Why do some people hate sports?
My theory is that the athletes who attract the greatest public attention evoke negative stereotypes from many people. Consequently, the general public perceives professional athletes as greedy, rude, arrogant, overpaid bullies. Based upon this stereotype, many people are unwilling to spend their time and money being entertained by professional athletes. As an analogy, if listening to rhetoric from Newt Gingrich (or insert the name of another politician you find particularly obnoxious) were my only exposure to politics, I would probably be inclined to be extremely cynical of the American political system.
To investigate my theory, I've composed a list of 10 athletes whom I suspect are the most widely known to the average American. I'm curious to see how many of these athletes are typically perceived negatively by the American public.
Before I begin, I'll offer a disclaimer: this is not a listing of the best or most dominant figures in sports. That list would include Steffi Graf, Greg Maddux, Sergei Bubka, Pete Sampras and Emmitt Smith.
Most of the superstars of the athletic world who are included on this list are generally recognized by a single characteristic, and consequently they have either a strong positive or negative label attached to them. For those of you scoring at home, I'll keep a tally of the "good guys" and the "bad guys."
Albert Belle-Even if he batted .400 with 75 home runs and 200 RBI, Albert Belle would still probably finish a distant third in the American League Most Valuable Player balloting because of his perceived greedy, arrogant and hostile attitude. He is viewed by many casual fans as the archetypical spoiled athlete of the 1990s. In this contest, Belle opens the scoring by knocking one out of the park for the bad guys.
Andre Agassi-Tennis is one of my favorite sports, and I am in favor of anything which attracts interest to it. Andre Agassi attracts interest to the sport of tennis. You complete the syllogism.
Unfortunately, in the context of rating the fame of sport celebrities, image is everything. And Agassi is most famous for saying just that in an advertisement several years ago. Regardless of how he performs on the court, Andre Agassi will always be perceived as a champion of "style over substance." Two-love, bad guys.
Michael Johnson-Usually, any American who wins a gold medal at the Olympics is identified as a hero. So I suppose an athlete who surpasses his massive hype and wins two golds-and demolishes a long-standing world record-while maintaining a clean reputation has undoubtedly accomplished something heroic. Michael Johnson sprints across the finish line, winning a gold medal for the good guys.
Ken Griffey, Jr.-For the past two seasons, Ken Griffey, Jr., probably wasn't the most valuable player on his own team, let alone in all of baseball. But Alex Rodriguez, Jay Buhner and Randy Johnson haven't endured the rigors of a mid-season presidential campaign. Although he didn't win the election, Griffey hit 49 home runs and earned another Gold Glove while winning over scores of baseball fans with his friendly personality. Anyone who has sat in the center field bleachers during a Mariners game understands why Griffey has developed a reputation as the antithesis of Belle. Griffey gets the nod as a good guy on this ballot.
Cal Ripken, Jr.-The other day, Shane Shepherd (who gets his name mentioned since he helped me compile this list) asked me who the "biggest name" baseball players are. I responded (demonstrating my lame sense of humor) with Todd Hollandsworth and William VanLandingham (edging out Mark Grudzielanek). But if you look through many baseball-related advertisements, the two players you are most likely to find are Griffey and Cal Ripken, Jr.
Thanks in large part to his unsurpassable consecutive games streak, Ripken is known as the epitome of a hard-working, loyal, dedicated sportsman. And he drinks his milk. The Iron Man, who is my favorite professional athlete, gives the good guys a three-two lead.
Shaquille O'Neal-I would expect a multimedia star making the kind of money which Shaquille O'Neal nets from his basketball contract and endorsements and albums and movies to be a decent actor. Or to hit at least 50 percent of his free throws. Of course, I probably shouldn't criticize O'Neal's basketball talents too much since he has won championships at every level except high school, college and the NBA. Score another point for the bad guys.
Mike Tyson-I don't know much about boxing, so I can't provide much insight here, but Tyson certainly has a reputation as a thug. The bad guys win this round.
Tiger Woods-According to his father, Tiger Woods is among the most significant individuals in the history of humanity. As a multi-racial leader, he will help bring the world closer together. According to Nike, every youngster should aspire to be Woods-rather than being himself or herself. According to me, Woods is simply a golfer who has yet to win a major championship-certainly not somebody who is particularly noteworthy. Apparently, my opinion is in the minority, so we'll call Woods a good guy.
Michael Jordan-Along with Johnson, Michael Jordan is one of the two members of this list who would also belong among the 10 most dominant figures in sports today. He has accomplished every team or individual goal imaginable for a basketball player, has thoroughly dominated his sport for nearly a decade, has made a fortune for the companies for which he is a spokesman and children worldwide idolize him. Even though he is a Carolina graduate, Jordan still chalks one up for the good guys.
Twenty years from now, Jordan will certainly be remembered as the most famous athlete from our era. Temporarily, though, he has been displaced at the top of this list by:
- Dennis Rodman-Think about the top power forwards in the NBA. How many times have you heard someone talk about the color of Karl Malone's hair? Or discuss what Chris Webber was wearing at a book signing? Or gossip about Shawn Kemp's latest show on MTV?
I am amazed at how often I hear people who know virtually nothing about sports mention Dennis Rodman's name in conversation. I am convinced that it is virtually impossible to be exposed to the American media and be entirely oblivious of Rodman. Or not to know that he is generally classified as a "bad guy" (making the final score 5-5).
Agassi's advertising slogan-"Image is everything"-could easily be Rodman's motto as well. And until Rodman is replaced by someone like Jordan, Ripken, Griffey or Grant Hill as America's most famous athlete, the professional sports industry has a serious image problem.
David Heinen, Trinity '96, is a University employee. He urges everyone to head over to Wallace Wade this weekend to watch the Duke Invitational track meet and perhaps hear the announcer excitedly shout at the end of a close race, "It's a foot race!"
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