Former editor: Media share blame for negative sports images

By Kevin Jones
Diversity Institute Fellow

07.23.02

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Gene Policinski

News coverage of what some might call boxer Mike Tyson’s “bad boy” antics could be doing as much to encourage his behavior as it does to discourage it, says a former USA TODAY sports editor who frequently lectures on media ethics.

But Gene Policinski, deputy director of the First Amendment Center in Nashville, Tenn., also said that much of the public’s response could also be a contributing factor.

Tyson was frequently spotlighted in media reports during the weeks leading up to his June bout with Lennox Lewis in Memphis. Various accounts noted that Tyson continues to enjoy broad fan support despite his involvement in brawls at news conferences, his tirades against reporters and his repeated brushes with the law.

Policinski, who served as managing editor for sports at USA TODAY, believes news coverage helps facilitate this bad behavior.

“There is a coarsening of civility in our society,” Policinski said. “Maybe we encourage the coarsening of behavior in our society.”

Policinski said Tyson is just one example of how bad behavior seems to strike a deep chord in consumers. Such athletes as Allen Iverson, John Rocker and Dennis Rodman also have gained notoriety for actions that many have labeled as crude, and he believes that often diminishes the true glory that sports can bring to athletes.

“Sensationalism and bad behavior sells tickets, brings peoples to arenas and makes for interesting quotes,” Policinski said. “When we put the individual over competition… it is detrimental over time.”

Policinski said that bad behavior by professional athletes also can have a ripple effect, encouraging children to become ruthless in competition and encouraging college athletes to become cheaters in the classroom. But he sees little chance that the media will alter how sports personalities are covered.

Tyson’s antics often have landed him in the center of sports coverage and have done little to promote the idea of positive images among sports figures, Policinski said.

After Tyson incited a fight with Lewis during a news conference, Lewis insisted in his contract that the two have special accommodations to limit the amount of contact between the two fighters leading up to their fight in Memphis.

Tyson still managed to gain attention by saying he wanted to eat Lewis’ children.

"I feel that what we are developing is a lust for blood sport," said Policinski. "We are losing our ability to just enjoy the game."

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Articles, photos by 2002 Diversity Institute Fellows
Collection page for articles written by 2002 Diversity Institute Fellows.  07.23.02