tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post8273135654123301752..comments2023-10-31T06:31:41.395-04:00Comments on Bottom of the Barrel: Jemele Hill Writes a Column Saying a QB's Race Is Still a Factor, Thereby Helping To Make Race for a QB Still a FactorBengoodfellahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401971573776672570noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-67170439043111627352011-09-29T22:05:46.371-04:002011-09-29T22:05:46.371-04:00Pat, I think some people would disagree with you i...Pat, I think some people would disagree with you it is a non-factor in discussions because they believe it to be very present. What irritates me though is the discussion of race to sell magazines and get pageviews. <br /><br />"What if Mike Vick was white?" is a blatant attempt to sell magazines and has zero journalistic value. That's what irritates me the most a/b ESPN, they don't care about much else outside of making money. Everyone has jumped all over Jeff Pearlman b/c of the Payton bio excerpt, but would it have been any better if ESPN had a writer do a book whitewashing his life and then cross-promoting it on ABC? Shouldn't we be more angry over a blatant attempt to race-bait then an in-depth bio about an athlete? <br /><br />I do hope and believe we can get to the point where we are separating the person from the action and judge that person based on the action and not any feature of his (like race). For me, JemeHill was making a double standard exist that wasn't there. She was essentially making shit up. She wants to give the perception Tebow gets complimented for his running ability, when in fact that is something that turns him off to some teams. She wants the tattoos to be a race issue rather than an issue of a crusty owner who expressed an opinion to an athlete and has expressed a similar opinion to a white athlete. <br /><br />ESPN, and JemeHill in this case, want to be able to frame the public's reaction to a player in a way that gives her a column to write. What the hell is she going to write about if there isn't a race issue? A story about an owner who hates tattoos is boring, but if you combine this opinion with a league-wide double standard then that is journalistic gold. Her column will get read. <br /><br />I think race is a factor in society, but I also think to bring up race in situations like this one does a disservice to the entire issue. If we can't get past the crap, we can't get to the heart of the issue.Bengoodfellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09401971573776672570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-23978497459600350462011-09-29T15:42:49.514-04:002011-09-29T15:42:49.514-04:00My two cents, although I think you did a great job...My two cents, although I think you did a great job of this yourself. Pointing to one purely idiotic decision by Chad Millman and ESPN the magazine to run that absurd "What if Mike Vick were White?" speaks more to ESPNs continued inability to comprehend public perception and tastes; the Jemele Hill article is proof of this. Race may still be a divisive issue in this country but I do think that we are constantly moving towards a point where it is a non-factor in all discussions. I don't think ESPN, however, recognizes this and believes that their importance is so great that they have to be the leader driving the discussion. ESPN believes sports fans only derive their knowledge, perceptions and opinions about sports from them therefore they are crafting a self-fulfilling prophecy by making race an issue so that they can admonish the straw-man of public ignorance. <br />It is not fair to insult the vast majority of the public by making theoretical public perceptions about athletes race rather than their actions. Mike Vick will be despised by a section of the public mostly because he committed atrocities against dogs. It is not because everyone hate Mike Vick because he is black. Like you pointed out, people will hat Ben Roethlisburger because of the rape in Milledgeville that may or may not have occurred, will hate Bernie Madoff because he stole from others and have been turned away from the Catholic Church because of the abuse scandals. We are gradually reaching a point in our world, at least in the United States, where we can properly assess people character on the basis of their actions and not on an arbitrary factor like ethnicity, and in my example, religion. Bigotry is offensive. ESPN projecting bigotry on its readership is offensive and, most importantly, drawing athletes such as Cam Newton and Tim Tebow into questions of race in sports when neither has asked for it and when has done anything to be included is offensive. It is poor, hackneyed writing that is increasingly becoming a hallmark of the world wide leader.Patnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-56931644973168335152011-09-29T08:58:02.925-04:002011-09-29T08:58:02.925-04:00Arjun, there isn't a credible argument in here...Arjun, there isn't a credible argument in here. Not one. She claims there is a double standard in this situation, then brings up the issue where Richardson looked down on Shockey's tattoos. Then she is like "well quarterbacks are scrutinized anyway." There may be a double standard out there for black quarterbacks but Newton gets as much praise as any other player for bowling over defenders or running with the ball. You are right, Tebow is criticized for the same stuff. <br /><br />Rich, the fan base probably doesn't care how many tattoos Newton gets either. Richardson just made a comment. What's really interesting is many in the Panthers fan base were aware of these comments a few months ago, but they finally came public recently. No one thought much of it because (a) Newton would probably have a tattoo by now if he was getting one and (b) there are a ton of Panthers players w/ tattoos that are Richardson's favorite players. <br /><br />What would happen if Newton got a piercing or tattoo? Absolutely nothing. <br /><br />Murray, exactly. Richardson is pretty closed-minded on this issue and he definitely isn't with the rest of us in 2011, but he wasn't going to get rid of Newton and he didn't say this to Newton because of his race. I read through the article hoping JemeHill would skip the comment to Shockey that Richardson made...but she just faced it head-on which seemed to ruin much of her argument to me. <br /><br />Anon, that is interesting you got to read her stuff at MSU. There are times I feel like she is being somewhat tame, but now that you have told me she is for sure I would love to read some of her less-tame writing. <br /><br />What's irritating for me is she takes a real societal issue, racism, and frames many arguments in its context. This covers up any real issues that she could discuss or discussions she could further because she is seen as making everything about race. I think the link between race and tattoos/perception for Newton and Vick is a bit tenuous here.Bengoodfellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09401971573776672570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-11934441604408464422011-09-29T08:17:08.428-04:002011-09-29T08:17:08.428-04:00Sadly I have a long association with Jemele Hill a...Sadly I have a long association with Jemele Hill as she was a writer on the paper at Michigan State when I was a student there. All I can say is the stuff she writes now is absolutely tame compared to the race baiting horseshit, mostly non sports related, she published in college. She is quite simply a racist of the highest order and it is a sad commentary on our society that she is allowed to publish her views on a major media website simply because she is a color and gender where it's "allowable" to spew such hate filled filth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-14214047184499501072011-09-29T06:48:22.253-04:002011-09-29T06:48:22.253-04:00When that story on Richardson came out I did not n...When that story on Richardson came out I did not not think of racism. I thought of Grandpa Simpson on Johnny Unitas<br /><br /> "Now that's a haircut you could set your watch by"Murraynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-8925955765685212162011-09-28T22:54:49.261-04:002011-09-28T22:54:49.261-04:00There was an understandable outcry
Understandable...<b>There was an understandable outcry</b><br /><br />Understandable outcry? Over tattoos? I mean I have several tattoos, but holy shit, if your boss is going to give you half a gazillion dollars, asking him to not get any tattoos isn't really asking that much. As a TA, I cover mine up and if someone came in and said "We'll give you a 10 million to work for us the next 5 years, but you have to get your tattoos removed." Guess where I am the next day? <br /><br />The funny thing about this: what does that request have anything to do with race? Has Hill watched an NFL football game? There are a ton of white players who have tattoos as well. <br /><br />Oh no a white billionaire asked his black millionaire to not get any tattoos! Racist!<br /><br /><i>There are white players the public will never forgive for their crimes as well. Ben Roethlisberger is a great example. He's not beloved by many fans, outside of Steelers fans.</i><br /><br />Here's another example: Ryan Leaf. Dude was a terrible NFL QB and was a general all around asshole and people still hate him.<br /><br /><b>But if a prominent black athlete -- especially a high-profile quarterback, the No. 1 overall pick and the de facto leader of the team -- has tattoos or piercings, it takes on an entirely different connotation.</b><br /><br />AHAHAHAHAHA. Really? Quick, someone go find out if Andre Johnson has a tattoo. If he does, I'm trading his ass off my fantasy team.<br /><br />I love how Hill can't get her argument straight. She tries to tell all of us how awful it is that Newton is being asked to not have any tattoos or piercings and that it's because of his race...<br /><br />... then talks about how Richardson told Shockey he could do without the tattoos and that the QB position is scrutinized killing her entire argument.<br /><br />Honestly at this point, I don't know if Hill is stupid enough to actually believe this shit or if she's just milking the cash cow that is ESPN. It's embarrassing either way though.richnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-39208150268973762592011-09-28T19:31:06.400-04:002011-09-28T19:31:06.400-04:00i really have no idea what jemele hill is talking ...i really have no idea what jemele hill is talking about and does an incredibly poor job developing a coherent argument. i have no idea if the believes there is a double standard or why/what evidence this is based on but whatev. my only comment: she brings up tim tebow as an example of a white quarterback who gets praised for trying to bowl over a defender...ummmm, what world is she living in? there's been at least a million columns written and opinions spoken about how tebow will never make it BECAUSE of his running style. to say that tebow never receives criticism for this is absurd and is a terrible way to make an argument.Arjun Chandrasekharhttp://www.arjun-allthingssports.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.com