Posts Tagged ‘Twitter’

Where Jemele Hill Went Wrong

Friday, September 15th, 2017

by Gus Griffin

gus

 

 

 

 

JH

“Trump is the most ignorant, offensive president of my lifetime.”

“His rise is a direct result of white supremacy. Period.”

“He is unqualified and unfit to be president. He is not a leader. And if he were not white, he never would have been elected.”

“Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself w/ other white supremacists.”

“The height of white privilege is being able to ignore his white supremacy, because it’s of no threat to you.”

“Well, it’s a threat to me.”

“Donald Trump is a bigot. Glad you could live with voting for him. I couldn’t, because I cared about more than just myself.”

“I hate a lot of things but not enough to jeopardize my fellow citizens with an unfit, bigoted, incompetent moron. But hey, that’s just me.”

These are the tweets that landed ESPN commentator Jemele Hill into hot water.

Every last word is true!  

At the very least, it’s much easier to support what she says about the current president of the “Divided” States of America than it would be to refute them.  

And still yet often in America, truth is not the point! The denial of truth is.

Hill’s comments addressed the truth.  They did not address the denial of the truth, which is a prerequisite.  

It’s like trying to administer treatment or medicine to someone that does not acknowledge being sick.

I realize that this is a hard thing for truth loving people to stomach, especially those of us who are either more likely to be vulnerable to the adverse effects of the current president’s mindset and policies.  It is equally troubling for those who thought that they could find refuge from political commentary in sports.  

The point is that in America we have tacitly understood sacred cow subjects around which we are required to steer clear of under all circumstances, and race in sports is right at the top of that list.  

Full disclosure: Jemele Hill, along with Bomani Jones, Tim Kurkjian, and Jay Bilas, are my favorite ESPN commentators. Unlike Erin Andrews of Fox (throw a nickel out the window and you could hit 20 others who can do what Andrews does), she actually knows sports. She is insightful beyond sports, which is why she had to know that she was violating the code. What code you ask? The code that says as a sports commentator you are to, above all and foremost, insure that your white audience is comfortable with your commentary. Calling a man that more than a few of them voted for, a white supremacist, though absolutely true, is a violation of the code. One of the requirements to maintain a position such as the one Hill occupies is self-censorship.  

Now the other end of this is Jason Whitlock, who either consciously or subconsciously talks about race all the time, but in a way that placates the very element that is currently outraged about Hill’s comments.

As a result, his place in the mainstream sports media is secure.

I am not saying that she should not have said what she did. I am actually always happy to hear “insiders” rock the boat.  I am saying that when you do, understand that the pushback will be fierce and swift, and if one is not prepared to absorb such pushback without apologizing, why say it at all?  

My first degree from Howard University was in Journalism. My desire was to be what Hill is today, which is part of why I am a fan and have such great respect for her. I actually wrote for a Washington Black weekly paper upon graduating and was offered an internship with ABC News under Sam Donaldson. I turned it down and have no regrets. My thinking even then, over 20 years ago, was that to progress in such an environment would require I engage in the type of self-censorship that would have kept Hill out of the hot water she is currently in, and I knew that I simply could not adhere to “the code”.  

In the end, the issue is not Jemele Hill or even ESPN. The issue is the delusional notion that sports is some isolated haven, free of political commentary, or even that it should be. History proves this to be a fallacy.  Be it the influence of Jackie Robinson’s breaking the color line in baseball, or the civil rights movement, or Muhammad Ali’s stand against the Vietnam War, sports has always been a platform to address larger issues to include politics as well it should be. But until the contrary myth is debunked, the likes of Jemele Hill and others of her valuable consciousness have a decision to make: is it best to maintain her current platform and speak truth to power from within the existing mainstream system or leave it and all of its perks and restraints to do so from the outside?  Neither you nor I can make that decision for her. If she leaves on principle, I’ll miss her on ESPN but respect her decision.  If she remains, she will surely have to understand that the push-back she is receiving is indeed the price of the party.

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

Philadelphia Eagles LB Emmanuel Acho wins all over again with DeSean Jackson tweet

Monday, September 22nd, 2014

by Brandyn Campbell

Brandyn Blog

 

 

 

 

For football players, all that needs to be said to opposing players is done on the field. Once that’s done, there’s always Twitter to add insult to injury.

Enter Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Emmanuel Acho, who provided simple commentary on former teammate DeSean Jackson’s return to the Linc.

EA

Well…

LeSean McCoy’s Baby Mama Drama Unfolds in Explicit Detail on Twitter

Monday, January 28th, 2013

by Brandyn Campbell

 

 

 

 

Well.  LeSean McCoy certainly had an eventful night.  And lucky for us, we got to all see the drama unfold real time on Twitter.

Ah, the beauty of social media.

It all started innocently enough.  Shady is currently on vacation in Puerto Rico and sent a tweet out about boasting of his enjoyment.  Nothing unusual there.  But then, his  “baby mama” chose to make a correction to the spelling featured in McCoy’s tweet (screenshots courtesy of Black Sports Online):

 

Okay, alright.  We all hate when people do that passive aggressive nonsense on Twitter.  But wow – who among us could have predicted what was to come next?  A torrent of pent-up aggression, frustration and disrespect unfolded by Shady’s reaction to a single tweet that ultimately featured one word: “vacation.”

“@cutonime25: @angelface0330 man don’t ever n ya life write me about nothing…. U worthless can’t do nothing right WITHOUT ME. Sad u can’t spell or read”

Don’t think that Steph, the baby mama, was going to be talked about like that publicly and not have some incredibly nasty things to say as well:

And it continued.  On an on and on.

You can see all of Steph’s tweets via Black Sports Online.

Even Shady’s teammates Todd Herremans and Evan Mathis couldn’t turn away from the trainwreck that was unfolding on their Twitter feeds:

If you go to check McCoy’s @CutonDime25 Twitter account now, you will see that it is no longer there.  Too bad he couldn’t have shown some restraint or stepped away from the keyboard prior to that.

What this is, is a damned shame.  I don’t know about you, but I didn’t need this kind of insight into LeSean’s life.  But he’s the one who put all of his business out there on the streets.  In a few single exchanges over social media, McCoy’s baby-faced, squeaky clean reputation was ruined.  And why, exactly?  Couldn’t he have relayed the same sentiments to Steph via, I don’t know, text message?  I know – I can be so old-fashioned sometimes.

Perhaps McCoy was never out to be a role model.  Or my personal favorite when athlete’s are caught in the wrong on Twitter –  that his account was hacked.  But it will all come too late.  The tweets were captured.  The articles written.  This information is out there for LeSean’s little son to see as soon as he can read.  Or when a cruel person wishes to tell him about the apparent mess that lead to his creation before that time.

Who knows what the hell actually transpired between LeSean and Steph?  Neither looks particularly great from their tweets.  As for Shady, stop playing the victim.  A woman looking to trap a rich athlete into having a baby with her?  Well, you can criticize her for that or look in the mirror for being the fool who subjected himself to the outcome, and God knows what else, by not using protection and believing a woman who’s name he didn’t even know.  Wasn’t that fact a gem, by the way?

The baby is the only one who matters here and it seems like he is unequivocally the loser with two immature parents who can’t control their feelings enough to avoid putting family business on the street.

There is just no reason this needed to happen and if LeSean McCoy is angry at anyone this day, it should be himself.  He could have walked away and carried on with his vocation vacation.  But no.  Instead he felt it appropriate to call out the mother of his child on, well, absolutely everything for us all to see.  And invited his followers to join in!

None of this changes that LeSean MccCoy is one of the brightest young talents in the NFL and one of the greatest assets on the Philadelphia Eagles.  But it sure would have been nice not to know about all of the drama lurking behind that winning smile.

Deadspin has even more of the drama in case you haven’t witnessed enough – including text messages released to them.

Want more Philly Sports Muse? You can find me on Twitter at @sports_muse and on Facebook.

 

Brandyn Campbell of Philly Sports Muse, for War Room Sports

Mike Vick’s Brother Wants the QB Traded from the Philadelphia Eagles

Tuesday, November 6th, 2012

by Brandyn Campbell

 

Twitter was created for moments like this.

The Philadelphia Eagles, while embroiled in a battle for their season against the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football, did not need any more drama directed their way.  Enter Marcus Vick, brother of Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Mike Vick.  Marcus doesn’t like how the Birds’ o-line has been playing and he doesn’t care who knows it.

He deleted the tweet that started the national furor, but here is a screencap from what I retweeted during the game.

Why that singular tweet was removed and the rest of his rant against the Eagles is a mystery.  Read from the bottom up.

Oh but wait.  MV the non-NFL player had more to say.

Great going, man.  Exactly what your brother needs right now – more drama.

Want more Philly Sports Muse? You can find me on Twitter at @sports_muse and on Facebook.

 

Brandyn Campbell of Philly Sports Muse, for War Room Sports

 

 

 

 

Donovan McNabb Hits Mark with Anti-Twitter Rant

Monday, June 27th, 2011

By Roy Burton

Former Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterback Donovan McNabb is like that crazy ex-girlfriend who’ll never go away.

He’s like the kid who interrupts the spades game at the family reunion just to tell you that he made honor roll in the third marking period.

But during his latest plea for attention last week – a week in which he worked out with the Philadelphia Eagles and appeared in a video telling his doubters that he’ll no longer throw bounce passes like Bob Cousy – McNabb actually had a moment of clarity. 

On Thursday, McNabb appeared on ESPN Chicago’s “Waddle and Silvy” radio show and offered the following:  “First of all, I’m not a fan of tweeting; I’m not a fan of Twitter.  Nothing against their program or what they have, but as an athlete I think you need to get off of Twitter.”

In response to players who criticize their fellow athletes on the social networking site, McNabb said:  “I don’t believe that that’s the right deal… So I think for an athlete to be twittering is the wrong move. It’s one that leads to the fans and let them comment on certain things, but athletes need to get off Twitter.”

He’s absolutely right.

For most athletes, Twitter is a no-win situation.

Milwaukee Bucks’ forward Chris Douglas-Roberts (@cdouglasroberts) gains nothing by telling his followers about the linen shorts that he wears while relaxing on the Cayman Islands (shorts that happen to be embroidered with the self-granted nickname “Flyonel Ritchie”).  Sixers’ center Marreese Speights won’t gain any fans with his jokes about overweight women who frequent IHOP, nor with his repeated pleas of “Free Lil’ Boosie.”

No one will deny that the service gives athletes an unprecedented way to reach out to their fans.  Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) is only a laptop or a cell phone away from connecting with his 770,000-plus followers, whether it is to ask them for advice, or to promote one of his off-court initiatives.

The flip side is that Twitter also allows fans to communicate directly with their favorite (or not-so-favorite) players like never before.  Previously, if someone wanted to rip an athlete, they would have to either call their local sports talk radio station, scream unpleasantries from their seat at the game, or sit down and compose a letter which wouldn’t likely be read.

Now, fans can tag their player of choice and fire off 140 characters of vitriol, a rant almost guaranteed to be viewed by its intended target the next time he (or she) logs into the social networking site.

New York Mets’ catcher Josh Thole (@josh_thole) shut down his Twitter account in May (calling it a “lose-lose situation”) after he was hammered with criticism during a hitting slump.  Sixers’ swingman Andre Iguodala closed his account (@AI9) early last season – either he didn’t see the value in having it, or he wasn’t able to withstand the heat from Sixers’ fans that undoubtedly ripped him during the team’s 3-13 start.

It’s not all one-sided, however.  Athletes have been known to start the fire themselves. The NFL lockout probably saved Steelers’ RB Rashard Mendenhall (@R_Mendenhall) from a suspension after his Osama bin Laden-related Twitter screed.  LeBron James (@KingJames) caught heat for his infamous “Karma is a b****” tweet, and then was utterly destroyed after posting “Now or Never” prior to Game 5 of the NBA Finals, and then going out and scoring as many points that night as J.J. Barea.

For those in the public eye, social media can potentially be very dangerous, as former House Rep. Anthony Weiner (@RepWeiner) can personally attest to. But when understood and used correctly, it can also be a perfect way to engage with tens of thousands of people easily and effectively. In the sports world, however, we’ve seen far too many cases where athletes would have been better off if there was some sort of filter between them and their followers.

So while it may pain some Eagles fans to agree with him, McNabb is probably right.  Unfortunately, the majority of players will likely dismiss his advice and continue posting as they always have.  Hopefully, unlike former Rep. Weiner, they don’t get caught with their pants down.

Roy Burton of The Broad Street Line, for War Room Sports

Osama Bin Laden is Dead: The Rashard Mendenhall Tweets

Friday, May 6th, 2011

Rashard "Mendenhump"

This week, Pittsburgh Steelers Running Back Rashard “Mendenhump”…yeah…the guy that was caught having sex with Ben “Don’t say nothing just give it here” Roethlis-get-the-berger, went ahead and nobly, courageously, and with conviction, fell on his sword (pause) and signed the death warrant to his career by reaching into his heart with his mind (and his Twitter account) and pulling out these candid, profound, and incendiary words:

“What kind of person celebrates death?  It’s amazing how people can HATE a man they have never even heard speak. We’ve only heard one side…”

We’ll never know what really happened. I just have a hard time believing a plane could take a skyscraper down demolition style.”

“For those of you who said you want to see Bin Laden burn in hell and piss on his ashes, I ask how would God feel about your heart?”

“There is not an ignorant bone in my body. I just encourage you to #think

Let me first say that while I agree with his candor and his right to free speech, (hell, I even agree with his sentiments) one must take a catalogue of the things one has to lose in the court of public opinion when using Twitter.  It’s not about whether or not what you’re saying makes sense.  It’s about the fact that 80% of the world are “blind, deaf, and dumb…and mostly intrigued by the drum”…so they will not use intellect or depth to analyze your words.  They will take them as far as their limited perspective and truncated intellect will allow, and then…KABOOM!…the “Twitterverse” does the rest, as you hang by your proverbial neck, by the cords of misinterpretation, knee jerk overreaction, self righteous ignorance, and prideful, unjust condemnation!  SO…think before you press “send” on that tweet…and if it’s worth it to you, then go for it, because I, like most of the minority who understood “Mendenhump’s” position, applaud him speaking out.  However, the dominos have already begun to fall, considering the latest reports of Rashard Mendenhall being dropped from his endorsement deal with Champion.  Alright…that’s enough about idiots, Twitter, and the court of public opinion.

On to the REAL matter at hand…

The “celebration of death”.  What has changed from the day prior to our president’s announcement?…NOT A DAMN THING!  A martyr has been created.  That is all.

And anyone who is a spiritual person, whether it’s from an “Abrahamic” religion such as Christianity, Islam, or Judaism…whether you read the Quran, the Torah, or the Bible…NOWHERE is it correct to hate…NOWHERE is it correct to spread terror…and NOWHERE is it correct to celebrate death.  The people of New York, DC, and America in general suffered through one of the most horrific, publicized incidents in history…but hasn’t there been enough death? 

And now…I’ll end this with a quote from my esteemed colleague and insightful co-host, Devin McMillan:

“To be COMPLETELY real with you all, this [the killing of Osama Bin Laden] is only ‘justice’ because this is what WE (Americans) deem it to be. Do you all know how many innocent civilians America has killed over the decades that we’ve occupied the Middle East?  I’m not defending these jackasses, but things like 9/11 don’t happen just because someone woke up angry one day and picked America out of a hat.  So they retaliate against decades of us killing their innocent people in the name of ‘democracy’, but when they do indeed retaliate on our soil or anywhere else in the world (which is also wrong), we deem them ‘terrorist’, because it isn’t carried out by a government or government forces.  Those guys aren’t anything more or less than militia groups and JUST LIKE US when the roles are reversed, they deem these acts as ‘JUSTICE’ for shit we’ve been doing to them for YEARS. I GUARANTEE you all that our civilian body count in the Middle East DWARFS that of what they accomplished here on 9/11. EVERYBODY is wrong in this situation…America, Al Qaeda, EVERYBODY.  And if you call yourself a Christian, Muslim, or ANYTHING else, it is plain wrong to celebrate someone’s murder…no matter how you slice it…PERIOD!”

B. Austin aka Stokley Brad Michael aka Bradlege Cleaver aka BFK aka Al-Hajj Malik Al Shabbazz aka The Educated Brother from the Bank of The War Room, for War Room Sports

Athletes misusing Twitter Pt 2!

Thursday, March 10th, 2011

Who cares about what Kevin Garnett said to Charlie Villanueva? FOH!!!

Saturday, November 27th, 2010