Newscoma

Squegee Monkey won the New York State Gymnastics category for All-Around and as you read this, I’m sure you realize that I don’t know what I’m talking about.

But he did. For a little guy, he’s a strong as an ox. And I like to give him a hard time about Boy Gymnast outfits and that he used to put his carcass in one. He rolls his eyes and tries to enact some sort of selective hearing but I am persistent.

And it’s the Olympics so I have to ask him gymnastics questions. It annoys him to no end but I do it anyway.

As we were watching some dudes spin on the high bar, I asked him if he could do that back in the day before the gray set in.

“Yes,” he said cutting his eyes to me.

As I continued this game as I had a Miller Lite (or four) and he was downing a Guinness (or four) and it was bringing me a temporary, mindless diversion, Bob Costas came on the tube and we both did a spit take.

What was going on with Bob’s hair?

Squirrel Queen, who was taking a rare and brief break from her maddening sports schedule last night, said “I’ve always wondered if he was rocking a toupee? I guess he is.”

Our interest in gymnastics was gone. It was all about Bob’s hairdo.

Now I have no problem with toupees or hair extensions. They fascinate me.

My only question is why did he go for the Moe Howard look?

So I went here.

Lo and Behold, it was well known that Costas wears a toup.

Who knew.

I didn’t.

Another meaningless observation from Newscoma.

People want information immediately. Ahh, the days of scooping news for traditional outlets has been replaced to a large degree by finding on the innertubes.

And people want this immediacy on everything.

Meet NBC, who own the exclusive rights to the Olympics.

Meet a public who doesn’t want to wait 12 hours to see the opening ceremonies. This new audience wants it as it happens.

And this creates a problem.

NBC’s decision to delay broadcasting the opening ceremonies by 12 hours sent people across the country to their computers to poke holes in NBC’s technological wall — by finding newsfeeds on foreign broadcasters’ Web sites and by watching clips of the ceremonies on YouTube and other sites.

In response, NBC sent frantic requests to Web sites, asking them to take down the illicit clips and restrict authorized video to host countries. As the four-hour ceremony progressed, a game of digital whack-a-mole took place. Network executives tried to regulate leaks on the Web and shut down unauthorized video, while viewers deftly traded new links on blogs and on the Twitter site, redirecting one another to coverage from, say, Germany, or a site with a grainy Spanish-language video stream.

This is more important than you would think. Traditional media knows that they need to control their “product” but with the Internet, that is becoming increasingly more difficult.

So, what’s the answer? I don’t know but I do know that traditional models are being torn apart. And maybe, just maybe, the suits at the network should have taken this under consideration.

I’ve often said that in this new age of communication, if I had to have a choice between a decent laptop or a high-definition television, I’d take the laptop.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, times are changing.