Super Bowl is a media event and more

With an NFL-record crowd expected to attend Super Bowl XLV between Green Bay and Pittsburgh, the event is poised to prove things are biggest in Texas.

The media coverage will be no different.

"The Super Bowl transcends its location," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said. "But because of this year's location, and the proliferation of media in the DFW area, we will have more media on hand than ever. We have to turn down many requests because we can't accommodate all of the people who want to be on-site."

The NFL issued 5,082 media credentials for the big game, up 377 from last year's game in South Florida. The Super Bowl has become a cultural event that draws more TV viewers than any other program all year.

Things have changed since Super Bowl I in Los Angeles, when just 388 media members received credentials.

Fox ready to go

Fox will air this year's game, and around 400 employees were in Arlington on Jan. 27 to set up.

"It takes an unbelievable amount of great personnel," Fox game director Rich Russo said. "There is such a buildup.

"We are working all year to get to this point. It takes a lot of people and a lot of effort."Many members of the Fox production staff were in Chicago for the NFC Championship, traveled to Hawaii for the Pro Bowl last weekend and then flew to DFW. For the game, Fox will have 20 manned cameras, a cable camera, seven stationary cameras, four super slow-mo cameras, two Fox "X-Mo" cameras that shoot 500 frames a second, eight robotic cameras, eight pregame cameras and 18 digital replay machines.

More than 50 miles of audio, fiber audio and video cable were required for setup.

"The Super Bowl has always been big, but it's incredible how it has grown, even internationally," said Russo, who has been part of 16 Super Bowl broadcasts. He is the main director for the first time, dictating which camera shots to use and when.

"Cowboys Stadium is an unbelievable venue. It was designed with TV in mind. We've been fortunate because we have done games here. This place is state of the art, and the camera angles are incredible. This is as good as it gets."

Taking over Cowtown

ESPN moved around 320 people to Fort Worth this past week for its Super Week coverage.

"That's TV, radio and ESPN.com," ESPN executive director Stephanie Druley said. "Fort Worth had what we needed. We looked all over the Metroplex, but Fort Worth had the right atmosphere, the space and great foot traffic."

Druley, a Houston native, is working her 14th Super Bowl. Her first was XXXI in New Orleans, where she watched the Packers defeat New England. While Green Bay is making another appearance this season, almost everything else has changed since.

"It's just the scale of everything," Druley said. "We are 10 times bigger than we were back then, and we broadcast all day. The entire media spotlight has increased tenfold in that short time."

Even with record cold temperatures, many fans showed up in Sundance Square to be a part of ESPN's coverage, which Druley has helped plan for a year.

"I can only imagine, with the allure of Cowboys Stadium and the teams involved, how big this Super Bowl is going to be," Druley said.

Staying in-house

The NFL Network has only been around since 2003 and is covering its eighth Super Bowl. But already, it has become a major media player.

The NFL Network has aired more than 100 hours of programming this week, including 60-plus live hours. The network is starting its pregame show nine hours before kickoff.

"We like to say, for the whole week before, we are the longest Super Bowl pregame show in history," NFL Network executive director Eric Weinberger said. "It's amazing how it gets bigger each year."

Around 250 NFL Network, NFL.com and NFL Films employees are in Arlington for XLV.

"The Super Bowl has become the place to be for any media member," Weinberger said. "There is a buzz every year, but this is a special one because it's at a new building."

Both sides of the fence

Troy Aikman will call the game for Fox. He played in Super Bowls XXVII, XXVIII and XXX.

"The access that the media now has into the lives of players is amazing," Aikman said after Super Bowl Media Day. "You have the NFL Network, social networking with players involved. People come in from all different mediums. I marvel each year at how this thing keeps growing and growing."

Michael Strahan, who is also a part of Fox's broadcasting team, also has been on the other side of the Super Bowl's media spotlight.

"A lot of times the players are looking at people they watch on TV, and they get a little star-struck, too," said Strahan, who helped the New York Giants upset New England in Super Bowl XLII. "That's just part of it. That's why so many players have their cameras. You never want to forget this."

Strahan said playing in New York and experiencing constant media pressure prepared him for Super Bowl week. For players from Green Bay and Pittsburgh, however, the attention could be too much.

"If you are new to this, it's overwhelming," Strahan said.

Brent Shirley, 817-390-7760

This story was originally published February 6, 2011 at 8:30 AM with the headline "Super Bowl is a media event and more."