NBA Basketball

[incognito]

I assume that the copy editor was the one who came up with the headline, and isn't that the last person who reviews an article before it goes to print? (<-- I have no idea if that's true or not.)

There was a more recent dust-up once again at ESPN; this time they referred to soccer player Lee Dong-Gook as simply "Gook" in the headline, instead of "Lee." I know that there was no malicious intent, but good lord, that is such a perfect storm of stupidity, I can only laugh. ESPN sure is batting a thousand lately!

[Deleted]

Feb 27, 2012 11:58:16 GMT -4 incognito said:

I honestly don't think that the headline writer meant to be clever or make a racist joke. "A chink in the armor" is a not-uncommon idiomatic phrase that has been used in the sports world plenty of times before. IMO, the writer just used a cliche without thinking of the ramifications. THAT SAID, I still think he possibly deserved to be fired on grounds of gross incompetence. There is no way that he wasn't aware of all the racism and controversy swirling around Lin's media coverage. No way. He should have stopped to think before okaying the headline. I could overlook someone who isn't a writer for using the phrase without paying attention, but someone whose job it is to work with the English language should have known better.

I suppose it could be unintentional but it was actually 3 different ESPNers who used that expression. An anchor and a court-side reporter also said that about Jeremy Lin. Yes it is a common cliche but to use it 3 times to describe the same athlete who had one bad game? Seems a little like overkill. Plus sports writers do like the punny headlines. And it is not really a pun except for the fact that Lin is Asian. I mean, if it was the NY Lancers or Knights I could understand. I think they thought it was funny but not necessarily racist. You know like how Spanish basketball team pulling their eyes back into slits wasn't racist either. I admit, I may be a little oversensitive. Regardless as long as Lin continues to play well sports reporters should probably bookmark Yo, is this racist?

[incognito]

Yes it is a common cliche but to use it 3 times to describe the same athlete who had one bad game?

Yeah, but you know these reporters. The media's been chomping at the bit to show that Jeremy Lin's all hype. I don't think that the Spanish basketball team incident is anything like this one, because there is absolutely no other way to interpret the "slanty eye" gesture as anything BUT mimicking Asian eyes. (Even the Spanish team didn't deny that, they just claimed that it was done out of love and affection.) Whereas "chink" does have a completely innocuous alternate definition and is part of a common idiom.

I really don't think that the media is so stupid as to deliberately use an actual slur on air. That's not to say that I don't believe the media is capable of being racist. They are, no doubt. But using an honest-to-goodness slur is so overtly racist that I think even the media that resorts to stupid jokes about fortune cookies and penis size would know better.

...Then again, for the longest time there used to be a school in Pekin, Illinois where the student body was known as the Pekin Chinks, so I could just be completely overestimating humanity.

ETA: Also, I was thinking of a comparison someone made elsewhere, that using the phrase "chink in the armor" towards an Asian person is like using the word "niggardly" towards a black person. I can see someone pointedly using such phrases in those situations (because, you know, tee hee hee!) and then getting all indignant and saying, "it has a perfectly innocent meaning!" when called on it. So now I'm not so sure that the phrase was meant innocently....

[Witchie]

Jason Collins comes out as the 1st openly gay player.

“I didn’t set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I’m happy to start the conversation,” Jason added. “I wish I wasn’t the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, “I’m different.” If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I’m raising my hand.”

JustJared

[Ladybug]

I've never heard of him before, but I've become a fan! Hopefully this will be received positively in the NBA and sports world in general. I think we'll be seeing this kind of announcement a lot more frequently now.

[Deleted]

So awesome!

[GoldenFleece]

Congrats, Spurs!

Are we finally done with sports talking heads trying to argue that LeBron is better than Jordan?

[cabbagekid]

Hahahahahahaha!!!!

So glad Spurs won, i'm still throughly annoyed with LeBron so my motto has always been "any team but LeBron's team," so Yay!!!

With the Kings and Spurs winning, this was the month for Silver&Black teams, thank god football season doesn't go into June, otherwise the Raiders may have won (I know, I know, totally unrealistic)

Anyway, huge congrats to the Spurs! What they've done the last 15 years or so has truly been remarkable.

[chiquita]

As a one-time resident of Cleveland, I just have to say WOOHOO!!!!!

[jvegg]

WOOHOOO!! Cleveland! you have to Believeland!

King James did it!