Sports Media: Reporting the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

In the early twentieth century, media coverage of professional sports was substantially different than what it is today. New technologies such as the television and the internet have altered the way sports are presented to the global community. For example, the media has developed new means of providing stats, gossip, and other sports-related news. While in the past, the newspaper and the radio were the main sources of sports information, fans today have more resources available, such as twenty-four hour sports television channels (like ESPNEWS) and sports blogs (like Chris' Sports Blog). However, the increased access to athletes and other prominent figures in sports has been problematic because there has been an increase in inappropriate behavior in the media by those individuals. An example of the negative effects of the new structure of sports journalism is the recent turmoil in Los Angeles over Kobe Bryant (seen with his daughter in the image to the right), as described in a recent ESPN.com article. Bryant’s time as a Laker has had its ups and downs; since the franchise traded Shaquille O’Neal, the team has not won a championship, and Bryant himself has struggled, personally and professionally. In the wake of this history, Los Angeles Lakers' Coach Phil Jackson publicly questioned Bryant’s commitment to the team, and Bryant felt obligated to respond to the personal attacks on his work ethic. Luckily, all parties involved in the Bryant saga remained level-headed, and the comments did not lead to a physical confrontation or other improper actions.

Another problem with the increased presence of sports coverage in the media is that there have been many instances of athletes making crude statements to the media that have no social value. For example, John Rocker’s legacy has nothing to do with his pitching career, but rather focuses on racist statements he made in a 1999 interview with Jeff Pearlman in Sports Illustrated. Rocker’s outlandish opinions included a diatribe on New York Mets' fans: ''‘I talked about what degenerates they were, and they proved me right. Just by saying something, I could make them mad enough to go home and slap their moms.’" Another example of professional athletes wasting time venting private business in the media comes from a recent Los Angeles Times article by Sam Farmer, in which he discusses how National Football League athletes Adalius Thomas and Ray Lewis have been trading insults back and forth in the media, serving no other purpose beyond providing fodder for the media to discuss. These types of statements pose a problem for our society because these athletes, role models for many children worldwide, are using their fame to air their private business publicly. If a person chooses to live his life in the public domain, he has to accept all of the responsibilities that come with being a prominent public figure. For an athlete, one of those responsibilities is to behave appropriately and not ignore their duty as a role model.

In order to address this problem, there are two critical groups that need to respond. Firstly, adults need to step up and state that this type of behavior will not be tolerated. While the media has the obligation to report the news, adults have the right to state that they will not support franchises that allow their athletes and coaches to air their grievances through the media. Adults need to become proactive in protecting those who cannot defend themselves – the children – by refusing to purchase tickets to sporting events and sports merchandise and memorabilia until the sports industry enforces proper social standards. Additionally, professional athletes need to accept the importance of their function as role models: children who look up to them. It is unacceptable for professional athletes to follow the example of National Basketball Association Hall of Famer Charles Barkley (see the image to the left), who refuted the notion of athletes as role models. While parents and teachers do have a more hands-on role in child development, professional athletes need to accept all the responsibilities that come with earning a living playing sports. Therefore, professional athletes must recognize the repercussions of their words and their actions, and regulate how they behave in a public forum.