It would be logical to assume that footage of an American gold medalist gymnast could go viral, right?
Not if mom's reactions are somehow more exciting.
NBC's video of Lynn Raisman watching daughter Aly Raisman perform on the uneven bars Sunday, with her nervous murmurs and face and body contortions, was the single most replayed moment on TiVo digital video recorders that night. It has even inspired a YouTube spoof.
The network doesn't have "parent cams" trained on the stands during every Olympic event. Moms and dads are featured only when they are relevant to the story lines, veteran NBC producer Molly Solomon said Thursday. But they've already been indelible parts of the network's coverage in the first few days of the London Games.
"Can you imagine the emotions of watching your kid compete?" Solomon says. "To me it's part of the fabric of the story."
— David Bauder — Twitter http://twitter.com/dbauder
EDITOR'S NOTE — "Eyes on London" shows you the Olympics through the eyes of Associated Press journalists across the 2012 Olympic city and around the world. Follow them on Twitter where available with the handles listed after each item.