Not my easy, clear-cut week for "Fried Fridays" candidates. Sure, there is the $25,000 desert in NYC that has gotten waaaay too much press and attention for something so stupidly frivolous when we are beset with overwhelming social ills...and the Fat Cat payment system/component of the U.S. Farm Bill (up for renewal this week) which would take a week of blogs to get you up to speed and explain, a Farm Bill that does just about everything except what it originally was supposed to do: help the struggling farmer.
So I turned my eyes locally and watched another event unfold wherein we in media dropped yet another gigantic medicine ball by taking the easy way out.
Meet Tom Knotts, head coach of Charlotte's Independence High School, a team who won 114 consecutive games against NC schools until Butler beat them last week (first loss to a NC team in 8 years)...winners of multiple consecutive state championships. A legendary powerhouse that would not have made it with anything less than solid coaching. Not that the whole program there smells like a bed of roses, mind you, but in terms of 'getting the job done' he wrote a sequel, if not the book on it.
And so it is varsity coaches often coach JV teams as well, and it was last Thursday that Butler JVs handed Knott's JVs a tough loss. On TV and in the print media, we get the Cliff Notes story that a heckling parent was at the fence yelling unsavory things, Knotts, surrounded by his young players, yelled at him to stop...man only got more rebellious, Knotts walked over to chain link fence, told him to quit again (to no avail) and Knotts grabbed the fence and quickly pushed it into the man's face, bloodying his nose.
You'd a thought a holy hell broke loose when it hit the airwaves. Famous coach loses cool, assaults parent, makes victim's nose bleed. Bad role model, hints at need for anger management, famous coach in the spotlight making waves. Suspended with pay while under investigation, not allowed to coach varsity game the next night with Butler, with Butler winning in an historic squeaker 21-20.
Update: no charges will be filed and Knotts can return to team next week, but not tonight for their playoff game at Greensboro Page.
Sadly, this is what media does best: going with the easy headline and splashing it ad nauseum with inappropriate follow-through. Focus on the splashiest icon. Take the quick hike and run with the ball. Make sure you add in footage of the Independence dynasty in action, tell all the records, and then contrast it with the giant tree falling in a moment of uncontrolled anger. What a crock of poop.
What concerns me most about all of this is our society's inability to get to core issues...instead, we embrace the fluffiest media bunny we can quickly grab and go "lookee here, y'all!". Through the pervasive dumbing of America, there are an uncomfortable number of people who take news stories and make it their "truth" without thinking through it for themselves.
In a millisecond of hearing the story I wanted someone to investigate Isaac Avant, Jr. the heckler. Father to one of the JV players, his home address was listed in Pennsylvania, so I read. And he wasn't heckling...he was cussing, swearing, and yelling expletives at the top of his voice at this family-friendly event, yet no security or other parents stepped up to speak up or diffuse the situation. His actions were inflammatory, abominable, and 100% inexcusable. Did he have a history of such horrid behavior? History of abusive behavior? Alcohol and or drug issues? Any arrest records that would have been pertinent?
We're not talking a civil rights issue, folks...we're talking blatantly stupid parental behavior at their children's family sporting events, and it's becoming more common.
Here was the perfect opportunity for media outlets to show and teach the public about personal responsibility, how it's NOT okay to behave certain ways and do certain things, and it's NOT acceptable, and it should NOT be tolerated. Put Mr. Avant under the same interrogation lamp and you'll come up with the real story that needed to be told. And it wasn't.
There seems to be a growing number of citizens who feel entitled to say anything and behave any way they want in public...and we used to stand up to it. Now it seems like many are too scared to stand up for what's right and proper, fearing legal and/or physical repercussions. Gee, I wonder where that sense of fear came from...
I'm not excusing Coach Knotts for his actions...but I can tell you that anyone who has been in that exact same situation can instantaneously understand why he did what he did. Time to move forwward. TGIF!
(photo credit: WSOC TV)
So I turned my eyes locally and watched another event unfold wherein we in media dropped yet another gigantic medicine ball by taking the easy way out.
Meet Tom Knotts, head coach of Charlotte's Independence High School, a team who won 114 consecutive games against NC schools until Butler beat them last week (first loss to a NC team in 8 years)...winners of multiple consecutive state championships. A legendary powerhouse that would not have made it with anything less than solid coaching. Not that the whole program there smells like a bed of roses, mind you, but in terms of 'getting the job done' he wrote a sequel, if not the book on it.And so it is varsity coaches often coach JV teams as well, and it was last Thursday that Butler JVs handed Knott's JVs a tough loss. On TV and in the print media, we get the Cliff Notes story that a heckling parent was at the fence yelling unsavory things, Knotts, surrounded by his young players, yelled at him to stop...man only got more rebellious, Knotts walked over to chain link fence, told him to quit again (to no avail) and Knotts grabbed the fence and quickly pushed it into the man's face, bloodying his nose.
You'd a thought a holy hell broke loose when it hit the airwaves. Famous coach loses cool, assaults parent, makes victim's nose bleed. Bad role model, hints at need for anger management, famous coach in the spotlight making waves. Suspended with pay while under investigation, not allowed to coach varsity game the next night with Butler, with Butler winning in an historic squeaker 21-20.
Update: no charges will be filed and Knotts can return to team next week, but not tonight for their playoff game at Greensboro Page.
Sadly, this is what media does best: going with the easy headline and splashing it ad nauseum with inappropriate follow-through. Focus on the splashiest icon. Take the quick hike and run with the ball. Make sure you add in footage of the Independence dynasty in action, tell all the records, and then contrast it with the giant tree falling in a moment of uncontrolled anger. What a crock of poop.
What concerns me most about all of this is our society's inability to get to core issues...instead, we embrace the fluffiest media bunny we can quickly grab and go "lookee here, y'all!". Through the pervasive dumbing of America, there are an uncomfortable number of people who take news stories and make it their "truth" without thinking through it for themselves.
In a millisecond of hearing the story I wanted someone to investigate Isaac Avant, Jr. the heckler. Father to one of the JV players, his home address was listed in Pennsylvania, so I read. And he wasn't heckling...he was cussing, swearing, and yelling expletives at the top of his voice at this family-friendly event, yet no security or other parents stepped up to speak up or diffuse the situation. His actions were inflammatory, abominable, and 100% inexcusable. Did he have a history of such horrid behavior? History of abusive behavior? Alcohol and or drug issues? Any arrest records that would have been pertinent?
We're not talking a civil rights issue, folks...we're talking blatantly stupid parental behavior at their children's family sporting events, and it's becoming more common.
Here was the perfect opportunity for media outlets to show and teach the public about personal responsibility, how it's NOT okay to behave certain ways and do certain things, and it's NOT acceptable, and it should NOT be tolerated. Put Mr. Avant under the same interrogation lamp and you'll come up with the real story that needed to be told. And it wasn't.
There seems to be a growing number of citizens who feel entitled to say anything and behave any way they want in public...and we used to stand up to it. Now it seems like many are too scared to stand up for what's right and proper, fearing legal and/or physical repercussions. Gee, I wonder where that sense of fear came from...
I'm not excusing Coach Knotts for his actions...but I can tell you that anyone who has been in that exact same situation can instantaneously understand why he did what he did. Time to move forwward. TGIF!
(photo credit: WSOC TV)
2 comments:
I agree with you completely. It's a shame that our society has come to the point that the unacceptable behavior of others in public is so tolerated. I understand that we live in "The Land of the Free" and while this means people are free to express their opinions, it also means that the rest of us have the freedom to enjoy our lives without having to endure verbal abuse in public.
Rank it up there with inappropriate cell phone volume in a public place, or booming bass stereos at a red light that keep me from hearing my own radio with the windows up...much less boorish parental behavior at youth sporting events. Wouldn't it be wonderful if people could be considerate and think about others instead of just themselves. *sigh*
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