It misunderstood the need for context, the place of drama. It often omitted to tell viewers what was live and what was recorded. It let Australians down in its coverage of vital races involving our key champions. It should never have taken Seven so long to fix the problem, assuming it is fixed for the rest of the swimming competition. The Olympics are a daunting challenge for the media.
Mistakes are unavoidable.
But this coverage was a triumph of technology over content for too long. The risk is that television producers get carried away with one cross after another and lose the plot. Australians expect this for major sporting events. But when advertisements interfere with the event itself viewers get angry. Keep watching, not just the Olympics, but to see if Seven have killed the bugs.