think she has the potential to be really good, and leave us for a bigger market in a couple of years.

:cheers:


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## RedHot&Rolling

I'm in the Haarlow fan club! She does a reasonable job with the quick interview of the players and she's getting better at it. She needs to remember to ask open-ended questions each time.

She is doing the job as well as Ann Schatz did, but is softer on the eyes!!


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## zagsfan20

SodaPopinski said:


> Here's an idea. Who cares?
> 
> She's ... a ... sideline ... reporter. Get over it, yourselves, whatever.
> 
> I can't think of one time I've ever watched a game in any sport and thought to myself - "God, what an awesome sideline reporter. He or she really made it worthwhile to watch!"
> 
> As long as she can piece together a sentence and doesn't drop the microphone, I'm all for it.
> 
> It's funny to me how some people have higher standards for their team's sideline reporter than they do for their president.
> 
> kwitchurbichin
> 
> -Pop


Hah.

Exactly what I was thinking. Who cares.


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## hasoos

This has to be one of the strangest threads ever. :biggrin:


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## Dan

honestly, I'm a at a point where I don't give a crap about the TV production or who does what anymore. I'm not seeing it on TV, so who cares.


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## Yega1979

Rebecca Harlow's hot; Travis Outlaw's not.


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## mook

No, dammit. This is the Travis Outlaw of broadcasting:


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## Dan

BBert said:


> Nice article Howie. But couldn't you find a better picture of her? She's better looking than that. :biggrin: What I think is unfair is I've seen people complain she was only hired for her looks, but she's not good looking enough. Sheesh. Some people will go pretty far to invent something to complain about.


I'm more bugged by the implied notion that she's just there for the players pleasure, or that she's just skanking her ourself out to the players more than I am that she was hired for her looks.


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## Nightfly

The general rule of broadcasting is:

You can't please all of the people all of the time.

Although my experience is that some people will just find reasons to complain no matter what.

I had a gal call up and make a request. She complained that we didn't play that song enough. So I played her song during the show and she called back to complain that I didn't play it soon enough! You just can't please some people no matter what you do.


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## threetomaketwo

maxiep said:


> If I had to nitpick, it's that she still appears uncomfortable in front of the camera.



I might be wrong but isn't that the important part of the job? Would you like an accountant who's uncomfortable around numbers or a broker who's uncomfortable around stocks?


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## Xericx

I like Rebecca. She does a fine job, dunno why all the hate on her or what exactly people are looking for in a sideline reporter. She just asks questions and her post game interviews are pretty relevant.


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## NewAgeBaller

WTF is this thread :lol:


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## For Three! Rip City!

The last thing I expected to find is any kind of thread complaining about Rebecca Harlow. I think she's great. As for Antonio Harvey, I think he's still terrible. I can't even listen to radio anymore. I used to mute the TV and listen to the radio when the Schonz was on.


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## MARIS61

Too small a sample too judge.

^#$%@!*&!COMCAST! :azdaja:


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## HOWIE

For Three! Rip City! said:


> The last thing I expected to find is any kind of thread complaining about Rebecca Harlow. I think she's great. As for Antonio Harvey, I think he's still terrible. I can't even listen to radio anymore. I used to mute the TV and listen to the radio when the Schonz was on.


The thread isn't to complain about Rebecca, it is to complain about the complaining. Personally I just don't get what the big problem is with people on this subject.

She has gotten better as she has progressed this season, if and when she leaves the Portland Trailblazers for a national network job I'm sure they'll bash her for leaving and complain about the replacement. :whatever:


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## NateBishop3

Let's work on the halftime guys first and then worry about Rebecca. The halftime guys are HORRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIBBBBBLLLLEEEEE.

"Tell them what they've won.... a basketball game." 

Sigh....

:no:


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## MAS RipCity

If MB really said that about Harlow, than I just lost a lot of respect for him.
PS- She isn't that attractive.


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## HOWIE

MAS RipCity said:


> If MB really said that about Harlow, than I just lost a lot of respect for him.
> PS- She isn't that attractive.


It was a fan comment on one of Mike Barrett's blogs. Mike Barrett thinks she's great.


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## Xericx

NateBishop3 said:


> Let's work on the halftime guys first and then worry about Rebecca. The halftime guys are HORRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIBBBBBLLLLEEEEE.
> 
> "Tell them what they've won.... a basketball game."
> 
> Sigh....
> 
> :no:


Michael Holton rules. At first I was like WTF, but I like it now. 

Dunno who the other guy is.


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