Massive Failure Of Journalists Allowed Steroid Culture To Fester

NY Daily News:

Maybe I was just paying more attention than others as an age-group swimmer in California at the time, but I can recall being wowed by the guts U.S. swimmer Shirley Babashoff showed when she dared to speak out at the 1976 Summer Olympics about the mannish East German women who turned that competition into a mockery. I had no idea what was up with the East Germans, but I respected Babashoff's nerve. Many, however, wished she had kept her mouth shut. She was dubbed "Surly Shirley" in the press for making cracks about the deep voices of the East German women. An East Berlin swim coach was even brazen enough to airily dismiss such criticism by observing - in an accent that probably sounded a lot like the Rainier Wolfcastle character on "The Simpsons" - "We have come to swim, not to sing."

Read the whole story: NY Daily News

Comments

[expatsteve]

09:57 PM on 01/06/2008

Okay, journalists, here's a chance to redeem yourself: Women's tennis is rife with steroid use. Not just Serena Williams (who is an extreme example), but most of the top players look suspiciously muscular in a sport where the men aren't muscular at all. It is so obvious, yet try and make a comment about it on the ESPN website and they will ban you within a day.

[brently]

09:27 PM on 01/06/2008

I love it when journalists write about other journalists' massive failure. None of you has any guts. You're all Nazi perpetuating cowards. The first mainstream journalist to make 9/11 truth her/his priority will join the great journalists from history.

[FreeThinkn1]

06:58 PM on 01/06/2008

The first thing wrong with this headline is it assumes there are still journalists in this country. Secondly, who cares?

[curiousasheck]

06:47 PM on 01/06/2008

All thats required these days to be a journalist is the ability to sit at a computer all day and cherry pick Britney Spears stories and other sensationalism that "sells" coming off the AP wire. Junior editors have to be able to tweak headlines to catch eyeballs. Story writers have to be able to write short pieces with typos because they are after all "human" and humans make mistakes.

[ZingoBonMot]

05:51 PM on 01/06/2008

Not just a "Failure of Journalists" - a "Massive Failure of Journalists"!
What a total load of crap!
Helping Bush start an illegal war constitutes a "Massive Failure of Journalists".

[serialcoma]

04:33 PM on 01/06/2008

Failure of journalist? That's one of the dumbest things I've heard so far.... sounds more like an athlete, coach, trainer, doctor, shareholder issue.

[Nommo]

04:00 PM on 01/06/2008

A whole lot of people made big money on the juiced athletes. Follow the ducats.

[realitytrumpsbull]

03:57 PM on 01/06/2008

Oh who the hell cares about or even feels sorry
for these people? They've made their millions,
the franchises they work for have made millions,
people bet on athletics now, online even, it's
a business, and they juice up the contestants
just like in horse racing, go buy you some
performance enhancer today, available at
Walgreen's, most likely. I refuse to support
any part of professional athletics financially.

[wijg]

03:38 PM on 01/06/2008

This is not the only area "journalists" have failed us.

[wadenelson1]

03:34 PM on 01/06/2008

What a ridiculous proposition.

This is like blaming the Democrats for failing to stop Bush from launching the Iraq war.

Besides, everyone knew. Anyone with a brain, that is.

Well, ok, not Republicans.

[Nommo]

03:27 PM on 01/06/2008

Seems like a massive failure by journalists is what we've come to expect. Seems about all they are doing these days.
They are graduating these days, it is suggested, from the Miller/Novak school of whorenalism.