I'm back writing on my own site for the time being, and I have nothing but my stupid conscience to blame. The big talk in Chicago sports all weekend was not the Bulls falling at home and losing another all-star in the process, or Stan Bowman cashing in his future chips to win the hand he now has. No, the big talk was all about who the longest tenured Blackhawk is shacking up with.
The website I was writing for was at the center of the controversy after publishing a piece under an alias author that went into specific detail of Patrick Sharp's off-ice exploits. The piece noted a number of what were referred to as "heavily vetted" anonymous sources then ran a list of women Sharp was rumored to be sexually involved with.
I'm always uncomfortable with these types of stories. Simply because a person has a unique skill that allows them to perform in front of millions of interested fans does not give us the right to know what goes on in their home. This counts for athletes, musicians, actors, actresses and anyone else who work high exposure jobs.
Criticize, speculate and spread rumor all you'd like when it comes to aspects of the job, but the family is off limits, especially without any hard evidence. And if you do choose to cross the line between sports column and gossip column, then the person who is the center of the attack should at least know who is writing the piece.
To me, there is a big difference between reporting "personal conflicts in the locker room" and reporting specific individual relationships. Even if these rumors are true, they are not based on any illegal activity, all participants were willing and it is an issue to be resolved between a man and his family, not in the public eye. And I'm sorry, but being good at hockey does not give us the right to know unless the involved parties wants us to know.
Maybe he biggest part of the problem is that the demand for such gossip and speculation. At last check, this particular piece had nearly 300,000 people click on it. That's from a local sports blog. And it's not a surprise. Our culture is incredibly voyeuristic. It's why reality television is so poupular. The average citizen may enjoy looking in on the lifestyles of the rich and famous, but unless we are invited in, we are really just "creepy Rob Lowe", sitting in a tree with binoculars. And while some may be using that approach to generate interest, it is something that I, as a professional news and sports broadcaster, cannot be a part of. I have no hard feelings with those who run the site. They have been very kind and professional to me, and I wish them all the best. But sometimes life presents you with a tough choice: do what's best for you or do what's right. And I strive so hard for the latter.
We don't know for sure what happened with Patrick Sharp. If there was an incident with a teammate it happened behind closed doors and neither he, nor any of the women involved offered us the chance to peek. That is their right to keep their lives off the ice private. A family is a very delicate proposition. Life can be messy and the hurdles we face in cleaning up those messes can be very complex. And it is not helped by hearsay and public shaming.
So instead of being a part of the gossip columns, I'm going to keep my sports thoughts, speculation and rumor on the field. I'll be writing for me, for you and not for money or clicks.
No comments:
Post a Comment