Any college and pro football fans are familiar with the on the field action of the former Oklahoma Sooner and current Minnesota Viking, Adrian Peterson. Anyone who follows football on a daily basis is aware of Peterson’s recent suspension that will expand the remainder of the 2014-2015 season. Peterson, who by most, is considered the NFL’s best running back was brought up on child abuse charges after striking his son with a tree branch, a punishment known as, “Switching”. This post is not going to take a stance on the act itself but rather focus on how two media outlets covered the story. The two sources don’t necessarily have a difference stance on the issue, however they both cover it from a different perspective, full of contrasting viewpoints.
I chose two media outlets with fairly different perspectives on the story. The first of which was none other than NFL.com , Though the page has a written article and video, I chose to focus on the video. The commentator in the video is describing the apparent shock of the season long suspension rather than the charges against Peterson. NFL.com isn’t ignoring the star’s charges, however, the site seems to be focusing on the fact that he will be missing time and how the whole situation effects the Vikings organization. In addition, the video is focused on the negative effects on Peterson’s future in the league rather than the magnitude of the crime he committed. Sports journalism is there to discuss predominately, what is happening in/on the field of play, however, it would have been nice to see a little bit more about the actual charges in the case.
The second outlet I chose was a written article from USNews.com , before anyone reads this piece it’s important to know that it is 100% opinion. The article takes a look at the Adrian Peterson story through the eyes of a mother. It paints a picture of Adrian Peterson as someone who made a poor decision, ( a reasonable point). The article is interesting in that it’s length, though short in nature, doesn’t leave out any differing point of views. The implied message in this article is that any sort of child abuse is unacceptable regardless of how one may have been raised. In addition, I also found this article so interesting based on the fact that it focused on the child in the case rather than Adrian Peterson’s suspension.
The Comparison: The two media outlets focus on the same story, and that’s about all they have in common with one another. The NFL.com video is focused on Peterson himself, whether his suspension was fair, whether the league was trying to make a statement, etc. The USNews.com article however, was focused on the act of child abuse in the US and what spawns abuse based on a persons’ upbringing. Another large difference between these two sources is the difference of voice. The NFL.com video is clearly commentated by sports anchors who are supposed to be focused on the game play aspect of the situation. This is quite contrary in the USnews article, the author claims at the beginning of the article that she is, ” not a big sports gal, and certainly not a football fan”. This displays the fact that she is clearly coming from a parental or moral stance rather than a sports minded approach. Overall, both sources are evidently passionate about the stance they are taking and as stated in paragraph one, they don’t really contradict one another, they just focus on different aspects of the story.
Why does it matter?
This story is important to any reader of this blog because it merges the idea of competitive sports with human, and moral values. I’m aware that this blog post doesn’t necessarily follow the theme of, ” The State of College Football”. However, when arguing over whether a former division one star’s suspension was justified or not, it makes for a good fit. Issues like this one or the Ray Rice Situation have a major impact on the sports world and on the society we live in. There was one part of the US news article I disagree with, the author claims, ” the saddest element of all, is that the only reason we know about the abuse of this little boy is because his daddy got caught, this time”. Though that point makes perfect sense, the fact is that we wouldn’t have the overwhelming awareness of these issues if they didn’t happen on this big of a stage. To clarify, I am in no way condoning the actions of these athletes who exercise abusive qualities. I’m simply saying it would be sadder if the situation went on unnoticed. Its important for my readers to realize the type of impact sports can have off of the field. To help prevent child abuse in the US, you can donate at Childhelp.org .
The State of College Football 