Jim Ross Says Today’s Commentary in the WWE Is What WWE Wants
There's plenty of people who have things to say about today's commentary, but Jim Ross argues that it's what WWE wants.
Ross recently spoke with ESPN while hyping his new book Slobberknocker: My Life In Wrestling. Jim Ross understands that some people may be angry with how WWE commentators miss the mark, but he argues that's just how they are produced.
A lot of folks get angry at today's commentators, but it's how they're produced. It's their skill-set, a lot of them, and it's what is asked of them to perform and to do … the demands on today's wrestling broadcasters are extensive. The job description of that role has evolved and changed over the years. People can hear, and they can certainly tell that. It's changed a lot, and that's due to the fact that there are a lot of producers who are dictating what the product sounds like on the air," Ross continued. "It's a different mindset, they were raised differently. They have different values and they perceive things [differently].
Ross goes on, talking about how today's announcers lack wrestling territories, and what a great announcer should have.
It doesn't do announcers today any favors that there are no wrestling territories still in existence to any degree," said Ross, "To give them the practice, the refinement of their skill. They don't have that opportunity. The whole business has changed in that regard. The point is, any broadcaster that's good is a storyteller at heart," said Ross. "They also have a keen sensitivity to their demographic, and their target audience, and they never deviate too far from that target audience and what they believe that target audience is interested in. Great broadcasters have product knowledge. They have life experiences and they have good instincts. They're instinctually sound. They're very fast at processing information.
Since returning to the WWE earlier this year, Ross has called both the United Kingdom title tournament in January as well as the Mae Young Classic this past summer. He also called the main event of WrestleMania 33, where Roman Reigns defeated the Undertaker.