Fans with Microphones

There was an interesting discussion on the Drew Remenda Sports Show on Friday night on the role of sports broadcasters and especially reporting negative stories.
(ie The Eric Tillman thing or players getting in trouble etc)
I used to be a sports announcer in the 70's and 80's and it seems to me back then we, for lack of a better term, took a pass on the news stories and let the news department handle it. Now you hear the lead story on the news is Eric Tillman and his situation followed five minutes later by the sports and the lead story Eric Tillman and his situation. To me that is overkill.
As a former play by play announcer with the WheatKings and the Pats, it also appears to me that play by play announcers these days have become little more than sports fans with a microphone in their hand. I heard an announcer hold his "He Scores" for almost a minute to the point of nausea. That is nothing more than cheerleading.
I think announcers these days are too close to the team, to the players and have lost their ability to be objective. When I broke in, I was only a year or two older
than the players (at that time junior in Prince George) but I never had a desire to be the players buddies. They had their job to do. I had mine ! And objectivity was a large part in my mind. In fact if anything I was often accused of being too negative, too hard on the players. In 1975 I called the play by play for the Regina Pats and went through a 36 game winless streak. Thats half the season folks. Try to be positive about that. The Pats lost one night to Portland 15 - 1. Patty Ansell, in goal faced over 110 shots and was named the games first star.
Ah but I digress, I mean reminisce.
I also wonder what has happened to the game just selling itself. Nowadays you go to a Blades game and some huge dude painted blue interupts at every stoppage of play to
throw ice cream sandwiches or look for a monkey under a coffee cup or something else.
It used to be that just the game was enough but now the fans have to be entertained every minute, or at least someone pushing the buttons seems to think that.
I know things were always better back then but I do think announcers of today have lost their objectivity to a large degree and have become nothing more than an extension of the team they are working for. In other words a fan with a microphone in their hand.