Gumbel Gets a Pass From the Media

I have been watching for some reaction to Bryant Gumbel's statement of a few days back concerning the lack of black athletes at the Olympics and, by the way, how worthless the Winter Olympics are.

As you probably remember, he thought the Winter Olympics really weren't worth watching as they don't have real athletes, more or less world class athletes, especially since the only athletes there were white and because of this, Gumbel said, it look like a Republican convention.

I haven't heard anything on the local TV news and I don't remember seeing anything in our local paper. Nothing. hmmmmm I guess it isn't news when a national media personality makes a racist statement. As I stated previously, Rush Limbaugh didn't have the right credentials to escape a media blitz when he didn't even make a racist remark. He just had the audacity to state the obvious about the NFL's bias for the employment of black quarter backs.

Everyone has the right to free speech, right? Or is it a right only when you talk about accepted culture; ideas that are dictated by those that have the power to change the way we all think. Those that can dictate a philosophy based on fear of reprisal for deviating for the norm.

The media can print anything it wants, it doesn't have to be true, and most of the time it isn't. How would you like to have your name on the front page of the paper where they have you associated with false and damaging statements that you never made?

What recourse would you have? Deny the obvious? Who's right? You or the morning edition of a daily that has a circulation of 300,000. The media doesn't lie, everyone knows that. They have an obligation to deliver the news and to tell the truth as best they can, even if their idea of the truth happens to destroy you and your family.

Will they correct their mistake of attacking you with false statements? Of course they will. Look for it on page 22 on the bottom right hand corner. Don't look for a head line that says 'we screwed up'. The damage is done and the media accomplished what they wanted to do. It's your responsibility now to rebuild your life someplace else, or be reborn by joining the accepted culture.

Forget about everything else except what you are suppose to be. It's so much easier to have others tell you what to think.