Do you remember toward the end of 2015 and the start of 2016 when I said that I would be embarking on a journey to discover my one true focus? Well, I failed or, more accurately, I failed to document it. Now, I'm not saying that I embarked upon some sort of spiritual journey; it was more of an epiphany. But, I have figured it out! From here on out, I'm going to write about whatever I feel like writing about at the moment. Of course, I'm going to say it right here and right now that a large number of my posts will be related to sports, but there will be moments when I feel like discussing books and films, cooking and dining, or politics and current events and I will write about these topics at will. I realize that I am an incredibly complex and complicated individual and to attempt to define myself with a handful of descriptions is impossible. So, I'm embracing the complexities, accepting the complications, and rolling with the punches to write about what I want to write about and when I write about them.
In fact, I'm going to start right now by discussing the relentless and unwarranted persecution of Cam Newton by sports journalists and football "purist" (or more accurately, racists). I'll start by saying that Newton is the quarterback for the NFL team I support: the Carolina Panthers. I'll also add that starting point for this particular post stems from last night's (7 February) Super Bowl post-game press conference in which Newton abruptly left the podium after being continuously questioned about his performance in the Panthers loss to the Denver Broncos. The first bit to aggravate me was a retweet from Andrew Zimmern of Bizarre Foods notoriety of a tweet from Rob Lowe:
Wow. What a press conference from Cam Newton. So gracious!So classy! So humble! What an example to kids! Just like Peyton. #dab #SuperBowl
— Rob Lowe (@RobLowe) February 8, 2016
So, here's the issue I have with this retweet and the series of tweets that followed on Zimmern's account:
1) The belief that professional football players are required to provide a full account of their actions immediately following a game, especially, players on the losing team. Journalists (or more accurately, pundits) and certain types of fans are always demanding authenticity and honesty from professional athletes and yet when professional athletes provide them with this authenticity (e.g., Cam walking out of the press conference because [and I am only speculating] he was emotionally hurt from having his worst performance of the season during the most important game of the season) they are quick to judge him as being classless or acting like a "spoiled brat" because Cam choose not to play nice with them. Of course, the response to such a realization is that Cam is a professional player that is paid millions of dollars to play a game and he should understand his responsibilities and his position as a role model. Sure, I could accept that argument if I accepted the belief that professional football players are merely overpaid assets within NFL's corporate structure, but I don't accept that premise because Cam and every other player in the league are human like me. Professional football players are human and they possess the same emotions that all other humans possess. So, for pundits and fans to expect otherwise from players is disingenuous, but that's not what is really desired, is it?
2) And this brings me to my second issue with Zimmern's tweets (by the way, please don't mistake this post as an attack on Zimmern as I really do like him and his show; it's just that it was his tweets I saw first): the idea that Cam shouldn't be allowed a passed because no one else "gets a pass". To be honest, that's absolute (pardon my language) bullshit. People, especially, celebrities get "passes" all the time. For example, a celebrity behaves irrationally (or in some instances, illegally) and yet after a few stints in rehab and a major public relations overhaul; all is forgiven and they go back (or continue) to make millions. No one expects or should expect a person to have to be subjected to intense scrutiny immediately following one of the most difficult moments of their life; we typically "give them a pass". And if for some reason one were to find himself in such a situation, then it would be reasonable to believe that he is well within his right to not be very cooperative with his interrogators, right? So, why is Cam or any other professional athlete expected to behave in a manner that's any different what would be expected from ourselves?
3) And finally, Zimmern tweeted about how Cam asked for respect and that because Cam asked to be respected he is unable to "have it both ways" when he refused to subject himself to pointless scrutiny immediately following a loss in the Super Bowl. First, the issue is that Cam should have never had to ask for respect in the first place. Let's be honest, did Peyton Manning have to ask for respect? Did Tom Brady have to ask for respect? And now let's be brutally honest, did any of Cam's successful white quarterback peers have to ask for respect? I believe the answer would be: "No." Cam's white counterparts were immediately given widespread respect from the media following their successes whereas Cam has had to time and time again prove himself to the media despite his record-breaking on-field performances, his spectacular feats of athleticism, his unbridled joy and passion for a game that will undoubtedly shorten his lifespan and diminish his mental and physical faculties, and his caring and giving personality that his brought immeasurable to happiness to children. One would believe that such acts and behavior would lead to immense respect from others but instead, Cam receives grief for his touchdown celebrations, criticism for fathering a child out of wedlock, and outrage for his immaturity because he has chooses to have and express emotions.
I have nothing but love and respect for Cameron Newton and it's not only because he's the quarterback of the professional football team I support, but because he's earned it. Keep dabbing Cam and I'll #KeepPounding along with the rest of the Panther Nation.
