A friend of mine asked me in an email what my opinion was of the Michael Vick story. I have written before in this blog about how he as a football player first allured me to an interest in football and I have never shied away from endorsing him as a player. Having said that it has been an extremely disappointing few months watching one of my favorite players be involved in something as shocking as dog fighting and the repercussions it has had on my team; the Atlanta Falcons. I won’t dwell too much on it… but I will share this: A week or so ago ESPN hosted a town hall meeting in Atlanta gauging the public views and thoughts surrounding what has happened to Michael Vick. All sorts of groups were represented; the Humane Society, local media in Atlanta, church groups, the NAACP… all there to give their two cents. ESPN asked that people post comments on their website in response to certain questions for the panel and share insights for the meeting. The following is the question I responded to and my comment:
"How has Michael Vick been treated by the media?
The media super storm that has existed over the past few months has been mostly responsible for the damage to Michael Vick’s image. His personal responsibility notwithstanding, he does not deserve the backlash from the manner in which the “general public” views his actions and the outrage for animal cruelty. While the media is a small number of people that dictate what news is seen their opinion does not represent the opinion of the country at large. People seem to share two different opinions about dog fighting; the opinion acceptable to share in public that it is cruel, inhumane and horrible and the opinion that is shared amongst friends in close circles that while it’s a cruel, the life of an animal should never be placed above that of a human and penalties for animal cruelty should reflect that hierarchy. I feel that dog fighting is wrong, and as a story attached to someone with the celebrity of Michael Vick is juicy, enticing and attractive; add to that a news media thirsty for a story during a boring summer and you have Michael Vick saga as it has unfolded. The most disconcerting thing to me is that Michael Vick never assaulted anyone, killed anyone, raped anyone, robbed anyone, molested anyone’s kids or family and yet will have a more difficult time than any perpetrator of the listed crimes rehabilitating his image. It is a sad state in our country that we have come to this where federal resources are being used to chase a dog fighting ring while there are still homeless and hungry on the streets of our cities. The NFL nor the country at large are better off for what has happened, if anything it is more of an indictment of the manner in which the media use the public and celebrity for their own gain, regardless of the consequence. It seems incredibly alarming that Michael Vick has been perceived as he has been, yet has not been guilty of one crime against another human being. I guess you need to be indicted for murder (Ray Lewis…currently playing for the Baltimore Ravens, no suspension from the NFL), drug trafficking (Jamal Lewis…currently playing for the Cleveland Browns, served a 4 month jail sentence, no NFL suspension) or rape (Patrick Kerney… currently playing for the Seattle Seahawks…no NFL suspension) to be fly under the radar. Dog Fighters are the REAL felons…"
"How has Michael Vick been treated by the media?
The media super storm that has existed over the past few months has been mostly responsible for the damage to Michael Vick’s image. His personal responsibility notwithstanding, he does not deserve the backlash from the manner in which the “general public” views his actions and the outrage for animal cruelty. While the media is a small number of people that dictate what news is seen their opinion does not represent the opinion of the country at large. People seem to share two different opinions about dog fighting; the opinion acceptable to share in public that it is cruel, inhumane and horrible and the opinion that is shared amongst friends in close circles that while it’s a cruel, the life of an animal should never be placed above that of a human and penalties for animal cruelty should reflect that hierarchy. I feel that dog fighting is wrong, and as a story attached to someone with the celebrity of Michael Vick is juicy, enticing and attractive; add to that a news media thirsty for a story during a boring summer and you have Michael Vick saga as it has unfolded. The most disconcerting thing to me is that Michael Vick never assaulted anyone, killed anyone, raped anyone, robbed anyone, molested anyone’s kids or family and yet will have a more difficult time than any perpetrator of the listed crimes rehabilitating his image. It is a sad state in our country that we have come to this where federal resources are being used to chase a dog fighting ring while there are still homeless and hungry on the streets of our cities. The NFL nor the country at large are better off for what has happened, if anything it is more of an indictment of the manner in which the media use the public and celebrity for their own gain, regardless of the consequence. It seems incredibly alarming that Michael Vick has been perceived as he has been, yet has not been guilty of one crime against another human being. I guess you need to be indicted for murder (Ray Lewis…currently playing for the Baltimore Ravens, no suspension from the NFL), drug trafficking (Jamal Lewis…currently playing for the Cleveland Browns, served a 4 month jail sentence, no NFL suspension) or rape (Patrick Kerney… currently playing for the Seattle Seahawks…no NFL suspension) to be fly under the radar. Dog Fighters are the REAL felons…"
