Celebrity Role Models: Though Hard to Come By, They're Out There

If you haven't yet seen the footage of Miley Cyrus' performance at the VMAs then you probably haven't been near a TV or computer all day. The dreadful and horrendous performance that Cyrus and Robin Thicke put on last night is one that may just top Madonna and Britney Spears' kiss as well as Justin Timberlake's revealing of Janet Jackson's chest on stage. What happened last night left many people asking how Miley Cyrus could act in such a manner that would make those who grew up idolizing her as "Hannah Montana" wonder what they saw in her. Not only was credibility lost, but so was a little bit of faith in celebrities as a whole.

It has become that way in sports as well. This entire summer has been all about yet another performance-enhancing drug bust with Alex Rodriguez being the main perpetrator. The same A-Rod who was said to beat Hank Aaron's home run record the right way is now potentially, though not likely, facing a lifetime ban from the game.

Thinking back to being a kid that just ended my Little League career when the Mitchell Report was released and seeing my childhood idol Sammy Sosa be labeled a cheater was one of the more crushing blows I have dealt with while being a fan of baseball. It's never fun being lied to and it's never fun knowing that the excitement of someone's career was done with dishonesty and carelessness.

It is becoming tougher and tougher to find those celebrities that kids, teenagers, and adults can admire and hold on a pedestal. While not every singer prances around a stage with a foam finger between their legs and not every baseball player cheats, there comes a stereotype and collective skepticism whenever a situation such as these arise. Celebrities are constantly called in to question and must deal with more pressure in the public eye than most of them care to endure.

Yet there are people that handle themselves in a way that, like them or not, deserve respect and admiration. In the game of football Tim Tebow and Robert Griffin III have dealt with being in the spotlight nearly everyday this summer. With Tebow now a New England Patriot and RGIII recovering from a torn ACL, both have been egged on by reporters to say something negative or call someone out via interview. However, handling themselves with nothing but class, both athletes have turned away from these chances.

For Tebow coming off a frustrating stint with the New York Jets, reporters practically drooled over the chance to hear the goody two shoes Tebow speak his true thoughts on the Jets organization and head coach Rex Ryan. For RGIII, the questions early on were all about what he thought of head coach Mike Shanahan leaving him in late in the game when the Redskins appeared to have the game in the bag. Both deflected the negativity and failed to take advantage of the media's encouragement to speak ill of their head coaches.

The point is that even though our society has come to focus on the negative side of show business, there are those that represent the profession and sport in a way that we as fans and viewers can still admire and respect. While everyone is watching and waiting for the next athlete to slip up and make headlines on ESPN for weeks, there are athletes that we can be assured will never fill ESPN for negative reasons. Yes, role model-worthy athletes and celebrities are becoming hard to find, but they're most definitely not extinct.

ESPN's Reporting Continues to Falter

As an aspiring sports journalist/broadcaster it once was my dream to work at ESPN. While I still watch the various ESPN stations and enjoy some of the programming, it is my view that the business has gone downhill. No longer is ESPN an unbiased sports news station. Instead it centers around it's favorite teams and leagues. Rather than reporting on stories and issues, the various shows that ESPN airs would rather debate about the topic in an almost-uncivilized manner. It's all too much. It's not good reporting or journalism and it has brought ESPN's credibility down. Below are my observations.

There's an ESPN favorites club
If you're in the ESPN favorites club then life is sweet. If you're not then forget about being covered. For example, if LeBron James changes his shoes at halftime of tonight's game then I'm sure even that will be covered by Sportscenter tomorrow morning. However, if Indiana's Paul George records a double-double in the series clincher against the Knicks then it will register as just a blip on the radar. Why is that? Well it's obvious. Carmelo Anthony is a member of the Knicks and a member of the ESPN favorites club. When the Pacers defeat the Knicks that is not a story. The story is that Carmelo didn't get it done for the Knicks. Same story with the Heat. Instead of asking, how did the Bulls win, they ask, how did LeBron let the Heat lose?

Brett Favre might be the president of the ESPN favorites club. Remember his multiple retirement saga? ESPN followed him around like it was some kind of reality show. If Favre was caught throwing passes at a local high school then it was the top story. Meanwhile, the quarterbacks who were actually on teams at the time were getting zero press.

ESPN has there favorite teams too. The Cowboys and the Jets are always going to be top stories when it comes to the NFL. If it's the NBA then it's the Heat or the Lakers. Never mind that LA was ousted by the Spurs almost two weeks ago; ESPN still discusses the future of the Lakers despite all the other playoff series still going on. The Yankees are always going to be covered when talking MLB and the NHL hardly exists to ESPN. They have their favorite teams and players and those are the ones that will receive the coverage.

The sports world revolves around the NFL
ESPN has plenty of different shows that air on a daily basis, but there is an obvious favorite among the major pro sports. The NFL has almost five shows that air during a week and all of them cover the same topics. In contrast, the MLB has Baseball Tonight, the NBA has Fastbreak and the NHL has nothing. It is the middle of May and there is still NFL Live, NFL 32 and NFL Insiders airing on a daily basis. Why do we need that much NFL coverage? I couldn't tell you because Sportscenter also feels the need to use much of their program to cover pro football.

It's not fair at all because the reality is that most fans' only avenue to sports news on television is ESPN. That means that all they hear about is football. But you know what ESPN can't figure out? They will be the ones to comment on how hockey seems to be lacking attention, lacking fans and lacking interest in the United States. They fail to realize that their lack of coverage on the sport is part of the problem.

Right now I should turn on ESPN and see plenty of coverage on the NBA and NHL playoffs to lead off. Following that there should be coverage of last night's MLB games and then lastly there should be news from the NFL. The NFL is irrelevant right now because it's out of season, but someone forgot to inform ESPN about that.

A story isn't worth reporting if ESPN can't argue and debate it
Here's the perfect example on this new-found phenomenon at ESPN of always debating stories. When Jason Collins came out as the first openly gay athlete in American pro sports, it was a huge day for the LGBT community. It was a monumental moment and no one can argue that fact. Whether you support gay rights or not, this was a story worth reporting because it signals a change that is imminent in our professional leagues. Sports Illustrated reported on the story and did a magnificent job of letting Collins tell his story. That's it. Just tell his story.

Smith has become the poster child for the Debate Era

ESPN couldn't merely tell his story. Instead, the found a way to twist what should have been an informative story into a raging debate. LZ Granderson, an openly gay journalist for ESPN, and Chris Broussard, a Christian reporter on the NBA for ESPN, both appeared on ESPN's Outside the Lines just hours after Collins' announcement. What happened on the show was disgraceful and should not have happened. Broussard was asked several questions and basically baited into sharing his personal views on homosexuality. I'm fine with Broussard's opinion and I'm fine with Granderson's, but I have a problem with debating whether homosexuality is okay or not on a show that shouldn't be used as a platform for that.

I used to like watching ESPN First Take, but I no longer watch it because I cannot stand to listen to Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless yell at each other about every topic put in front of them. There is room for debate in sports journalism, there is no doubt about that. Pardon the Interruption has found the happy medium between debating and discussing. First Take would rather yell their way through the show and that is not enjoyable at all. Sometimes a story is just made to to be reported, not to be debated.

These are three of the biggest faults ESPN commits and it has hurt the television shows, their reporting and their entire programming in general. I sometimes wonder what direction ESPN is headed in because, in the day and age of reality television, it really seems like that's the direction that ESPN wants to go. They are not worried about giving equal coverage to all leagues and teams, but they would rather focus on the teams and leagues that they find most exciting. That's not good reporting.

ESPN is highly-regarded as the best option for sports reporting. If we really do consider them the best then it's time they be held accountable.

Why the Dysfunctional Jets Will Never Win

 

Rex Ryan

There are teams and players who create headlines for all the right reasons. Take Aaron Rodgers or Derrick Rose for example. The two are arguably the hottest athlete in their respective sports and they play at a high level while remaining humble and staying out of trouble. Rodgers is on his pursuit of a second straight Super Bowl victory and Rose is trying to lead his Bulls to their first NBA championship since the Jordan era. Both men are respected and that's because they win while keeping a low profile. In today's sports world everyone thinks that the loudest and the baddest win, but that is not the case. One must only look as far as the New York Jets to see why loud and out of control teams can't win.

Just when you think it can't get any worse in the Big Apple somebody else on the Jets steps up and says something dumber than the last guy. Rex Ryan is always good for a quote and he doesn't mind talking a little trash or speaking his mind. Sometimes that can be a good thing but Ryan repeatedly puts pressure on his players by voicing his honest opinions and predictions to the media. In their late season matchup against the Giants, Ryan talked a big game all week to the media before getting destroyed by their rivals 29-14. Afterwards, Giants running back Brandon Jacobs said what I think many opposing players around the league think when he told reporters that Ryan was a "big bellied loudmouth and disrespectful." Rex wants to win and he has shown that but his antics aren't working. The Jets lost in the AFC Championship game two years in a row but this year they finished 8-8 and ended the season on a three game losing streak. Rex keeps talking and his opponents feed off of his chatter more than his own players, or so it seems. Looking ahead to next season, Rex Ryan has to tone it down with his bold statements and predictions or the Jets will be doomed once again.

An even larger problem than Ryan's mouth is the locker room and the players' relationship with the media. The atmosphere that Rex has created is a terrible one for a sports franchise. What he has done is made it acceptable to say what you want, when you want and to who you want. Sure, that works fine when you are a good team but when the losses start to pile up the talk quickly turns negative and, as we see with the Jets, the team is in disarray. When a guy like Greg McElroy is going to the media and calling out several teammates and accusing them of being selfish there is a major problem. McElroy is so far down on the depth chart he isn't even sniffing the field and he is no place of leadership. Why would he go to some radio station and voice his opinions like that? Everything he said might be true but there is a code that what happens in the locker room stays there and he violated that. If the Jets are smart they put McElroy on the first plane out of LaGuardia and tell him go find another team.

McElroy's comments were uncalled for and have caused
a problem in the locker room

However, at least McElroy spoke his mind and put his name to it. In the latest developments, Jets players have anonymously called out quarterback Mark Sanchez saying he is lazy and content because he knows he won't lose his spot as the starter. If you think that then that is fine but there are two things wrong with these players' actions. First, why would they go say that to the press??? That is something that should stay in the locker room and be dealt with as a team. Second, if you are going to tell the media then be man enough to put your name to it. That's one of the most cowardly acts. The media is never the place to voice opinions about the locker room and the Jets' players must realize this. It starts with Rex Ryan.

Until Rex puts his foot down and stops this, the Jets will not win a Super Bowl. He has not created an atmosphere that is healthy and it is one that breeds anger and arguing. Ryan has to shut his mouth and get his players to shut up as well. The bold, loud talk worked for awhile but no one is intimidated by Ryan anymore. Other coaches let him talk and then go kick his tail on Sunday. The New York Jets are the laughing stock of the NFL right now and it's because Rex Ryan and his players are out of control. It's like they are having a contest to see who can say the stupidest thing to the press. They can keep on talking too, because that 8-8 record isn't going to change and next year won't be much better.