What's Your Favorite Jeremy Linism?

[Wu du Nord]

Jalen Rose did not get fired for saying "white boy wasted" about Gronk. I guess that's reverse racism so somehow it does not count?

A few quick thoughts:

1. From a corporate perspective, there is a difference between making a comment, especially in the course of conversation, and publishing it as a headline. Headlines are read in the voice of the network brand (ESPN is obsessively self-aware in this regard), whereas spoken comments are normally attributable to their speaker. Naturally, a network has a degree of control over who is allowed to access their broadcast platform.

2. Rose's comment was inappropriate, from the perspective of culturally appropriate commentary for broadcast radio in the 21st century America. He really shouldn't have said it, especially with his history with alcohol. That said, surely, the fact that he is not 'really' a journalist (his appearance on the network is clearly not because of his formal media education) plays a significant role in how his comments were handled. Also, the fact that he was commenting on Gronk's drunken partying makes for a massively different situation than Lin's ability to take care of the basketball.

In a nutshell: false equivalencies are unhelpful.

[pinstripers]

You make good points. I suppose the Rose deal was more equivalent to Al Campanis.

[Wu du Nord]

You make good points.

Thank you.

In addition to my thoughts yesterday, I'll add a point that Tony Kornheiser made recently. He referenced the deep history of double-entendre and intentional controversy within the practice of headline writing. That tradition magnifies the offense and pushes it to a level of deliberateness and conscious insensitivity that reflects badly on the institution that published it.

I suppose the Rose deal was more equivalent to Al Campanis.

I won't insult your intelligence by pretending that, even for a moment, you really believe in your heart that those two lines of commentary were commensurable.

[RampageWSU]

[pinstripers]

...uh....ya, I do....

[Wu du Nord]

...uh....ya, I do....

Well this thread just took a rather dark turn in what I would expect to be rather uncomfortable direction.

I'm not sure what to make it now. I won't judge, but I must say that I'm surprised.

[Kung Wu]

At least @pinstripers: didn't say Jelemy Rin!

[_kai_]

Winner, Winner, chicken dinner.

[Downtown Shocker Brown]

Looks like she even has a ring on.