On July 4th, 2007, anyone in the city of Sochi, Russia could hear the yells of joy and jubilation coming from the streets. People were celebrating good news- they had just found out that they would be hosting the 2014 Winter Olympics, something that would bring not only provide an economic boost to the city, but would put the coastal city on the map, in a positive way. People would become exposed to the resort town on the coast of the Black Sea, a stunning location for the world to come together and celebrate athletic competition and achievement.
However, in June of 2013, just a mere 7 months before Sochi would host the Winter Olympics, with the entire world watching, the Russian government passed an anti-gay propaganda law. The law makes it illegal to: publically display affection between LGBT people, broadcast positive news stories about LGBT people, compare and/or equate gay and straight relationships, display symbols of LGBT equality (such as the rainbow flag), among other things. This new law leads gay citizens to live their life in constant fear of being arrested for being who they are. Violence against gays and lesbians in Russia is something that is not uncommon. Russia has also stated that they will arrest openly gay tourists (a statement that the IOC has refuted- they say that all tourists, athletes, and journalists will be safe).
NBC has acquired the sole rights to broadcast the 2014 Winter Olympics in the United States- which according to Time’s reporter Sean Gregory, they have paid over $4 billion dollars for to the International Olympic Commission (this figure includes the rights to the 2016, 2018, and 2020 Olympic games). Some say NBC’s close financial connection with the IOC may affect how they broadcast the gay rights issues in Russia. The IOC does not want any gay athletes to comment on the situation at hand.
NBC sports executive Jim Bell in charge of managing networks coverage of the Winter Olympics has said that they will not shy away from coverage and that they “will report stories as they develop.” NBC News Senior Vice President Alexandra Wallace has also said that their journalists’ job is to “report what’s going on in the world. We’re not activists: we’re observers and activists.” But it seems as though NBC is listening to their critics- coverage of Russia’s human rights violations has increased and the network has hired David Remnick, an editor at The New Yorker who has covered issues in Russia for years.
LGBT rights groups have urged NBC to cover the effects of Russia’s anti-gay laws. NBC has the opportunity to expose the global community to human rights transgressions that are currently occurring in Russia and perhaps change the future for the LGBT citizens in the country. The eyes of the world are not only on Sochi, but they are also focused on NBC.