Storyline: Let’s face reality. Are we really surprised that famous athletes can be major assholes, maybe even criminals, just like the rest of us? When are we going to learn to stop worshipping athletes?
Two storylines have dominated the headlines since the end of Super Bowl 50. First it was Cam Newton walking out of the postgame press conference, which was a show of poor sportsmanship. Then it was a twenty-year-old story about Peyton Manning allegedly sexually assaulting a trainer at the University of Tennessee.
These two stories have driven the furor of social media the past week. I’m not exactly sure why. I don’t particularly care for either story and I’m going to explain why fans shouldn’t either.
Courtesy: mmqb.si.com
Let’s take a look at the Cam situation first. To me there isn’t much of a story here. Young, ascending, superstar QB loses his first Super Bowl. He then answers reporter’s postgame questions stoically. After about three minutes QB gets agitated. He cuts questions short. He stomps out of media session.
OMG! The horror!
Look, Cam was a bit of a sore loser after getting throttled by the Denver defense in the biggest game of his life. It showed. But I’m not sure why anybody would be that surprised given this QB’s history. Cam has shown he can be a sore loser. Why expect anything more when he loses his first Super Bowl?
Yes, the QB is the de facto team leader and needs to handle media obligations in a professional manner–no matter whether his team wins or loses. That’s the route Cam should have taken ala Russell Wilson last year. But emotions can cloud judgement and cause young men to make bad decisions. Cam was emotionally distraught after the loss and made a bad choice. It’s really as simple as that.
If you’re a Carolina fan, maybe this is a little concerning. But it’s not news, at least not “news” that drives stories about Cam’s mental makeup and his ability to win “The Big One.” Newton had an MVP season and his team lost the Super Bowl to an all-time great defense. I’m confident Cam will be back and this story will be nothing more than a single note, amplified ten-fold in the post-Super Bowl morass. As Stan Lee likes to say, ‘Nuff said.”
The Peyton Manning story is a much more serious matter for sports journalists and fans. But the problem for me is this: reporters did dig into the story 20 years ago–in 1996–when the alleged incident happened at the University of Tennessee. They did, again (in 2000) when Peyton detailed his side of the events in a book co-authored with his dad, Archie.
So, this story has been out there for years. Why is it re-surfacing now?
Courtesy: dailyreadlist.com
It appears the reason is Shaun King, who decided to write a story for the New York Daily News. King wrote about the racially-tinged, double standard in the media between Manning and Newton. He decided to research the assault case after a reader commented about it.
King then received a 74-page court document about the case from one of his sources. Most of King’s story is based on that court document.
He outs Peyton and the Manning family saying their image is based on lies. The family, King asserts, will do anything to anyone to maintain a squeaky-clean image and corporate viability.
Make no mistake about it. That court document is damning because it includes shocking details regarding the incident. But the problem with this document is that it’s entirely one-sided, written by lawyers representing the victim. It clearly does not represent the range of facts associated with the case. Again I repeat: this document was written by the DEFENDANT’S LAWYERS! If you are a Making a Murderer fan, then this is like treating as gospel a Ken Krantz job recommendation for Steven Avery.
This document was written explicitly to win a lawsuit against Manning. However, King presents it as a factual representation of the case. That’s not what I would call “impartial journalism.” King used the document to back up the story he preferred to tell. Yet, King’s article has pushed the Manning assault story back into the headlines.
I’m not questioning Manning’s guilt or innocence, one way or the other. I have no idea what happened in Tennessee or if the Mannings’ really are wolves in sheep’s clothing. But I do know this story really shouldn’t have legs. Right or wrong, this story is a retread. It resurfaced only because one reporter had an agenda.
Courtesy: jackhasspoken.wordpress.com
But, over and above that observation, let’s face reality. Are we really surprised that famous athletes can be major assholes, maybe even criminals, just like the rest of us? When are we going to learn to stop worshipping athletes? They play games well and, then, we demonize them when they do something extremely human?
All this is coming from a guy who loves sports, by the way. I just don’t hold athletes to a higher standard.
Personally I care about what happens between the lines. That’s it. If you expect athletes to be above the errors of humanity, then you’re surely going to be disappointed. And, if you don’t put athletes on a pedestal, then you’ll never have to knock them off it.
The media will do enough of that for everyone. That’s why these two stories don’t appeal to me .. and maybe they shouldn’t to you, either.
