NBC Sports Washington Produces First Championship Parade In Network History Following Capitals' Stanley Cup Victory Logistical challenges were met by collaboration and excitement from all involved By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Tuesday, June 26, 2018 - 1:45 pm
Print This Story
Story Highlights
It's been well-documented the significance of the Washington Capitals' Stanley Cup championship and what it has meant to the D.C. area, bringing the Nation's Capital its first title since 1992. It also delivered some history for the area's regional sports network, NBC Sports Washington, which produced its first championship parade in the RSN's history.
NBC Sports Washington on-air personalities Brent Johnson (left) and Alan May were among the team that broadcast the Washington Captials Stanley Cup Championship Parade on June 12.
When this became a reality, I'll be honest my first reaction was to get a little nervous, laughs Bill Bell, Executive Producer for Live Events at NBC Sports Washington. Even though I've had the pleasure of producing numerous live sporting events over the years, I had never done a parade before. I quickly had to educate myself on what this all involves.
Fortunately for Bell, and everyone at the network, there were plenty of colleagues across the NBC Sports Regional Networks family that had experience with just this kind of thing. Bell solicited the council of his compatriots in the Bay Area, Chicago, Boston, and Philadelphia and was able to get some valuable advice on how to pull off this unique undertaking.
He quickly learned that, while there were some general tips that proved helpful, each city provides its own unique logistical challenges and that he was facing perhaps some of the most stringent circumstances producing a parade in the streets of the home of the nation's government.
Much of the hard work, of course, took place in a tight window in the days and hours leading up to the event with organizing the legal use of RF and identifying the proper locations where cameras and satellite trucks could be places both along the route and at the rally area at the end of the parade. As expected, no drones were allowed, but there was a helicopter (supplied by the local NBC affiliate) capturing aerial shots.
Bill Bell, Executive Producer for Live Events, NBC Sports Washington
Teaming up with the local news affiliate in the city, NBC Sports Washington was able to deploy 14 total cameras with six at the rally site, the chopper, a pace car, and four cameras along the route supplied by the local affiliates. All feeds were funnels to NBC Sports Washington's truck who produce the general parade feed for their network and for sharing with the local news outlets.
Knowing where all of the cameras are and what they are supposed to look like is one thing. Finding the cohesive way to integrate them in the telling of a story is another, says Bell. I'd be lying if I said I knew every shot I was going to take moments before I took it. It was really a feel thing and anticipating the next area on the route and what that shot might look like.
Bell noted that perhaps the most valuable piece of advice he received from his NBC Sports Regional Network brethren was to have a jib. When watching NBC Sports Philadelphia produce the Eagles parade back in February, it was clear to him just how much the jib brought to the broadcast.
I saw the integration of that and I didn't realize how valuable it really was until I actually had it, says Bell. Without it, the show looks flat, but with it, it really made it feel grandiose. I had to fight to get it approved on site and I thought that was a pleasant surprise and I really appreciate my colleagues for pushing me to have that.
All in all, NBC Sports Washington delivered viewers more than five hours of coverage surrounding the events of the parade on June 12. Bell, who has worked some major events in his career including numerous Olympics and Cal Ripkin Jr.'s 2,131 game back in 1995 admitted that this event is perhaps one of the coolest events he's ever worked on in his career.
When it comes down to what it meant to our network and this city, he says, it's easily the coolest thing I've ever had the chance to be a part of.
Most recent headlines
18/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
18/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
18/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
18/12/2025
Long-term agreement includes the SES SCORE platform and hybrid distribution worldwide to deliver more than 5,000 hours of golf tournaments annually featuring th...
18/12/2025
At 7.45pm on 1st January 1926, the precursor to RT , then 2RN, delivered the fledgling new Irish state's first public radio transmission. From those first c...
18/12/2025
Step out of the vault and into the future of gaming with Fallout: New Vegas streaming on GeForce NOW, just in time to celebrate the newest season of the hit Ama...
18/12/2025
December 18 2025, 05:30 (PST) The Movie Experience SLO Becomes First U.S. Exhib...
17/12/2025
Investigative journalists across the Western Balkans and T rkiye continue to con...
17/12/2025
Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame Inducts 10 Industry Icons During Unforgettable ...
17/12/2025
ESPN to Debut MNF Playbook with Next Gen Stats, a New AI-Driven NFL Data-AltCastThe series, powered by Adrenaline TruPlay AI, launches Dec. 22 and runs through ...
17/12/2025
Inaugural Optum Golf Channel Games Debut Under the Lights' in Primetime on ...
17/12/2025
The right playlist is essential on New Year's Eve, building the energy as you get ready and keeping it high as you count down to midnight. This year, Spotif...
17/12/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
17/12/2025
Audiences Watched Over 103 Billion Minutes of TV on Thanksgiving Day
NFL Games ...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
17/12/2025
KPop Demon Hunters Stars Visit Berklee for Weeklong Celebration Andrew Choi and EJAE, who voiced the film's main characters and contributed to its soundtr...
17/12/2025
December 17 2025, 17:00 (PST) Dolby and LG Unveil a New Era of Home Audio With ...
17/12/2025
Wednesday 17 December 2025
Heated Rivalry will be coming to Sky and streaming service NOW on 10 JanuaryTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy opti...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Inside The Unseen World Of Indian Customs: Netflix Reveals The...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix announces PAPARAZZI KING: the docu series coming to Ne...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils First Look at Jo Nesbo's Detective Hole Pr...
17/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Welcomes Warner Bros. Discovery Board Recommendation
Business
17 December 2025
Global
Link copied to clipboard
After Careful Revi...
17/12/2025
RT has announced that Kathy Fox has been appointed Commissioning Editor with re...
17/12/2025
The Hao AI Lab research team at the University of California San Diego - at the forefront of pioneering AI model innovation - recently received an NVIDIA DGX B...
17/12/2025
Editor's note: This post is part of Into the Omniverse, a series focused on ...
17/12/2025
With the new season of Dancing with the Stars shimmering in the not-too-distant future this New Year, the celebrity and dancer pairings of the twelve couples ha...
16/12/2025
Hawkins has landed on Spotify, just in time for Stranger Things Season 5, Volume...
16/12/2025
Wherever you are, your favorite music and audio content should go seamlessly with you. That's why Spotify has partnered with NAVER Corp, Korea's leading...
16/12/2025
2025 Wrapped arrived bigger and bolder than ever. This year's experience is designed to be ultra personal and shareable, with new features like Wrapped Part...
16/12/2025
Three 12-kilowatt Advanced Electric Propulsion System thrusters, supplied by L3Harris Technologies, form the core of Gateway's propulsion system. Pictured i...
16/12/2025
The challenge facing America's defense industrial base is not just about speed - its about rebuilding the foundation that makes speed possible. Our nations ...
16/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
16/12/2025
SEVILLE, Spain Canal Sur, the public broadcasting service for Andalusia, Spain, has completed a total technology refresh based on Pebble's resilient, softwa...
16/12/2025
NEW YORK Teleprompting hardware provider Telescript International has acquired all software code and intellectual property previously owned by Telescript West. ...
16/12/2025
As cable operators face increased competition from 5G fixed wireless access providers, a new report from Ookla Research finds that T-Mobile is the FWA speed lea...
16/12/2025
Apple has announced a major upgrade to the Apple TV app for device owners outside the Apple ecosystem with news that the Apple TV app for Android now supports G...
16/12/2025
Space42 grows Direct-to-Device partner ecosystem through a Memorandum of Underst...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON Announces Release Date for Full Year and Fourth Quarter 2025 R...
16/12/2025
16 Dec 2025
VEON's Kyivstar Invests in Renewable Energy in Ukraine with Acq...
NBC Sports Washington Produces First Championship Parade In Network History Following Capitals' Stanley Cup Victory Logistical challenges were met by collaboration and excitement from all involved By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital 
