Like many of you I've managed to keep up with a few of the Olympic events despite NBC's appalling coverage. Swimming and gymnastics are among the most popular sports for U.S audiences, and these events are all the more compelling this time around because because of a few breakthrough personalities and hot bodies.
Regardless of how you feel about Ryan Lochte's corny "ice grill", you have to admit he's a total cutie. The surprising defeat Phelps suffered earlier this week, and the record-breaking comeback is the stuff American classics are made of. If you never had an interest in fencing before, the courageous and dignified protest by Shin A-Lam, the slighted South Korean fencer who was cheated out of her shot for the gold medal, would make anyone take a second look.
I remember watching the Magnificent Seven with awe during the 1996 Olympics. Graceful, powerful sprites bursting through the air in such a unique display of athleticism. And who can forget Strug's one-legged vault to victory? Cliche as this may sound, the gymnastics team initially caught my eye because of Dominique Dawes. It was, and still is, rare to find people of African descent in sports outside of soccer, American football, track & field, and basketball. I don't follow any particular sport with dedication but there is something to be said, beyond the overplayed race/genetics argument, about who plays what sport, why, and what that means. Every four years, the Olympics becomes an international platform for a variety of discussions.
16 years later, with the digital age in full swing, a young gymnast from Virginia reminds me of what I felt while watching the Atlanta games in 1996. Curiosity. Excitement. Gabby Douglas has an infectious smile, a warm demeanor, and a look of quiet determination. She is a part of a compelling team of young gymnast dubbed "The Fab Five". And as of this moment, Douglas and her teammates are gold medalist. Douglas went on to win an individual gold medal, much to the disappointment of the Russian silver and bronze medalist. She is the first African American to worthy of the all-around gymnast title.
If you do an Internet search on Gabby right now, among the articles detailing her victory, you'll find a number of articles focusing on her hair. I don't straighten my hair so perhaps I don't have an eye for imperfectly laid hair. Sometimes I wonder if people focus on something so trivial, because it's far easier to have pseudo intellectual debates about what's on your head as opposed to what's in it.
This teenager made history. And we're talking about her hair. How sad. The thing is, I'm not particularly concerned with the idiots on twitter (yes, they are idiots) partaking in a time honored tradition of superfluous shit-talking. If you know anything about the dirty dozens, you know that the most vicious and relentless shit talkers are often the most insecure and vulnerable ones. They bury their issues, like Voldemort's horcruxes, and sling insults hoping that you never notice (and expose) their weakness. For SOME people of color who are obsessed with tearing down others over their hair or skin, it's simply a deeply ingrained response to their own insecurities about Blackness.
Nonetheless, I'm interested in understanding why the digital "news" media created news out of the comments of a few jackasses (yes, they are jackasses). Oddly enough, the Washington Post Express Night Out (aka Washington Hoax) published a piece on the Fab Five two days ago and Gabby was nowhere to be found:
Not a picture. Not a mention. And not a single major digital news outlet mentioned this glaring omission. I found mention of it on ONE blog, and a few angry readers took their grievances to twitter. Naturally, after Douglas kicked ass and took names the WaPo Express put her "front and center" on the August 3rd publication. I'm sure they would slap Jordyn Wieber's face on the cover if they thought they could get away with it. America's sweetheart, dontchaknow.
Agenda-setting theory is a mass media theory that explains how the news media not only reports news, but influences society's understanding of what is important based on the level and type of coverage given to certain topics. What does the media's coverage of Gabby Douglas tell us about what they want us to talk about? "Regular" people make horrible comments about celebrities and public figures all the time. I've read downright nasty things about Phelp's looks. I've never seen a major news story talking about how a few White people think Phelps is fugly or has an abnormally small head. Why? Because it doesn't matter. He's an athlete, not a freaking model. His body breaks records. Like Gabby's. But as a woman, and as a Black woman in particular, I suppose that doesn't matter if you don't look perfect.
I am not trying to minimize or excuse the stupidity of the tweeters (or whatever the hell you call them). I am asking why their stupidity was even given a platform...on so many major news outlets! Gabby's invisibility in a major print news publication, was apparently not newsworthy. Just as the disappearance of women of color in American media is rarely considered news (yes, I went there). But her degradation, even by those least worthy of a platform to discuss her looks (seriously, look up the photos of these critics...YARRR!!) is plastered all over Yahoo, the Daily Mail, and goodness knows where else. And of course, these articles make it a point to mention that "the African American community" feels this way. No community speaks for me. And if it did, that community would not be lead by a bunch of twidiots.
Thoughts?
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