This weekend #2 Alabama will take on #1 LSU in the most highly anticipated college football game of the year. In lieu of this, ESPN revisited a story from back in April that documented the story of Alabama’s long snapper, Carson Tinker, who was with his girlfriend when she was killed by the awful tornado that ravaged Tuscaloosa in April.
Here’s the link (It’s the video under “Video Results”). When you watch, take a close listen to the narrator, Tom Rinaldi. I have not found anyone that talks with more eloquence, conciseness, appropriateness, and color than Rinaldi. His writing is stellar, and he talks in a voice so connected to the story the viewer becomes subconsciously that more engaged. There’s no ego – he doesn’t try to twist the story with his personality, but lets the story do the talking for him.
My dad pointed this out to me a couple years ago. Like a third base coach or a long snapper, voice over artists share the unfortunate trait of rarely getting any attention unless it’s to point out flaws. But take a listen to the first line of the story: “In a place defined by the tide, it will be a day forever scarred by the wind.” He found a way to seamlessly introduce the two subjects of the story – the Alabama Crimson Tide and the tornado, and set the table for the rest of the piece. Plus it has that eloquence factor unmatched by many.
If there’s anyone reading this who, like me, wants to do this for a living, or is just interested in writing or voice over work, listen to Rinaldi. He could voice over a story about corn fields in Kazakhstan and I would still be glued to the television.
Time to Schein 