Tiger’s Wayward Drive
The recent Tiger Woods mess has brought a number of intriguing topics to the surface, albeit, hardly into focus.
The so called facts depend upon who is delivering the message and their agenda. No shock there, of course, that pretty much sums up the “Red State/Blue State” world of information dissemination we currently exist in. If it can’t be sensationalized, then mix in a little innuendo, speculation and titillation just to sweeten up the pot and add a little spice.
If we were to remove the name Tiger Woods from the sordid affair, here is how it changes:
In the early morning hours of the 27th of November, a man drove his SUV into a fire hydrant at the end of his driveway as well as an oak tree, just off his driveway, on his neighbor’s property. The man’s wife said she heard the impact of the crash, and when she found her husband at least partially unresponsive, she broke out one or more of the vehicles windows in order to aid his exit from the vehicle. Someone living in the neighborhood heard the accident as well and when they went out to investigate, they found a man lying in the road, coming in and out of consciousness, with injuries to his mouth area. The neighbor called 911. Medical personnel arrived, administered the necessary first aid on the scene and the injured man was sent to an area hospital where he was attended to and released.
Think about it, if this story was about average-Joe, John Q. Public, we couldn’t care less. But this wasn’t about just anybody, rather it was about someone extremely distinctive, a person that the mainstream media covering the event has called the “best known athlete in the world,” one Tiger Woods.
Now this is where the whole mess really starts to get salacious. Mix in tabloid rag accounts of an illicit affair – I should note that the last tabloid rag I passed in the grocery market had a headline that extraterrestrial aliens held more than 50 seats in Congress – wait a minute, that story is actually believable. Anyway, somehow this story is supposed to have something to do with our right to know what really happen, beyond the facts as stated above. I heard numerous reporters attesting that the central questions are Why was Tiger Woods leaving his house at 2-something in the morning? And, where was he going?
This self-righteous public’s-right-to-know mentality comes from a belief that if one is going to live by the sword, then they will die by the sword. In other words, if you are going to get paid hundreds of millions of dollars playing a sport, endorsing products and living with all of the trappings of luxuries and privilege, then don’t be surprised, offended or indignant when the same public that’s been lining your pockets wants to know why you slammed your Cadillac SUV into a hydrant and tree, at the end of your drive way, in the middle of the night?
The real answer, of course, is far more complicated than whatever events predicated the accident. Part, I believe is societal, we seem to love to drag down our heroes as much, or more, than we love to worship celebrity. As we tend to live in a society of resignation, so to see the fall of the mighty, makes us all feel a little better about ourselves because the divide between a celebrity’s deity-like status and our commoners status has somehow, even briefly been brought closer together. In Tiger’s case, its as if the wall of privacy built around his world has been cracked open just a little bit and we feel entitled to pick away at the sliver until we’ve revealed a gapping hole that will satisfy our curiosity to see all the dirty laundry blowing in the wind.
Part of this is pure economics and don’t for a minute think its not about money. A juicy story about a celebrity sells papers, and commercials. And don’t think this whole thing is just about the tabloids – no, my friend, we’ve all gone along for the ride.
There is another element to this whole mess. That is, this is the first time that Tiger Woods and his well-oiled management machine has been in the merciless grasp of the media hounds that well extend beyond the comfy confines of the world of golf media. In the world of professional golf, there is an element of being one big happy family. We all move from event to event like a traveling circus with lines of respect, friendship, congeniality and professionalism forming a well rehearsed dance. In fact, back in the day, golfers and media alike routinely turned a blind eye to each others indiscretions. The story of a golfer driving his car into a hydrant and tree at the end of his driveway would provide little more than a good laugh around the lunch table.
Tiger’s typical approach of simply refusing to allow any glimpses into his private world may work in the parochial world of golf because let’s face it, he’s too important to the game for anyone to force him to act otherwise. But in the much broader world of tabloid celebrity media, Tiger is just one column aside of accounts of Brittany’s lip-syncing and speculation of about Tom and Katie.
Where was Tiger going at the wee hours of the morning and why? You know what, I really don’t care. Is there more to this story than we are being told? I have no doubt there is. However, I hope that Tiger and his family work it out in the privacy of their home, just like any other average Joe.
As Tiger has already admitted and expressed regret and apologized for his “transgressions,” he also said “I am dealing with my behavior and personal failings behind closed doors with my family.” There will be much more to come from this story, no doubt, but not because it is news worthy in my humble opinion, but because it has become a media feeding frenzy where a man’s transgressions have become a mass fascination. One does not have to condone nor condemn the behavior of another without realizing the hypocrisy of judging another human being. Tiger Woods and his family deserve privacy, not because he is a powerful celebrity, thus making him different than you and I, rather, he deserves privacy for the same reasons we would.