Sunday, January 02, 2005
Dividing Line - Time Magazine April 27, 1998
In a very old article author Jack White asks some serious questions about the state of modern team sports and the reasons why no one ever seems to want to do anything about it. Dividing Line - April 27, 1998:
He comments that the Clinton presidential town hall meeting on race and sports that was broadcast on ESPN was "so narrowly focused on the inner workings of big-league college and professional sports that any lessons for the larger society were left unclear. How, for example, increasing the number of white cornerbacks in the National Football League will improve race relations quite frankly beats the hell out of me. What we need--and did not get from this panel--is a real discussion about the ways that playing sports, not just obsessing on them, can be used to transmit values that advance racial justice and equity. For that kind of talk you need educators and philosophers, not just coaches, jocks, ex-jocks and wannabe jocks who went into politics."
I worked for ESPN for over three months one time during the 96 Olympics and I don't recall ever seeing any educators or philosophers on the set or in the office. What did he really expect from a bunch of jocks debating the problems in sports which none of them wants to admit even exist? If anyone knows of a sports philosopher, please let me know.
He also complains, as do I, that many young athletes are being lied to and told they have a shot at the big time and shouldn't worry too much about other subjects in school when the reality is that getting a spot on a major team is about as likely as them winning the lottery. These kids need to receive educations so they can have jobs when their major league dreams don't pan out. Yet too often society and the schools look the other way while students at major "learning institutions" spend all their time learning to run and jump and play with balls.
Like Mr. White says: "Don't get me wrong. Playing sports can teach important lessons about teamwork and striving, but it offers a career to only a relative handful of athletes. And until we put sports back into perspective, we're playing a sucker's game."
He comments that the Clinton presidential town hall meeting on race and sports that was broadcast on ESPN was "so narrowly focused on the inner workings of big-league college and professional sports that any lessons for the larger society were left unclear. How, for example, increasing the number of white cornerbacks in the National Football League will improve race relations quite frankly beats the hell out of me. What we need--and did not get from this panel--is a real discussion about the ways that playing sports, not just obsessing on them, can be used to transmit values that advance racial justice and equity. For that kind of talk you need educators and philosophers, not just coaches, jocks, ex-jocks and wannabe jocks who went into politics."
I worked for ESPN for over three months one time during the 96 Olympics and I don't recall ever seeing any educators or philosophers on the set or in the office. What did he really expect from a bunch of jocks debating the problems in sports which none of them wants to admit even exist? If anyone knows of a sports philosopher, please let me know.
He also complains, as do I, that many young athletes are being lied to and told they have a shot at the big time and shouldn't worry too much about other subjects in school when the reality is that getting a spot on a major team is about as likely as them winning the lottery. These kids need to receive educations so they can have jobs when their major league dreams don't pan out. Yet too often society and the schools look the other way while students at major "learning institutions" spend all their time learning to run and jump and play with balls.
Like Mr. White says: "Don't get me wrong. Playing sports can teach important lessons about teamwork and striving, but it offers a career to only a relative handful of athletes. And until we put sports back into perspective, we're playing a sucker's game."
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