Cam Newton Draws Rebuke for Mocking Female Reporter
By Vanessa, Lily, and Juliet
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/04/sports/football/cam-newton-reporter.html
Discussion Questions (answer one or as many as you would like):
1. Do you think the circumstance would be different if it were a male reporter?
2. How do you think this reflects the US as a whole? (this ties into sports & politics)
3. What does this form of discrimination play for Cam Newton? Since he is African American and made comments about a woman (who is also a minority).
Do you think the circumstance would be different if it were a male reporter?
ReplyDeleteYes, this absolutely would have been a different circumstance if it had been a male reporter. First of all, it probably would not have happened in the first place obviously considering it was a knock on females not knowing about football. If Cam had said it to a male though, it wouldn't have made such big news, because it would have just seemed like a joke to the reporter and not such a serious thing.
It seems as if men and women still are not looked at the same as much as we thought in our country, there are still stereotypes and thoughts about them that would never be said about men.
Cam Newton’s comments were completely unacceptable and the fact that he has still not yet apologized is unacceptable. The whole situation would have been completely different if the reporter was a male. If the reporter was a male, then I think that most people would have laughed off it off if the emphasis was on routes, but the gender of the reporter does not matter in my opinion. I think that this shows how the US still has a long ways to go towards having an equal playing field for everyone, and this makes me doubt that we can get there. I’m certain that there are people out there just like Cam Newton who would agree with him, and those people reflect poorly on the far majority of people of the US. It shows just how long the road to progress can be. Furthermore, I find it shocking that someone can be more disappointed in someone kneeling for the national anthem than players who continue to play, even after committing acts of domestic violence, and statements like Newton's. I see no benefit for Newton in this situation, and it puts him into a socially isolated position that will be difficult to get out of.
ReplyDeleteCam Newton's comment towards Jourdan was utterly disrespectful, and I feel like it wouldn't be a different "scenario" if it was a male reporter, I just think that the comment would not have been made to a male reporter because of stereotypes. I think that this did not have a huge reflection on the U.S. as a whole, but it did show that while steps are being taken to stop stereotypes and discrimination, it still exists. Also it shows that politics and sports can get intertwined very easily by just a chuckle. I feel that it is interesting that somebody who is standing up for their own discrimination and inequality was treating a woman differently, which is exactly what he is fighting against as he speaks.
ReplyDeleteThese comments would not have been made to a male reporter. This is because in an industry that is dominated by males and he was not used to answering questions to women. He has no excuse for the comments that he made. His words exposed the opinions and views of many professional athletes towards female reporters. I think that there must be more efforts taken to have athletes become more respectful towards women. Women are obviously not seen as equals, and there needs to be steps taken to make them more equal.
ReplyDeleteThis comments would not been made to a male reporter because of the normality of men in the sports world. It is not as common for woman reporters asking questions of cam newton. That is why he acted this way towards the woman. In addition, I understand the frustration he has after not playing well and starting the season on a poor personal note.
ReplyDeleteThis exact comment that Cam Newton made would not happen if it was a male reporter, as Newton would not (hopefully) call a male reporter a girl. However, if a male reporter made that comment, Newton probably would have “ridiculed” the reporter about mispronoucing the word. I think any reporter mispronouced “routes” that poorly, Newton would’ve commented about it. Finally, to the people who think that this is sexist, their is nothing wrong with Newton commenting about a female reporter, as women were never major sports reporters until very recently (which is a FACT). I see why people may think Cam Newton is sexist due to this comment, but the truth is that he made a comment that when read on paper, it may seem that it is sexist, but the connotation and body language he used while talking about it implies that contrary.
ReplyDeleteCam Newton is entitled to his own opinion, and though his opinion may not be the opinion of the public, it is still his opinion. This event has been labeled as discriminatory by many people and that is to some extent true and his comment will impact his credibility. But overall Cam's comment should not carry as much weight as it has, also I do not believe that women are considered a minority.
ReplyDeleteI think that this definitely would not have been said if this was a male reporter. For hindsight, the is only one female coach in the NFL and she has a minor role for the Cardinals. I also think that this is because woman really aren't respected when it comes to sports. Just look at at Jemele Hill and the backlash that ESPN got for hiring a female for a major show. I think if it was a male reporter nothing would have been said at all and Cam Newton would have just answered the question and not laughed at the female reporter.
ReplyDeleteIt would absolutely be be different if it were a male reporter. If a male reporter had sad it, no comment would have been brought up by Newton. Yes, voicing his thoughts on national T.V. was probably sexist, but I believe he really meant no harm by it. If the comment had been meant to be sexist, there should be repercussions. For the US as a whole, it shows that many people still believe things like what Cam Newton had said. And I really don’t think these thoughts will ever go away from people's heads. Being African American does not change what he said, and the response to it.
ReplyDeleteI think it shows that in America today there is a harsh reality that women are not treated the same as men especially in the sports world. For Cam Newton to not realize that what he said is offensive shows the lack of understanding and education on the situation of women's rights. Newton's comments also do not help the cause, as kids look up to him as a role model. The problem is I think it is impossible to eliminate these implicit biases from society. It is the same as the racial discrimination, I think with the history the US has had with these issues, it is hard to eliminate it from society, which is a shame.
ReplyDeleteThe circumstances would be very different if it was a male reporter. If it were a male reporter the comments probably would have never been said. You don't see this type of treatment happening to male reporters. The way they were said were portrayed as sexist. He did apologize, but This probably wouldn't have been an issue if it was a guy. You also see so much more reports from guys than girls. He probably would have answered the question if it was a guy.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that this has to do anything about minorities and who is who in this argument. Rather I think that it just needs to be recognized that what Cam said was sexist, immature and inappropriate. I think that if a white athlete would have made these comments there would have been the same reaction. This has nothing to do with African Americans either,rather just the maturity level of Cam Newton alone. I don't think that any one race or minority or gender should be singled out here, rather the fact that Cam did say these comments and they were wrong and it is a bad influence to the people that look up to Cam.
ReplyDelete1. Do you think the circumstance would be different if it were a male reporter?
ReplyDeleteYes it would have been different because there would have been no remarks made if the reporter were male. Cam was saying that since women USUALLY don't play football, he found it "funny" that a woman was making remarks. Although he did apologize, he shouldn't have said it originally since it has evidently sparked controversy over sexism and could've offended some.
I do think that the circumstance would have been different if it were a male reporter. I think that Cam would have not laughed if a guy said “routes”. I think he laughed when the female reporter said routes because females are not known for playing football and Cam for some reason that it was funny when she knew what she was talking about. If a male were to say it he probably would not have laughed because he would expect them to know football.
ReplyDeleteDo you think the circumstance would be different if it were a male reporter?
ReplyDeleteI do think it would be different if it were a male reporter. Newton was I think just making a joke about how women don't play football and thus don't know much about routes and football things like that. He was just making a generalization which ultimately led to controversy. This created a strong public outrage especially over sexism as people were very offended by Cam Newton's comment.