PRO: Media pundits declare open season on pro football

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1 Constructed Response #1 Name ****Read and annotate selection 1, an article by Whitt Flora, stating that the media is too critical over NFL players and the recent scandals surrounding the sport. PRO: Media pundits declare open season on pro football BALTIMORE A jeering section of media commentators, pundits and politicians have taken to the airwaves denouncing the National Football League. Its crime: not properly policing the private lives of two of its most visible players. No one is excusing the unconscionable behavior of the Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice and the Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, or that of a handful of other NFL stars. Domestic violence and child abuse are serious violations of our criminal and moral codes, and people guilty of such crimes ought to receive stiff punishment. But this is America. They deserve a fair trial and in the likely event they are found guilty appropriate punishments that fit their particular crimes. In the meantime, let s get real. The NFL can urge its several thousand players to behave in a morally upright manner. However, it cannot watch them 24 hours a day without seriously violating their civil liberties anymore than NBC News, IBM, GM or Exxon Mobil can invade their workers private lives. What's In A Name? Yet these media types have appointed themselves as moral judges of our lives. Day after day they keep yelping for the resignation of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and tough punishment against his league s 32 football teams. Since the players being punished are all African-Americans, one can only wonder if there s a faint aroma of racism in the air. Yet it was open season on professional football long before Rice and Peterson emerged as media whipping boys. The Washington Post, led by such passionate columnists as Mike Wise, Sally Jenkins and Robert McCartney, has conducted a lengthy campaign to badger Redskins owner Dan Snyder to change his team s nickname. Snyder, to his credit, has strongly defended his First Amendment right to free speech. The push to raise public consciousness began a few years ago at the Smithsonian s National Museum of the American Indian. It was ironic because repeated polling shows a large majority of Native Americans are not offended by the name Washington Redskins and that many even take pride in the team s portrayal of its mascot as noble, determined and strong. The support for the nickname is even stronger among the team's ticket holders and the general public. Rarely a day goes by that the Post fails to run an article highlighting their campaign to change the offensive name. The crusade is so intense and so one-sided, even less-than-alert readers have to wonder if it's a conspiracy.

2 Enough Already! Jenkins in a recent column even urged Congress to step in and regulate the business of these 32 billionaire plunderers. Fifty senators all of them Democrats have written to the NFL commissioner urging a name change. Given Congress' poor job performance over the last decade, Jenkins recommendation ought to make everyone think twice. Ironically, until the last few years, the Redskins enjoyed almost fawning support from the Post and other D.C. media. Sports writers and commentators dined out in the team s press box. A host of Washington media celebrities were guests in the owner's sky box and were often highlighted on national TV. Enough already! One suspects that the chorus of pious chatter coming from the liberal media and many in the Democratic Party is merely an attempt to distract the public from the shortcomings of President Barack Obama s foreign and domestic policies. Rush to judgment especially by the media and politicians is never seemly, especially when they seem to echo the Red Queen's declaration in "Alice in Wonderland": Sentence first, verdict afterward. ****Read and annotate selection 2, an article by Tim Wendel, stating that the media s responses to NFL players and the recent scandals surrounding the sport have been appropriate considering the personal choices of the players off the field, along with the violent nature of the sport itself on the field. CON: Media simply covering the NFL's serious problems VIENNA, Va. Blame the messenger. It may be the oldest play in the playbook, but that hasn't stopped defenders of football from calling it anyway. Football's supporters somehow think that blaming the media for simply reporting on all the trouble facing the National Football League will somehow deflect attention away from its very real problems. That they resorted to such tactics only underscores the trouble the NFL finds itself in with casual viewers and perhaps even the next generation of fans. In a perfect world, breaking news wouldn't necessarily come to us from TMZ, blog blasts and angry rants by talking heads on cable TV. But the heyday of serious news ended long ago, and this is where we get much of our news today. Whatever the news source, there's no mistaking that Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice sucker-punched his future wife in an elevator and dragged her body into the hotel corridor. There's no mistaking that the NFL has a serious problem when it comes to violence within its ranks and even the long-term health of its players. A Violent Game's Injuries

3 For a light can go out in a fan's heart. Not that long ago boxing and horse racing ranked among the top sports in the land. They drew huge crowds until the public decided that they were too crooked and, especially in the case of boxing, too violent. Football is a violent game. We all know that. But it can be easily forgotten with the bright graphics, loud theme music and freeze-framed action offered to us from so many camera angles. Brain-related injuries are the most common injury in today's pro game. The career expectancy for the average NFL player is 3.5 years, according to its players union. Wide receivers and running backs fare even worse, lasting only 2.81 years and 2.57 years, respectively. Sure, some players are cut from teams because somebody better came along. Yet the data strongly suggests that more limp to the exits due to career-threatening injury. For many, retirement soon becomes a nightmare. A new study reveals that nearly 30 percent of former NFL players will end up developing brain diseases such as Alzheimer's disease or dementia. Pop Warner May Take A Hit What does this mounting medical evidence mean for youth leagues and high school teams? A recent poll by ESPN found that 57 percent of parents said that recent stories about the increase in concussions due to head injuries in football have made them less likely to allow their sons to play in youth leagues. "Should you let your child play football?" The Boston Globe asked earlier this year. President Barack Obama doesn't think so, and has said that if he had a son he wouldn't let him play pro football. Pop Warner, the largest youth football organization, saw participation drop nearly 10 percent from 2010 to 2012, ESPN reported. An estimated 60 percent to 70 percent of all NFL players started in the Pop Warner program. Can a sport survive at such a successful level when fewer and fewer kids are playing it? Will the next generation embrace a sport that's seen as increasingly unhealthy to those who participate in it? NFL Must Tackle Its Problems Football hasn't always been on top. Nearly a half-century ago, Super Bowl I took place at the Los Angeles Coliseum. The stadium had 30,000 empty seats. "Nobody cared," Green Bay Packers receiver Max McGee later told HBO. From such humble beginnings, NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle made the championship game into the world's biggest sports event. Current Commissioner Roger Goodell is not on the same level as Rozelle was. Today's NFL has a lack of leadership, especially at the top. It's increasingly haunted by long-term health concerns. And fans are starting to fall out of love with the sport.

4 Critics can blame the media all they want. But today's NFL has many more serious issues than the next news report about its state of disrepair. Reading Informational Texts Constructed Response For this question, write your answer NEATLY in the space provided. Be sure to support your answer with details and citations from both articles. If you need more space, attach another sheet of paper to your response. In this particular instance, it is acceptable to use just the last names Flora or Wendel as your parenthetical citations. If you cite the author within the writing, you do NOT have to cite again. (Example: Author Tim Wendel states words. No additional citing is required). ConRe: Evaluate the opinions in the article by Whitt Flora and the article by Tim Wendel convincing their audiences that the media either is or is not handling their coverage of the NFL in an appropriate manner. Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis.

5 Constructed Response RUBRIC 4-Excellent (100-90): Response is accurate, complete; evaluates authors differing points of view on the same issue by assessing the authors claims, reasoning, and evidence. Text references strongly and thoroughly support the task and demonstrate understanding of the text. The writing is clearly articulated, focused, and demonstrates strong control of conventions; a few minor errors may be present. 3- Above Average (89-80): Response is mostly accurate, somewhat complete; evaluates authors differing points of view on the same issue by assessing the authors claims, reasoning, and evidence. Text references support the task and demonstrate understanding of the text. The writing is focused and demonstrates control of conventions; some minor errors may be present. 2 Average (79-74): Response is partially accurate, inconsistent, or flawed. It attempts to evaluate authors differing points of view on the same issue by assessing the authors claims, reasoning, and evidence. Text references provided to support the task may be general, used incorrectly, or used with limited success. The writing may exhibit issues with organization, focus, and/or control of standard English grammar. 1 -Minimum (73-70): Response is incomplete, provides minimal understanding of the task or a minimal response to the task. Text references provided to support the task may be vague or lacking. The writing may exhibit major issues with organization, focus, and/or control of standard English grammar. 0 Failure to Achieve (69-1): Response is inaccurate, irrelevant, contains insufficient evidence to demonstrate understanding of the task; or, student has failed to respond to the task.