Nickel and Dime Coverage
Etan Thomas and Dave Zirin say the media coverage of the death of Sean Taylor was hateful and cruel.
by Etan Thomas and Dave Zirin
As a video screen behind his casket flashed highlights from a career cut devastatingly short, thousands of people filled an arena in Miami on Monday for the funeral of Washington Redskins star Sean Taylor. Speakers expressed their suffering at the loss of a loved one, friend and colleague. It may sound like a cliche and maybe even quite corny, but while sports can be a ruthless business, a pro team is like any family — you may not get along with everyone but the bonds are deep and real.
We saw this demonstrated as the entire Redskins organization, including players, coaches and team officials, traveled to Miami for the funeral, where they were merely a handful among 4,000 mourners. They were all there because Sean Taylor paid the ultimate price to ensure that his girlfriend and their daughter, hiding under the covers in fear for their lives, were protected.
The entire story would have been heartbreaking to anyone actually with a heart. Sadness today is mixed with outrage as much of the media used Taylor’s death to advance a script that couldn’t have been more breathtakingly callous. Within hours of his shooting, while Taylor was still in a coma, more than a few columnists were writing off the shooting as the “unsurprising” results of a “thug-life” gone awry.
Take Leonardo Shapiro, sports columnist for the Washington Post. On Tuesday, November 27, Shapiro wrote…
Still, could anyone honestly say they never saw this coming? You’d have to be blind not to consider Taylor’s checkered past. It was only a few months after he was drafted, when we got something of an inkling of what sort of young man the Redskins were selecting out of the University of Miami with the fifth overall selection in 2004…
In the wake of his shooting, we are now hearing about a so-called new Sean Taylor, a guy who seemed to be getting his life back in order, perhaps because of the birth of his child. Maybe a light bulb finally went off in his head.
Unfortunately, this type of coverage was not an aberration. Even the coverage on “SportsCenter” was mired in negativity. Jason Whitlock unsurprisingly blamed “hip-hop,” which for some reason — no idea why — takes the blame for everything.
ESPN Radio’s Colin Cowherd was especially callous and downright hateful. This is the actual venom that he spewed over the airwaves…
Sean Taylor, great player has a history of really really bad judgment, really really bad judgment. Cops, assault, spitting, DUI.
I’m supposed to believe his judgment got significantly better in two years, from horrible to fantastic? “But Colin he cleaned up his act.”
Well yeah, just because you clean the rug doesn’t mean you got everything out. Sometimes you’ve got stains, stuff so deep it never ever leaves … My gut feeling with this story, and we said yesterday, yesterday was not really a day to go out, yesterday was sort of a day, you know, grieving, but we’re past the memorial part. It’s grown-up time, ask yourself realistic questions … Just because somebody cleans the rugs doesn’t mean there aren’t stains. No matter what those commercials, OxiClean, tell you on cable TV, some stains you can’t get out. And if you have bad judgment for 23 years of your life, even if you clean it up, your judgment doesn’t get great over night.
It’s hard to imagine how Cowherd still has a job. First of all, the DUI arrest was thrown out. No charges filed. Spitting in game, while extremely disrespectful, should not have even been mentioned as a reason for this tragic event to have occurred. Terrible sportsmanship, but it happens far more than it’s picked up by cameras.
As far as guns, conspicuous in the conflict in Taylor’s home was that he didn’t have one.
This isn’t to argue we should all be armed to the teeth, but it’s hard to point fingers about gun ownership when the U.S. of A. is a sidearm Shangri-La where buying a gun in most states is easier than renting a carpet shampooer. There are 96 guns for every 100 people in this country. The Washington Redskins do joint events with the NRA. Apologies certainly are owed to the Taylor family and everyone of his heartbroken fans.
Sportswriter Mike Freeman said it best when he wrote…
The media coverage of Taylor’s tragic murder, as well as the message board postings by morons and amateur criminologists across the Internet, show a disturbing trend. The coverage of Taylor has portrayed him almost as the thug, the criminal, instead of a victim murdered in his own home … What the Taylor case demonstrates is the significant weakness of today’s instant media world. Taylor has yet to be buried, but a significant number of writers and broadcasters are not only casting him as the bad guy but even insinuating that he was destined to die a violent death … There are pets and dead petunias shown more respect in their demise than Taylor has been shown in his by some in the media and the general public.
Perhaps now we can look honestly at Taylor’s death as part of a disturbing trend of athletes as targets for violent crime. In the last year, NBA players Antoine Walker and Eddy Curry, and NFL players Dunta Robinson and Phillip Buchanon have all been robbed in their homes at gunpoint. Other athletes have seen their homes broken into when — as is made clear in the morning paper and on the web — they are out of town. For far too many athletes, the current sports landscape feels like a nation of enemies, a place where bodyguards, gated communities or even guns are the only way many feel at peace.
Taylor’s former teammate, All-Pro Chris Samuels, told Peter King…
“I was always scared of guns growing up. But this situation has told me I need one. I’d rather be prepared than to be like Sean was, and not have a gun in his house when he really needed it. I’m going to go through all the proper procedures, get a license, get training for it and have it in my house, where I lay my head at night.
“I wish a lot of people thought like I did, that violence is bad. But unfortunately that’s not the way the world is. Sometimes the world is not a nice place. It’s sad I have to get a gun.”
An African proverb comes to mind: It does the antelope no good to rule against eating meat unless the lion agrees.
Here’s a question worth answering: If Sean Taylor had a gun, would we have seen a different outcome? A shootout between Sean Taylor and the thieves could have resulted in the sparing of his own life, or it could have resulted in the harm of his family.
Now, the theory of most right wing conservatives is guns for everyone. But the fact is many people, like Dick Cheney, don’t need to have guns. Not only can they make a situation worse, but there are just too many stories of accidents in the house, especially if there are children in the home.
But it does raise a very interesting issue. How would it have been reported if Taylor shot and killed the people breaking into his family home. Would he have been described as a hero for saving and protecting his family or a villain who embraced a thug life mentality?
Times have certainly changed since the days when a young Muhammad Ali walked the streets of Harlem without a bodyguard in sight, saying, “I’m an easy target. I’m everywhere; everybody knows me. I walk the streets daily, and nobody’s guarding me. I have no guns, no police. So if someone’s gonna get me, tell them to come on and get it over with — if they can get past God, because God is controlling the bullet.”
What has changed since the days of Ali cannot be quantified simply by dollars and cents. Ali saw himself as part of a broader community — and that community saw Ali as one of their own, as someone who didn’t live on a pedestal.
We need to figure out how to rebuild and repair the bridge between athlete and fan, between celebrity and community, and between teams and the cities where they ply their trade. These questions deserve serious discussion.
It’s a discussion the media should try to take part in, instead going for the cheap headline.
Etan Thomas plays for the Washington Wizards and is the author of the book More than an Athlete. Dave Zirin is a columnist for SLAM magazine and is the author of Welcome to the Terrordome.
44 Responses to “Nickel and Dime Coverage”
Dec.6 at 4:28 pm
white hot eboy says:
Co-sign, 10,000 times.
Dec.6 at 4:33 pm
Khalid Salaam says:
For Real….
Dec.6 at 4:36 pm
white hot eboy says:
And Colin Cowherd deserves an as*-fuc*ing. Sorry for the crassness, but that bitch deserves it.
Dec.6 at 4:39 pm
hbomb says:
sean taylor is a hero
Dec.6 at 4:43 pm
At The End Of The Day says:
do we really need another Sean Taylor story? Hasn’t this horse been beaten enough?? When is the “Need for a BCS playoff” story coming??
Dec.6 at 4:45 pm
robertp says:
Difficult situation to get your arms around. Is the violence a byproduct of the environment the players mentioned above might have come from? Why does it seem like the majority of these negative stories only surround African-Americans? Nate Newton, Bam Morris, Michael Irivin, Rae Carruth, Ron Artest, Ron Tarpley, Darryl Strawberry, Michael Vick, Paul Pierce, Allen Iverson, OJ Simpson.. What are you thoughts???
Dec.6 at 4:47 pm
At The End Of The Day says:
Have you ever been to Liberty City? That might answer your enviornment question…
Dec.6 at 4:51 pm
white hot eboy says:
robert, don’t think that white players are escaping the burden of being as*holes. There are plenty of guys who do shi*ty things that just aren’t “lumped” into a character class. Believe that.
Dec.6 at 4:52 pm
robertp says:
I’m with you on that - Do you think the media focuses on certain issues more than others?
Dec.6 at 4:57 pm
white hot eboy says:
robert, I get the feeling that you are either genuinley naive to the issue at hand or just looking to get heated reactions from others, which is fine either way, I guess. Let’s just call a spade a spade shall we, (terrible symbolism, I know). Most of mainstrem media is still “white-centered” so yeah, the tearing down of young, rich black individuals seems to be something we cannot escape and it takes places like SLAM and people like Etan and Dave to shed light on these subjects that most other media outlets won’t.
Dec.6 at 4:59 pm
white hot eboy says:
Which is why SLAM is beloved by players of the game and the writers here are respected and can get the stories they do from the guys because they know it won’t be spun into a shi*fest.
Dec.6 at 5:11 pm
robertp says:
not naive - i just want to see what others thoughts are.
Dec.6 at 5:12 pm
H to the izzo says:
I don’t usually agree with Etan’s outlook on things but this was on point.
Dec.6 at 5:25 pm
Ron says:
I’ll admit that my first reaction was similar to the reporters, but unlike them, I waited to here the official reports before I made my own personal comments. Reporter need to go back to school and re-learn how to report the facts and let the public make the decision. The court of public opinion is now dictated by the opinions of “journalists”. This in my opinion is where the internet in all it’s greatness, actually hurts society. Everything is reported instantly where as factual informations takes time to collect. So to fill the column reporter use personal biased opines.
Dec.6 at 5:27 pm
d.Y. says:
Word, though no need to name check whitlock. At this point, he doesn’t even merit bad publicity. The gap between celebrity and community is borne of the philosophy that created the celebrity. Artists, athletes, and entertainers need not be deified to be successful, but in the interest of those who profit from them, they are.
Dec.6 at 5:29 pm
TADOne says:
Co sign with everyone else. Great piece.
Dec.6 at 5:33 pm
Joel O's says:
Agreed. Absolutely.
Dec.6 at 5:56 pm
Chief says:
The media is a terrible thing, but as long as everyone who knew Sean Taylor remembers him as he was, a hero then i don’t think even they can tarnish his memory. But yes blaming his death on “hip-hop” and such is a crime in itself.
Dec.6 at 6:01 pm
H to the izzo says:
Chief:I think calling him a hero is a bit much
Dec.6 at 6:10 pm
Chief says:
I don’t know dying to protect your Girlfriend and her daughter does it for me in my books. If anything if showed that despite what all the media is saying about him, he was a good man.
Dec.6 at 6:28 pm
nothin personal says:
Dave and Etan, wow. I usually like what you have to say, but that was special, a lot more well rounded and level headed, you made each other better. Two major things I want to comment on: Black athletes allegedly get involved into more incidents of violence- maybe people from their communities expect to “get taken care of” by those rich young guys, that maybe they knew in the past. They feel those guys owe them, we’ve seen it happen in cases with no reported violence, and it’s kind of hard for theguy, who is considered a role model for his community to know where to stand. He doesn’t want to be perceived as a sellout that doesn’t give sh1t about his people, nor a thug, that gves money to the wrong people, wich might actually end funding criminal acts.
Dec.6 at 6:29 pm
tony says:
I don’t know, on the topic of media bias I almost prefer they show their hand. I think subjective reporting is like communism, nice in theory but doesn’t actually work. I say write\say what you will, what the internet has done is allow for the full gamut of opinions – so as a reader you can gauge where the writer is coming from on a personal level and go from there, you can calibrate their bias, over time you accrue sources you trust. In a micro sense it sucks sometimes, and I can’t stand people like C.C., but then I think about it and here’s the deal: why am I really angry? Because of what he says? No, its plain as day to me that he is off his rocker, you can’t think someone is stupid but then take them seriously if you consider a fan of rational thought. Am I angry because people believe him? Well, no, to be honest the people who buy his “argument” I couldn’t convince of anything anyway, nor could God himself. Is it because he has a bigger platform than others who are more worthy? In that case I’m certainly not helping by listening.
Dec.6 at 6:30 pm
tony says:
*subjective = objective.
Dec.6 at 6:33 pm
nothin personal says:
2nd issue: the media don’t care about being objective anymore. Best case senario, they want the cheap headline, the ratings or whatever. More often than not, they want to form the public perception, stir the people’s minds in a direction that fits their political agenda, and for some networks this is well documented. I don’t know what they are actually trying to accomplish, but this kind of behavior should at least make you suspicious.
Dec.6 at 6:56 pm
Roscoe Chibbs says:
Kudos yet again to Etan and Dave for more thought-provoking prose on s sickeningly polarizing topic. I think it says so much on the state of our world (and the media that covers it) that I am not even remotely surprised to hear such heartless vitriol as the on-air quotes that were attributed to Cowherd. Had say a hardnosed Enforcer for the Philadelphia Flyers with the same “rap sheet” (which consisted of one incident in which to retreive his own property from theives)from Lethbridge, Alberta suffered the same fate as Sean T protecting his wife and children from intruders IN HIS OWN HOME and Stephen A. Smith said the EXACT SAME THING as Cowherd, would he still be employed??
Dec.6 at 6:56 pm
Captain America says:
Please don’t cheapen the loss of this good man with your personal asides on politics.
Dec.6 at 7:01 pm
Roscoe Chibbs says:
@ nothin personal:
you have made perhaps the best, and most succinct point on here today– the media (most notably a certain 4 letter sports network/ conglomerate) has little to no credibility with me any longer– esp. after spending time employed at their HQ in a certain grotesquely affluent northeastern state btw NY and MA. Biggups to ALL contributing HONEST and insightful viewpoints on this tragic issue
Dec.6 at 7:18 pm
Roscoe Chibbs says:
is it possible to cheapen this young man’s life any more so than those who couldn’t wait for the opportunity to make personal attacks, and(mis)judgements, on his character already have??
Dec.6 at 8:11 pm
John E. Sanford says:
First off to be very immature for a second, f*ck Colin Cowherd and f*ck Jason Whitlock. I’ll never read another Jason Whitlock column ever. What he wrote was total bullsh*t, and he knows it was bullsh*t. I don’t know who homeboy is trying to appease, but he needs to check himself. Colin really isn’t worth mentioning because I don’t listen to his show, so he gets a simple f*ck off from me. Sean Taylor didn’t die in vain, and it is very despicable what some a**holes have written about him. Dave & Ethan, you guys do splendid work, great read as always. RIP Sean Taylor, and my condolences to your family and friends that knew him and loved him.
Dec.6 at 8:14 pm
John E. Sanford says:
And what Sean did was heroic, and that can not be questioned.
Dec.6 at 8:14 pm
FLUXLAND says:
@nothin personal
re: 2nd issue
—
second sentence: SLAM is guilty of it as I type this.
3rd sentence: what Etan and Dave are doing right now with this post.
4th sentence: NO DOUBT!
Dec.6 at 8:32 pm
Hass777 says:
i think a good question is…why does hip hop always get the blame for these kind of things?
Dec.6 at 10:22 pm
James says:
I hate how people blame hip hop on deaths that’s like blaming art for suicides is just ridicolous
Dec.7 at 7:50 am
themikeyandjaffashow says:
thought provoking articles like these are the reason I love SLAM
Dec.7 at 10:51 am
Jared says:
I think this is a good piece, but I don’t think the issue is just athlete/fan or celebrity/common person…i think it’s culture, it’s what was posted last week about people trying to rob and steal to get ahead or to rid their own jealousy by taking from someone who has more than them. For every Sean Taylor and Antoine Walker this kind of thing happens to, it happens to dozens of Will’s, or Joe’s. Lots of people get mugged, have their homes broken into, and scarily and unfortunately get killed for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Obviously something like an in house murder is planned out, but it’s not just something happening to athletes, it’s happening to anyone. Haven’t you guys seen Home Alone? Kevin McCallister wasn’t a celebrity (just tryna ease the mood). I’m just saying, it happens to anyone, and has been ignored for years, but now that it’s been more common amongst athletes its gettin attention? It’s not just an athlete-based issue, but I really do respect Etan’s insight as an athlete and shedding light on how athlete’s feel like they need to be in gated communities, or have body guards. Good piece, sh!ts real out here…
Dec.7 at 11:16 am
Dilip says:
Great point, unfortunately the coverage of Sean Taylor is the norm and not an exceptional case. Because Sean Taylor was famous, there are people decrying his portrayal. However, it is a general media pattern to cover any violent death of a black man (or latino, etc.) as a byproduct of their own actions, rather than as victimization. This is just part of a larger stereotyping that is the covert, modern evolution of the racism that polluted this country in years past. Still, kudos to Etan and Dave for standing up and contesting such coverage. Change happens when we make it happen.
Dec.7 at 1:29 pm
Dave Zirin says:
Folks - It’s been great to read these comments. Etan and i love all the feedback. Here is some sent directly to me that takes a very different spin on what happened to Sean. I wanted to share it with people here to get their thoughts “I have spent a significant amount of time in Latin America, where stories of successful athletes being targeted by marginalized youth are common. Kidnapping of athletes and/or their family members are the most common manifestations of this social contradiction. As the middle class disintegrates in this country, as the gap between rich and poor widens, we can expect to see more and more of these horrific cases in our own cities. Young people in this country are not stupid: they see the celebration of celebrity, they see the total foreclosure of any positive horizon in their own lives, and they take actions that lie well outside of the civil society that excludes them. Please do not misunderstand me: anyone who said Sean Taylor had it coming is cruel and idiotic. But anyone who does not see this incident as part of a larger pattern of a renewed widening of racial and class division is blind. As our social contract disintegrates and we drift closer and closer to the oligarchic models that have historically dominated Latin America, we can expect the terrifying incidents that plague those societies to become the norm here. Ironically, as Latin America moves towards a more progressive, inclusive society (under various and competing forms of leftist leadership), the United States seems to be rushing towards gated communities and private security details.”
Dec.7 at 6:05 pm
nothin personal says:
I get where this comment is coming from, but the political theory explaining this phenoms is a lot more complicated than this over-simplification, and not nearly set in stone. It’s well documented that to keep the cohesive powers that bond a society together, the society itself must provide a basic social care level for the poorer strata. This scool of thought was preserved for much of the previous century, especially in Europe. As the political system flirts with different models of social coexistence, some turbulence will be anavoidable. The only thing that’s for sure, is that society will land on it’s feet, find ways of processing this problems and keep moving forward.
Dec.7 at 11:17 pm
Ben Osborne says:
Thanks for checking in, Dave.
Dec.8 at 1:57 am
ian says:
I’m glad that he saved his family, it’s sad that isnt how its reported. If he faced the situation again knowing what would happen, he’d still die to save them
Dec.8 at 4:35 am
Winslowalrob says:
Until Etan and Zirin write a column knocking Isiah, they are basically as biased and racist as those they criticize. Supposed affront to “Black” culture and/or people = Etan cranks out some stuff. And Zirin, Sean Taylor got shot in a break in. Black on black violence (well, one kid was latino but the other three were black) is the issue. Not some sort of rising oligarchy, because under your theory a whole lot more rich white people would be getting shot. Latin America is not particularly inclusive either (The myth of the racial democracy) and if you are referring to the supposed “leftist” movements ushering in a more inclusive society, you should realize just how big of a racist Chavez is (and I am assuming you mean Chavez in particular because for some reason he is viewed as a great leader). There were approximately three good national articles about Taylor: Jemelle Hill, LZ Granderson, and Elizabeth Merrill. The rest were some variant of “blame the victim”, which was disgraceful and as more people learned about the situation, they could crank out better articles. Much like Jena 6, there is far more to Taylor’s death than those leading the charge would have you believe. RIP Sean.
Dec.8 at 1:45 pm
Dave Zirin says:
Winslowalrob - the argument about Latin America is not my own - as I made clear - but one that was emailed me. I just was looking for feedback on it, not advancing my own thesis. As for Isiah, I did write about it for the Nation. Check it out below.
DZ http://www.edgeofsports.com/2007-10-02-289/index.html
Dec.8 at 11:31 pm
Rubens says:
Dave: i live in Brazil and just wanted to point out that, many times, an athlete escapes a kidnapping or robbery because he was once poor and made in life
Dec.11 at 7:11 am
Krayzie Bone says:
On Dave’s final point (though too late the discussion to be a part of it), the disintegration of the middle class is very important to consider, because poor Mr. Taylor was not the first athlete this year to have his house broken into and had hundreds of thousands stolen. Antoine Walker had himself a somewhat similar incident ad he was pretty shaken. I think a lot of the athletes don’t take their personal security as seriously as a lot of the hollywood types because a larger portion of them come from impoverished circumstances and just don’t think they will get jacked. Mourning made a reference to this regarding Jamaal Tinsley’s close call this weekend. I wouldn’t be surprised if it happened to Agent Zero either. e lives like a regular guy with a 50 million dollars, like you or I would want to with that type of wealth. His paintball escapades come to mind. As for Mr. Taylor, I can’t believe that the media figures commenting on this home invasion would call it like that. He was a football player with a checkered past, not John friggin’ Gotti. To assume that it was a hit, rather than a normal home invasion, before the facts were in was not only highly prejudiced, but asinine. Imagine the likely scenerio first, then move on to the fantasy if the evidence supports it, not the other way around.