Pistorius was wearing a sweatshirt made by Oakley, his sponsor, when he was taken by police http://twitpic.com/c3p324Even if you only vaguely remembered Oscar Pistorius--the double amputee that the media declared an inspirational hero when he ran for the South African track team at the 2012 London Olympics--it's a pretty good bet you're aware of him now after the same media breathlessly reported the details of his arrest for the murder of his girlfriend. It's a stunning story that will probably follow the usual contours of public debate. I doubt it will go full-on OJ--if only because there's little doubt of his guilt and he's not an American--but I'm sure will hear plenty of shopworn accusations about the media "exploiting a tragedy for ratings" or a public thats too interested in "tabloid trash" for its own good.
— darren rovell (@darrenrovell) February 14, 2013
But none of that seems to explain the tweet from Darren Rovell, the former "Sports Business Reporter" for CNBC and, since June, an on-air correspondent for ESPN. A frequent target of the frat-boy pile-on that is the sports blog-o-sphere, the majority of his Twitter feed seems to be shilling for on-line sports books or some overpriced collectible a retailer probably comped him (today, in honor of the upcoming NBA All-Star game, he's featuring baskeball socks). So he's well aware of his role as a well-oiled cog in the consumer-marketing machine of professional sports.
But that alone doesn't explain this tweet. If you look at the picture he links to, the Oakley symbol is fairly discrete--I personally would never have noticed it if Rovell hadn't pointed it out. That makes it seem like he's trying to supply useful information, like a color commentator who takes notice of a small but key play detail the viewer might have otherwise missed. Now, granted, Rovell doesn't look like the brightest bulb in the SportsCenter marquee. So surely even he realizes that Oakley cant be too thrilled with their sposorship deal right now--or that they wouldn't forget a media flunky who went out of their way to remind consumers that Oakley is the brand preferred by a guy who shot his Valentine thru a locked bathroom door.
Another theory could be that after being a "Sports-Business Commentator" for so long--a sui generis profession if ever there was--Rovell has started to confuse the two. Perhaps the various brand logos which most sports fans consider annoying but necessary eye-pollution have, for him, switched places with the real action the rest of us pay to see. Maybe he goes to hockey games just to see how the ads have changed on the sideboards. Maybe that big Duke/North Carolina basketball game is only interesting if he knows which shoe brands the rich coaches are forcing their unpaid kids to wear this year. If so, it's only natural that the one-square-inch off-grey logo on the sweatshirt captured his attention far more than the dark emotion apparent to most normal human beings.
Or maybe this is Rovell's awkward attempt to comment on business etiquette. As a consumer culture we've become pretty savvy after some 60-odd years of mass media, so no one expects an athlete to actually like the product their endorsing--much less use it exclusively. But the business side does expect you to always--always--treat them with respect, regardless of how shitty or murdery your day is. So, is Rovell tut-tutting Pistorius here for not changing his shirt before the cops showed up? Is this a capitalist faux pas equivalent of not wearing the right color jacket to the snobbish country club? How gauche!
So really, Darren, we all need to know: Why the fuck did you say that?
(Guest post by Christopher Jones)
