A short quiz for today--no Googling, please:
How many of you non-football fans out there know why New England quarterback Tom Brady was in the news all summer?
How many of you non-hockey fans out there know why Chicago forward Patrick Kane has been in the news since early August?
One was accused of masterminded a scheme to tamper with game equipment.
The other was accused of rape.
One was the focus of an exhaustive league investigation, which resulted in a 100+ page report and a suspension. He appealed, lost, and took the case to federal court, where his suspension was set aside.
The other was welcomed to training camp this week.
One was no doubt targeted at least in part because his team has a history of stretching, finding loopholes in, and out-and-out breaking the rules. This is, of course, an affront to the integrity of the game and must be punished.
The other was not targeted, despite having a history of bad behavior, which includes an arrest for assault, a weekend in Wisconsin that is the stuff of frat boy legend, and now a rape accusation. But hey, it's okay, he's only 20/23/26 (his age at the time of the respective incidents), right? I mean, boys will be boys, right?
Granted, in the one case, the investigation turned up actual wrong-doing, while the rape case is still at the grand jury stage and no charges have been filed. It says something, however, that screwing around with footballs is much bigger news than rape.
Now you may Google away.
Pretty sad, isn't it?
ReplyDeleteActually, I think a lot of it has to do with football being more popular than hockey (that one football player who was seen beating up his girlfriend got a LOT of airtime). And cheating is always big news in sports. Still doesn't make it right, but the news will report what will gain ratings and what it thinks the people want to hear/read. And hockey is way down there on the interest scale (unfortunately).
ReplyDeleteI'd like to think that if Patrick Kane is guilty, he'll get what is due him, whether or not it's reported in the media.
A troubling fact. While I agree both deserve their day in court at least the one accused of rape should have something happen since the other was legally bitch slapped so hard.
ReplyDeleteI'm in Canada, so we probably get more hockey news that most US areas, and there has been a fair amount of press about Kane - but still not as much as deflate gate.
ReplyDelete-Donna--quite.
ReplyDelete-Stacy--I read an article in The New York Times recently where they were talking about the big business of sports, and they didn't even mention the NHL. There's definitely something to your point. On the other hand, Kane is one of the biggest stars in the game right now (which may well explain why the league has decided to wait for the grand jury before doing anything).
-Sheena-kay--nice to see you again. I think, over and above the "day in court", the league--all leagues--need to start being a little more proactive when stuff like this happens. I don't know if it would curb bad behavior on the part of the players or not (I doubt it; see the whole 'boys will be boys' thing) but it would send a message to players and fans alike that this stuff will not be tolerated.
-Jemi--That stands to reason. In the US, most of the coverage is likely limited to Chicago, since he plays there, and Buffalo, since that's where he grew up and the incident occurred. I honestly don't watch/read mainstream media for the most part anymore, so I really don't know what kind of coverage this has gotten.
Well, this is a big ole pile of ugly, huh? But in a country where KimK's butt and Kanye's rants get more attention than most anything else, we shouldn't be surprised when sports stars get attention too. But PKane shouldn't have to pay a price if he's just been *accused* of something. In my book, Brady and Belichek are despicable and should have been more harshly punished years ago. And people should stop whining about them getting a raw deal or being "bitch-slapped." It's not like they'll go to jail for their unsportsmanlike conduct. Worst thing, they lose money, and they have plenty more.
ReplyDelete