Monday, November 9, 2009

Sport & Society

As sport moves ever more into the forefront of public consciousness, athlete behavior and misbehavior is receiving greater and greater scrutiny – as it should. The extraordinary fame and fortune heaped upon some athletes raises them to role model status - like it or not. With this comes potent downstream effects on societal norms for behavior, on and off the playing field. What to do with the worst transgressions raises a dilemma for all stakeholders, pressing them to be fair in disciplining the offender, while remaining sensitive to the message sent to those would be role modelers. Sadly, the latest national incident brings darkness to womens' soccer, which has been one of the bright lights of the rise of womens’ sports in the last generation. See for yourself at:
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=4629837&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines