Holes in Journalism
The dissection and direction of journalism is a faucet of the entertainment industry that has shifted over time. With every premise of progress, the focuses of stories change to capture the construction of a thematic narrative that exists realistically in the present. The focus on athletic performance and mental health should be one of these modern stories. The balance of expectations, training regimes, cultural heritage, and the perspectives of completely spoiled fans offer a glimpse into the hardships athletes experience on their path towards immortalized greatness. Analysis of athletes’ mental health should be a continued trend throughout all journalism covering sports. It should act as a layer of humanization for those that opt to forget the mortal presence behind their performances. Before their stories are solidified, realizing the journeys traveled towards those concrete achievements should be more heavily focused on by the media. Through stories of progress and perseverance, sports media and journalism can continue to stretch as a platform for inspiration and growth for the human condition. Unfortunately, a lot of journalism these days ignores these principles.
Perhaps the most extensive scale example of this in the United States comes from Simone Biles’s experiences during her Tokyo Olympics run. The magnitude of her influence on gymnastics overall is undisputed. In her career so far, “Biles had four signature moves named after her in three different events: on the floor, on vault, and on the balance beam” (Alfonseca). She has obtained 25 World Championship medals and seven Olympic medals (“Team USA Simone Biles Profile”). These achievements include two medals at the most recent Tokyo Olympic games: silver and bronze. This is what makes armchair critics' perspectives on her withdrawal so questionable. At age 24, pushing through such a physically intensive competition risks permanent injuries that influence the outcome of her career. It is understood that “Gymnasts often retire young — in their late teens and early 20s — thanks to the intense physical and time commitments that elite competition demands” (Gladu). It is important to realize that her decisions and emotions contribute to the comfort level she has competing at the highest level in her career. Not yours. Journalism and media focusing on her withdrawal epitomized the disappointing perspectives mainstream themes can have. Instead of discussing how despite her feeling like garbage she still received Olympic medals, the media chose to fuel discussions around her and her “questionable” decision to withdraw from some events. You can see how these perspectives have influenced critical reception of her online after the Olympics in the comments section of the article, “Simone Biles 'still scared to do gymnastics' months after Olympics” published by Fox News. The top comment states, “this young lady chickened out and then made excuses while everyone else faced their fear and did their events” (Gaydos). Of course, the article makes no mention of the fact that her aunt suddenly passed away, or that her experiences with the twisties result in discovering, “where the ground is when you slam into it” (“US gymnastics star Simone Biles reveals her aunt died suddenly 2 days before beam competition”). Examples like this one show that the general public and journalists have a long way to go in understanding the premise of mental health issues, the potential physical harm that comes from pushing yourself over the edge, and the way writers and broadcasters optimize stories for clicks instead of knowledge. The practice of predatory journalism surrounding the discussion of topics like this also continues to push outdated and dehumanizing cultural norms.
Another example of the complete disregard for the human behind the performances you can choose to tune into, or attend comes from the experiences Kevin Durant faced in the 2019 NBA Finals. Durant returned to play in game 5 of the best of 7 series against the Toronto Raptors in the Scotiabank Arena, after having knee issues prior in the playoffs. Kevin Durant was unfortunately only able to participate in 12 minutes of game time. In a possession where he is guarded by a previous teammate, Serge Ibaka, Durant plants his foot on the ground and his Achilles snaps. As he falls to the ground gripping his leg, Raptors fans in the arena cheer for him going down. Some even waved goodbye to him in the front row with smiles. The cheering continued until Raptors players waved for fans to stop in disbelief. As Durant limps off the court, he takes a long look at the crowd and enters the locker room ending his historical tenure as a member of the Warriors. (“Kevin Durant Suffered an Achilles Injury In Game 5 | NBA Finals”) The dissection and discussion of toxic fandoms can stretch for hours and pages of content. What is important to realize here though is that there are severe limits to the ethics and empathy some sports express when someone does not play for their team. A large part of these principles comes from the culture surrounding fandoms, which depreciates the appreciation we have for the game. This whole event ignored Kevin Durant as the person and opted to instead view him akin to a chess piece being knocked off the board for the Raptors’ championship run. After these events, many articles based on Kevin Durant focused on his change in teams, and decision to cosign with Kyrie Irving to the Brooklyn Nets. Few discussed the daily hardship and captured the image of intensive physical therapy required to rehabilitate and return to the game. When mentioned though, discussion centralized around the miracles of modern medicine with words like there has “never been a better time to tear your Achilles” (Cohen). These journalistic themes can and should continue to improve. As someone who has seen what Kevin Durant has to offer firsthand in a 50-point triple-double performance against the Bucks in the playoffs, his resurgence should be more cohesively broken down, and the toxicity he faced should be further analyzed as a case study. His dominance and personal perseverance despite the discouraging cheers he heard when he first went down could stand to humanize the struggles of balancing performance with your physical capabilities. Very similar to Biles, Durant experienced strains on his body and mind that were captured at disappointing levels by the media, fans, and journalists that should be shaping and understanding a more complete story.
Another example of this perspective issue comes from the experiences directly cultivating in New York City’s very own Madison Square Garden. Last year, the Knicks, rallied behind Most Improved Player, Julius Randle. They entered their first postseason since 2013, which was a shock. Overall, in the 2021 season “Randle averaged career highs in points (24.1), rebounds (10.2), assists (6.0), 3-point percentage (41.1%) and free throw percentage (81.1%)” (Lopez). His performance earned him a “4-year, $117 million extension with New York Knicks” (Wojnarowski). Randle wanted to stay in New York to be a part of the culture shift and newfound potential with the reinvigorated, youthful, and hungry Knicks roster. This year, however, has not gone to the blueprint. Important rotational players from last year’s roster have been predominantly injured. Derrick Rose has played a total of four games in a Knicks uniform, and Nerlens Noel has played less than half of the season. Newcomer and New York native, Kemba Walker has continued to have recurring issues with his knees. The Knicks as a result, have experienced a disappointing season. The exceptionally high expectations set on Randle by the fans and the media have not been met, and as a result, his historic season has largely been forgotten in less than a year. In a game against the Spurs, Julius Randle was even “booed off the floor by Knicks fans after [a] two-point performance” (Matange). Many articles focus on his poor performance acting as the sole catalyst for the Knicks collapse this season, largely ignoring the injuries and rotational issues that come with all sports. Notorious beat writer Marc Berman has even published an article this week titled, “Julius Randle could be forcing his way off Knicks in a ‘James Harden type of way’” (Berman). The discussion of struggles due to having a newborn child, the exhaustion he may feel playing an obscene amount of minutes, and the difficulty mentally balancing expectations with his performance night in and night out have largely been absent from the discussions focused on his criticism. Fans forget easily that respect is a two-way street due to the journalistic tones, and the decision to immediately alienate the one person that wanted to come to the Knicks and stay in New York has reaped exceptionally negative consequences for the fans, and Randle. The only ones benefiting from articles like this are the beat writers preying on the struggles of an individual and fueling fans’ frustration. It is heartbreaking to see Randle be treated like a grocery store item that can be returned.
The tones and textures that the media and journalists focusing on sports choose to emphasize have large effects on the perspectives of fans. Dissection of the puzzle pieces behind the struggles of individuals on an athletic stage is a practice that is seemingly lacking. As consumers, writers, and athletes share the common thread of humanity, more of a focus should be placed on the realities of our nature. Sometimes tragedy strikes, injuries happen, and stress takes the reign on your personal performance. These are all realities of our experience. Fans and viewers are not entitled to a performance by anyone because humans are not machines. People face hardships, and the media needs to do better to emphasize this mental and physical turmoil to paint a more holistic portrait in the future.
Works Cited
Alfonseca, Kiara. “Simone Biles' Signature Stunts to Watch at the Tokyo Olympics.” Good Morning America, https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/story/simone-biles-signature-stunts-tokyo-olympics-78082681.
Axon, Rachel. “Why Did Simone Biles Withdraw at Olympics? Here's What We Know as She Will Return for One Event.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 2 Aug. 2021, https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2021/07/28/2021-olympics-what-we-know-simone-biles-individual-events/5397525001/.
Berman, Marc. “Julius Randle Could Be Forcing His Way off Knicks in a 'James Harden Type of Way'.” New York Post, New York Post, 30 Mar. 2022, https://nypost.com/2022/03/29/julius-randle-could-be-forcing-way-off-knicks-in-james-harden-type-of-way/.
Cohen, Ben. “How Kevin Durant Beat the Worst Injury in Basketball.” The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 12 Feb. 2021, https://www.wsj.com/articles/kevin-durant-achilles-injury-brooklyn-nets-11613093797.
Gaydos, Ryan. “Simone Biles 'Still Scared to Do Gymnastics' Months after Olympics.” Fox News, FOX News Network, 21 Oct. 2021, https://www.foxnews.com/sports/simone-biles-scared-gymnastics-olympics.
Gladu, Alex. “What Age Do Gymnasts Retire? It's a Lot Younger than You Might Think.” Bustle, Bustle, 19 July 2016, https://www.bustle.com/articles/172254-what-age-do-gymnasts-retire-its-a-lot-younger-than-you-might-think.
“Kevin Durant Suffered an Achilles Injury in Game 5 - YouTube.” YouTube, Bleacher Report, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1DBvuhrv0Y.
Lopez, Andrew. “New York Knicks' Julius Randle Wins NBA's Most Improved Player Award.” ESPN, ESPN Internet Ventures, 25 May 2021, https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/31511413/new-york-knicks-julius-randle-wins-nba-most-improved-player-award.
Matange, Yash. “Julius Randle Booed off the Floor by Knicks Fans after Two-Point Performance vs. Spurs.” Sporting News, The Sporting News, https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/news/julius-randle-knicks-fans-booed-spurs/1x9bnviyvxw0t10zfcvev2v7ib.
“Simone Biles.” Team USA, Team USA, https://www.teamusa.org/usa-gymnastics/athletes/simone-biles.
“US Gymnastics Star Simone Biles Reveals Her Aunt Died Suddenly 2 Days before Beam Competition.” ABC7 New York, WABC-TV, 4 Aug. 2021, https://abc7ny.com/simone-biles-withdraw-aunt-death-in-the-family/10929337/.
Wojnarowski, Adrian. “Julius Randle Agrees to 4-Year, $117 Million Extension with New York Knicks.” ESPN, ESPN Internet Ventures, 5 Aug. 2021, https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/31963913/julius-randle-agrees-4-year-117-million-extension-new-york-knicks.
