September 25, 2008
For Crying Out Loud, Storm Deserve Better Coverage
Seattlest gets around. We cover all sorts of newsy stuff. We've covered houses burning, politicians resigning, musicians overdosing, businesses bankrupting, hikers plummeting, homes foreclosing and all the rest, and every single time, we have seen tears shed. Heck, years ago, we covered a teachers' union meeting when news rippled through the room that Sesame Street creator Jim Henson had just died, and there wasn't a dry eye in the house. The point is, we've seen way too much crying for one lifetime, thanks.
News coverage often attempts to personalize a story by offering a quick photo of a grieving family or a group of consoling employees or whomever is feeling particularly affected by whatever news is taking place. But the grief itself is never the story.
So we were particularly disappointed by some of the local media coverage of this week's season-ending loss by the Seattle Storm. Playing without MVP Lauren Jackson for the final weeks of the regular season, the Storm displayed grit and determination and rolled into the playoffs when many predicted the team would go out with a whimper. Then, after making the playoffs, the team took the L.A. Sparks to the final game of the series before faltering.
(More after the jump)
So imagine how it must have felt to wake up Wednesday morning and have your months of hard work reduced to a box of tissues and a bucket of tears. That's exactly what happened to Sue Bird. The P-I's main game story was headlined "Storm's season ends in tears" and mentions Bird's post-game crying four times. The Seattle Times offered up this:
Sue Bird fiddled with a tissue, trying to compose herself as reporters surrounded her and fired questions quicker than Candace Parker baskets. Bird tucked her head in her shooting shirt. She rubbed her eyes. None of it stopped the tears from coming.That was the lede of the story. You could have thought there wasn't a game played Tuesday night.
But Seattlest wonders in January, when the Seahawks' head coach holds his final press conference, will the headlines read "Holmgren Sobs as Seahawks Career Ends"? And when the UW fires their football coach this December, will the story begin "Willingham shakily clung to the podium, speaking for the final time and grasping a box of purple and gold tissues, while glancing his bloodshot eyes in the direction of his adoring family (also crying)"?
We doubt it. And we wonder why.
Sue Bird photo care of the WNBA
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okay, first of all--and i'm not an arms girl--but damn look at sue's bicep in that shot! hott!
well put, brad! dare i suggest the reason for focusing on the tears is because she's a girl, and girls cry, which is far more interesting than girls kicking ass on the court? i don't really understand that logic, but there's really no other explanation. i would've rather seen a montage of the storm's impressive season, including their stars' participation at the olympics (and bird's gold medal!) than to have it all reduced to what was, with good reason, an emotional ending. but that's just me.
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I saw that, too, Brad. Thanks for saying something. Man, if it's not one sexist perspective, it's another.
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I think the Times writer was just trying to get across the agony of defeat.
It was an emotional loss after a great season.
Ask Adam Morrison how that feels. http://seattlest.com/2006/03/24/gonzagas_season_comes_to_a_crying_halt.php
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Mmmmm. Irony. Fills the tummy on a rainy day.
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Those who have been around awhile remember very well pictures of Joey Cora crying when the Mariners were eliminated. It was a moving, poignant moment, just as this was. Nothing sexist about it.
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Re: Cora. Here's a a link
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Brad, you're overstating your point. If Willingham and/or Holmgren
were to sob on their final days, odds are the newspapers would play it big.
Would they blather it in the headlines. Probably not. You do have a point there.
Journalism always goes for the emotional angle of a story. And..... surprise, crying is emotional. And females cry more than males.
That's a fact.
I don't have a problem with the story itself. Just the headline.
And I can guarantee you one thing - Wilingham will not be crying in public when he is fired. Very poor comparison.