The New American Double Standard

It's been an interesting week. Rarely does the week before Super Bowl week provide itself enough side-stories that have little to do with the games we watch. Then again, it just proves that the NBA, college hoops, and the NHL have watered-down their regular seasons by expanding their playoffs, thereby lessening fan urgency until March.

That's where controversy takes over.

First, there was the cover of Golfweek magazine posted in response to Golf Channel analyst Kelly Tilghman comments involving the words "Tiger Woods" and "lynch" in the same smiling sentence. The editor, Dave Seanor, was fired, but now you know there's a magazine called Golfweek available to help you with your putts come Tri-County time.

Woods said he talked to the suspended anchor and felt her comments were not racial. And if you saw the comments on television (thank you, Youtube) you could tell she was clueless about what she said. She was suspended, and Tiger was satisfied with her defense. Then the legendary Jim Brown called Tiger out, accusing the best golfer in the world for not making an example of Tilghman, and not becoming more of a social activist in the black community.

Oh, you mean like yourself, Jim? The guy who has been arrested more often than OJ?

Some black opinion leaders have criticized Woods for hiding behind his foundation.

Oh, like Jim Brown hides behind being Jim Brown so everyone can overlook his shortcomings?

Then there are those ripping Tiger for not taking a more active leadership role in the black community.

Oh, like the way Michael Jordan did? Like the way Barry Bonds, Derek Jeter and LeBron James have embraced this issue?

Let's face the facts: Tiger doesn't have to do anything Tiger doesn't want to do. Just like Jordan, Bonds, Jeter and James never have, either. Would it be nice? Of course it would. But can you ever remember when the biggest athletes in their sports ever standing-up for a race issue? Not as often as they stand for the sneakers and merchandise they stand IN.

Sure, there was Muhammad Ali. Read Jack Cashill's book "Suckerpunch"--it'll put that idea to rest, too.

Maybe that's Jim Brown's point. However, even a legend can only get charged with domestic battery so many times before he loses credibility, if not his man card.

Going after Tiger is unfair. Let's remember the issue: an anchor naively said something stupid regarding Tiger Woods. She didn't pull a "David Duke" on black athletes. Tiger Woods accepted her remorseful apology and asked the rest of us to move on. Somehow, that's not good enough. People want Tiger Woods to become Al Sharpton, too.

There's a better chance of Tiger slumping like David Duval.

Then there's the Dana Jacobson story. ESPN tried to squash the anchor's drunken spat at a private roast of ESPN Radio hosts Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic.

Jacobson ripped into Notre Dame football while swilling vodka from a bottle as if she were replenishing fluids during a boxing match. It's OK to kill the Fighting Irish, but the dispute stems from Little Miss Tipsy yelling "(blank) Touchdown Jesus," and "(blank) Jesus!" Only she was hardly shooting blanks.

Strike One: she was heavily intoxicated at an ESPN event. Strike Two: she cursed the Man many believe is the Savior of the world. But she didn't knife Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis at the podium, so she gets off with just a suspension.

Here's the thing: say whatever you want. It's America. Nobody has to listen to you. For every shock jock, there's a radio dial or an iPod. For every columnist, there's a birdcage. For every TV personality, there's a remote control. And if enough people are truly offended, ratings will drop like Tee-Ball pop-ups and the problems go away on their own. Don Imus should not have been fired for what he said about the Rutgers women's basketball team, no matter how insensitive his remarks were. Dave Seanor should not be fired for placing a noose on the cover of Golfweek after everybody else partook in the topic, just like Jacobson should not have been fired for what she said. If you want to be an ignorant (blank) then you'll certainly find you have fewer and fewer supporters like this one in your corner.

Here's one little problem though: it's America, and America has proven it doesn't function that way. While the First Amendment guarantees free speech, the FCC tells Americans they can curb it by reporting "indecency," while Al Sharpton can guilt a radio station and its advertisers of being racists if they continue to employ someone like Imus.

Somehow, ESPN isn't getting the same pressure WFAN and Golfweek received. Sure, Jacobson's comments weren't broadcast, but they were spoken at an ESPN event--a network with as much name recognition as Coca-Cola and Sony. She hosts a show on ESPN2 which showcases her opinions. So, why shouldn't anybody take her at her words, ripping the Man whom many consider God?

It's interesting how when a Jewish employee like Jacobson goes after Jesus, she can return to TV a week later like nothing happened. But one has to wonder if a "gentile" anchor had blasted a Holocaust joke if they'd just be suspended. Right. As soon as the word "antisemitism" is used, they may as well turn in their key fob. Based on the situations with Imus and Seanor, you'd have to believe so. Sure it didn't happen with Kelly Tilghman, but she had the greatest golfer in the world speak in her defense.

The disposal of disgraced media personalities is fed by the FCC. It tells you in grandiose political fashion that yes, YOU, own the airwaves and they should be safe for everybody. Meanwhile, nobody wants to be accused of being racist, so broadcast companies cave under the first sign of racial tension thanks to an off-the-cuff remark usually taped by someone with an agenda. That's followed by a week's worth of interviews and diatribes by personalities qualified only by heritage.

Turn on a talk radio program the next time something like this happens (because, yes, it will happen again) count the number of times you'll hear:

"...Hi. I'm Jim and I'm black, so I can say this..."
"...Hi, I'm Bill, and I'm Italian, so I can say this..."
"...Hi, I'm Rich, and I'm Jewish, so I can say this..."

If anyone had ever listened to Imus, they would have known he's an equal opportunity jackass. That's Imus. His track record spoke for itself, however nobody famous (ahem, Buffalo's own Tim Russert) would come to defend the I-Man and admit to being a "longtime listener."

"Seinfeld" star Michael Richards said something incredibly dumb and racist at a comedy club and now he's paying the price for it. Nobody wants to offer him jobs and everyone thinks he's a racist. And they're right. But there's a big difference between Richards' bigoted comments aimed at two black patrons at a comedy club and the faux pas of Imus, Tilghman and Golfweek.

However, its unfair that Imus and Golfweek are placed in the same category as Richards, while Dana Jacobson is back at work at ESPN as if her anti-Jesus remarks never happened.

Over 200 years of American history of independence, wars, slavery, manifest destiny, civil rights, equality, democracy, assassinations, sacrifice, scandal, elections, technology, sports and most importantly liberty, and we still can't get past this one major caveat:

It's still all about what you are, not who you are.