Ignorance is Bliss (for Everyone but the Kids)

“I am not a role model!” That famous slogan was the theme of a marketing campaign for Charles Barkley’s Nikes, and back in 1993 it created quite a controversy. 16 years (plus millions of dollars in gambling losses, the financial settlement given to the guy who Barkley tossed through a glass window, and the money needed to make bail after drunk-driving “to go get a blowjob”) later, and it turns out Sir Charles was right. If he’s anyone’s role model, then that person better be as rich as Barkley or they’re sure to end up in jail or on the streets.

Today, if a superstar athlete promoted himself with the same unapologetic indifference to the impression he makes on young sports fans, we would not see the same controversy that we saw with Barkley in ’93. Times have changed for athletes in the spotlight. While some sports stars still welcome the perceived responsibility of giving kids someone to look up to, a growing number of them ignore that it even exists. Barkley’s reasoning was that parents shouldn’t turn to him to raise their kids; they should be the role models themselves. The argument makes sense. But even if Barkley is right, his attitude isn’t doing anyone any good. Just because kids shouldn’t look up to athletes doesn’t mean they won’t. Unfortunately, it’s so much easier for these young millionaires to plead the fifth on this issue because it frees them of any additional responsibility outside the sport in which they perform. As long as they aren’t committing serious crimes, they can do whatever they want in their personal lives without having to think twice about the message they’re sending to the impressionable youth. Concerns about reputation and moral influence are fading in a time where access to the private lives of professional athletes is growing like never before.

Take Michael Jordan, for example. Sure, we know some details about his compulsive gambling and extramarital affairs, but a lot of his personal issues flew under the radar during his playing days. Now imagine if Jordan was starring in the current era, rather than in the late ‘80s and ‘90s. With the emergence of the internet and the unquenchable thirst for celebrity gossip, Jordan would get ten times more bad publicity than he did back then. Just look at the scrutiny Kobe Bryant and Alex Rodriguez are constantly under; not only in the sports section, but in mainstream media. The vices of these two 21st century superstars are paraded around non-stop, yet Jordan managed to maintain a relatively clean image throughout his time of superstardom. Today, there’s not a chance he’d be able to hide all his dirty laundry.

Surely, many of us in our early-mid 20s can sympathize with pro athletes who have their reputations damaged when unflattering party photos somehow surface on the internet. For us, not only is it hard to blame them, it’s actually pretty cool to see how they’re just normal guys that go out and have a good time. We identify with that, but here’s also where the problem lies: as we celebrate the “outing” of star athletes’ personal lives in that funny, TMZ celebrity-gossip kind of way, we tend to overlook the troubling ways it sits with those who cannot relate. Kids haven’t gone through enough experiences to interpret these things harmlessly. If I look at the picture of Michael Phelps hooting a bong and think, “That’s funny,” wouldn’t it be worrisome if a 12-year-old kid had the same reaction?

There are plenty of kids who show a big-time interest in sports at a young age. They follow stories about star athletes just as much as anyone. The same media attention that allows pro athletes to become ridiculously rich also brings some social responsibilities that extend beyond the world of entertainment. Instead of being negligent, they should be mindful of the fact that in this age of digital media, there’s a much greater chance that the choices they make will become public knowledge, leaving a lasting impression on the younger generation of sports fans. For young adults, we like being able to think that these guys are just like us. Here’s the truth — they’re not like us. They are in a totally different position than you and me, making way more money, applying their trade with the most unique physical skills and living completely different lifestyles. They certainly deserve to enjoy the benefits, but it’d be beneficial to their young followers if they held themselves to a higher standard than the average party animal that never has to worry about seeing his drunk ass on the front page of Deadspin.com.