Communicating thoughtfully with (and through) the media should be about a lot more than simply trying to look or sound good.
There is no question that how a person communicates - are they credible, articulate, thoughtful - influences how others may think about them, both good and bad.
But more than whether fans or media respond favorably to an athlete or not because of how they come across is this reality: how an individual athlete speaks - and speaks out - can help or hinder their club as a whole.
Some examples:
- Barry Bonds is one of the finest ballplayers of his generation, the National league MVP again in 2002. Yet his off-field demeanor somehow seems to diminish his otherwise lofty accomplishments. He may be a very genuine and thoughtful person, but that is not what the public sees through the media prism, it would seem. When push came to shove in the World series this fall, the club that was clearly team-oriented, the Anaheim Angels, outlasted a club with individual superstars like Bonds and Kent, and a manager, Dusty Baker, who was clearly unhappy in San Francisco.
- Tracy McGrady was quoted during the NBA playoffs this past spring as saying Baron Davis of the Charlotte Hornets was not the outstanding player in the series. McGrady told the assembled media he (McGrady) was, in fact, the top guy. Davis, according to McGrady, was simply "made to look better" because of his teammates. How do we suspect McGrady's teammates might have felt when getting ready for their next big playoff game?
- More recently, former player and now NFL General Manager Matt Millen referred to one of his (albeit unnamed) current Detroit Lion players as a "devout coward". He made this statement on Mike Ditka's radio show in Chicago. Was this done to motivate his team? Was he sending a message through the media? Did he simply 'forget' for a moment that he was being heard throughout the sports world?
In a subsequent interview of his own, Peter King of CNN Sports Illustrated remarked that Millen often goes "off the record" with him (King). And further, that in those instances, Millen will often say very harsh and negative things about specific, individual players.
That had to feel good for the players, as well: to know Millen's outburst on the Ditka program was in fact not an isolated incident… that Millen says that sort of thing, evidently all the time.
(By the way, this is another clear example of why nothing is really and truly off the record. Even though King did not mention names, clearly the fact that he felt free to report publicly on a Buffalo radio program that he speaks off the record with Millen - and that Millen says critical things privately - is indirectly reporting off-the-record comments made by Millen.)
As we've said before, athletes do face the constant tug between sounding like they respond with nothing but clichés and running a risk if they venture into giving their 'real' opinions on the subject of the day.
Even - maybe especially - Tiger Woods faces this kind of 'comment' scrutiny. Woods has been criticized in recent times for his reported reluctance to take strong stands on issues (e.g. the current controversy surrounding the Masters and Augusta National's "refusal" to allow women members). Said Woods: "I have the feeling that sometimes I can't say anything, because I'm going to get criticized. And what's unfair about this is, people always ask my opinion. They ask for my opinion, and sometimes when I give it to them, they don't respect what I have to say. If that's the case, don't ask."
While acknowledging this difficulty, and it's a challenge athletes often face, this much seems clear: what an athlete, coach or manager says in a thoughtless moment can impact negatively their team, their organization and themselves.
