After discussing the topic in class, I did more research into the comparisons of the Ben Roethlisberger rape allegations in relation to those charges made against Kobe Bryant. Much like the discussion we had in class, many references that were found online seem to be pointing to race being a significant, if not sole, reason why Kobe was treated so differently by the media and general public than Roethlisberger.
Both of these allegations of rape came against successful and established professional athletes, and both cases have numerous similarities that make it easier for comparison. For one, both cases involved women with questionable stories. Both accusers immediately attempted to make a settlement outside of court, asking for excessive amounts of money to drop charges, Roethlisberger's accuser more so than Kobe's. Along with the two cases being very similar in terms of the accusations, the players being accused of the crime are also quite comparable. Both athletes play in large markets where media has a huge presence and both men have their share of championships. So what is the outlier that clearly sets the two men apart in terms of case comparison? Race.
Boyce Watkins, in an article written soon after the Roethlisberger charges were made in Las Vegas, makes the statement that "there is the final possibility that our imagery of black men as criminals and sexual aggressors makes it easier to believe that Kobe raped a white woman" (Watkins, 2009). He goes on to make the point that there are several cases when African American athletes have been practically convicted before even being tried, such as Barry Bonds, Michael Vick, Terrell Owens, and Ron Artest. These examples, and many others that were not mentioned in the article, are prime examples of the media expressing an elevated level in the actions and misbehavior of black athletes as opposed to those of their white counterparts.
A similar article comparing the two cases was written by Dexter Rodgers of the Huffington Post one year after the Watkins article. Rodgers asks why the media hadn't crucified Roethlisberger the same as it had Bryant, and provides the reasoning that "the white male dominated media doesn't cover the marquee white athlete with the same level of intensity as compared to the African-American athlete" (Rodgers, 2010).
Upon reading these articles, analyzing our discussion in class regarding the topic, and taking my own personal opinions into consideration, I certainly believe that the media came down so harshly and quickly upon Bryant because their minds had been made up long before both sides were even prevented. As Watkins noted in his article, I do think that the perception of African Americans and their perceived aggression led to the thought of Bryant's charges being more believable than those of Roethlisberger. There is no other explanation for the treatment of Bryant in comparison to Big Ben. Bryant is just as high a profile athlete as Roethlisberger, they are both successful, both play for elite franchises in their respective sports, and both have been charged with rape. Bryant even provided an apology for his actions, continuous cooperation with authorities, and constant defense of himself as the claims were made against him. He took responsibility for his acts of infidelity and I feel as though he handled the situation very well from a public relations point of view. Roethlisberger on the other hand practically flew under the radar, which is even more surprising seeing as the Las Vegas incident was the second case of rape allegations in as many years. Roethlisberger did not make public statements in his defense as Bryant did, he did not refute charges, and he simply sat back as the media more or less defended him rather than convict him from behind their keyboards. Had Roethlisberger been an African American, he would have certainly been scrutinized differently by media with far more tenacity.
http://www.bvblackspin.com/2009/08/02/kobe-bryant-ben-roethlisberger-race/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dexter-rogers/ben-roethlisberger-contin_b_512950.html
I agree that these were totally handled the wrong way. Kobe showed such passion in his interview that we watched in class. You could tell that he truly meant what he said. Unlike Tiger Woods in his apology that was written, and showed no emotion what so ever. Kobe showed frustration throughout the interview that he was served wrongly. I might be a little bias since I do not like the Steelers, but for Ben not to come out and fight against it like Kobe did isn't right. Like Marc said, he kind of let the media get the best of him. He certainly didn't get the attention that Kobe got, even after he was accused for a second time! I find it kind of screwed up that media is dominated by the white male, and for this reason they come down harder on African Americans, even when they don't know what truly happened. They have these preconceived notions of what happened even before they learn the true facts about the incident. This needs to change, and rather fast before something else comes up of this magnitude.
ReplyDeletePatrick McFall
This is an interesting analyzation of the two incidents. An athlete who I thought of during this discussion was Ray Lewis. Lewis was accused of murder but never convicted. He is an African-American who has gotten the benefit of the doubt from the media as this is hardly ever mentioned anymore. He is revered as one of sport's great motivators and arguably the most dominant defensive player in NFL history. This, perhaps, suggests that there is much more at play than simply race.
ReplyDelete- Marc Rodriguez
I wonder if the leagues in which each player plays has something to do with it. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell seems to be very involved in seeing that images are protected - and yet that was not what happened with Michael Vick. So again, that suggests that maybe race was a key factor.
DeleteDr. Spencer
I agree that the media seemed to come down much more harshly on Kobe. Even though Kobe did address the public and apologize for what he had done, the media still came down harder on him. Also, Kobe was looked at so wrongly, but this only happened once for him. It seems that Kobe's was still overshadowed by Big Ben's even though Roethislisberger was accused more than just once. In my eye's, we should be criticizing Roethlisberger more so than Kobe. Since Kobe did take responsibility for what he had done, and only let it happen once. Again, this points to race being, possibly the reason for this.
ReplyDelete-Paxin Stern
Marc
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely Marc about this topic. In Kobe's interview that we watched in class he showed so much emotion and to me it felt so sincere when he was speaking of his innocene. Tiger Woods on the other hand had his apology all written out and show absolutely no emotion at all when giving his speech. Ben Rothlisberger did abosolutely nothing to help his case he did not declare his innocence he did not make public statements like Kobe did and to me i think that if you are innocence you are going to try and do everything in your power to prove that you are so to me not doing these things makes Ben look guilty. However, sometimes i think that people see an athlete get in trouble on tv and then make up some story just to either get money or fame and i dont think that this is right either.
Tyler Clifton
I agree that Kobe handled it about as well as you could and obviously Big Ben did not because he's not a very good person. I think another reason why they may have blown up about Kobe a little more is because he is arguably one of the greatest basketball players of all time. People argue whether Kobe is better then Michael Jordan who is the best player of all time. Nobody really says that Big Ben is the best quarterback ever, or even in the league right now. I think that's another reason why Kobe's incident created so much more attention.
ReplyDeleteMatt Pitzulo
I agree completely with what you are saying. I think right after both incidences happened, Kobe was treated much more harshly. I feel as though a lot of people have gotten over his incidence more than they have Roethlisberger's. Especially females. I agree with what was said in class about how since Kobe Bryant's wife supported him and was with him at the press conference when he apologized a lot of women respected him more than they did Roethlisberger. Even now if Roethlisberger's name gets brought up with women you hear a lot of them say how gross he is. If Kobe Bryant's name gets brought up I hear more about his basketball than the incident. I feel like if his wife can forgive him than no one else really matters and people should just focus on his basketball.
ReplyDelete-Sunny Marchand
I believe how us as fans see these athletes during there times of scandal was dependent upon the media. The media takes a stand on how they will present the news to fans. Our mindset and the position we take depends on the stance that media outlet presents. When Dr. Spencer asked in class, "When you think of Kobe, do you think of his incident?" I did not raise my hand because with Kobe, he personally reached out to the media for apologizes and has shown that he is focused on being the best basketball player in NBA regardless of what happens in his personal life. He has shown us fans that he has moved on and would like us to as well. Roethlisberger on the other hand, did very little to reach out to the media during his times of incidents. With Roethlisberger this did not only happen once but twice, it is hard even for the media to cover up what he did because of the multiple occurance. I felt the media coverage and their stance were different in both cases. Kobe had the media coverage but the media took a stance in suppoting his apology. Roethlisberger did not have this support due to multiple occurances. Also, the NFL is more of a "women's" league compared to other big four sports. So this occurance fans in the NFL were more passionate about. Regardless, both incidents are not acceptable by any means but there comes a point in time as sports fans we need to move on and look at their success after their incident. They are people, they make mistakes whether they are right or wrong is your choice and how you favor that athlete but that is something to keep in mind before we judge them besides looking at their performances in their sport.
ReplyDelete-Chelsea VanAssche
This is a really good thread about the differences in how the cases of Kobe and Ben Roethlisberger were handled by the media. I'm glad Marc brought in the two articles mentioned in his main entry. Those look like good articles to include for next semester's class, so thanks for your contributions to future SM 4250 classes!
ReplyDeleteDr. Spencer