CBS is planning on adding a new sporting event to their broadcasts: Video Game Tournaments.

Up until now, smaller networks like G4 and Gameplay have aimed their Video Game broadcasts towards the seemingly-small group of teenage gamers. But with recent consoles (such as the Nintendo Wii) appealing to broader and more general audiences, CBS is aiming for the bigger picture; attracting people of all ages to the Video Game culture ...

The magic of television has already transformed everything from motorcycle acrobatics to poker into living-room spectator sports, not to mention turning competitive singing into a national obsession. Next on the list: video games.

Tomorrow at noon, CBS, the august home of the Masters and March Madness, will become the first broadcast network in the United States to cover a video game tournament as a sporting event.

So viewers flicking channels looking for a ballgame or golf tournament may instead encounter a couple of young guys rocking out on plastic guitars, or some (literally) disembodied digital boxers throwing uppercuts, or a fanciful animated wizard casting a spell.
“Who knows, in 10 years we could be looking back on this as a very significant moment,” said Rob Correa, senior vice president for programming at CBS Sports.

Miss Razz via nytimes.com »