WHY ATHLETES SHOULD NOT BE ROLE

MODELS

Kristina RoachSilver Creek High School

Spring 2012

Athletes Should NOT be Role Models because…

Although they can hit fastballs at 100 miles an hour, dunk with others guarding them, and run 100 yards across a field to score a touchdown, they do not always have good moral qualities

“A well-chosen role model is not only a good example for you to follow, but will help you become the kind of person people will look up to”

Role models should have characteristics of honesty, commitment, determination, and high moral values

Mickey Mantle

“Play like me, don’t be like me”

Cheryl Miller

“When you reach a certain level of visibility, you are a role model whether you choose to be one or not”

“Fair or not fair, that’s how it has always been”

Bill Russell

“I think if an athlete is going to be a role model, their only obligation is to live a life that their folks would be proud of”

Jackie Joyner-Kersee

“I like being in the forefront, but also encouraging young people to be the best that they could be. So for me, being in that position of being a mentor, also being a leader, allowed me to do that”

Dwyane Wade

“The only thing you can do really is be yourself and know that people are watching, kids are watching”

Serena Williams

“I don’t feel a responsibility, I feel like I am who I am and that’s good and I’m not doing anything that I wouldn’t want anyone else to do”

Charles Barkley “I am not a role model. I am not

paid to be a role model. I am paid to wreak havoc on the basketball court. Parents should be role models. Just because I dunk a basketball doesn’t mean I should raise your kids”

“I don’t want to be the controversial outspoken Brother, and I don’t want to be held up as a role model. I am just a man trying to do good things”

Armon Gilliam “Mass media is reporting stories

of the very small percentages of pro athletes that act out some sort of misdeeds, the whole process of making pro athletes societal role models needs to be reviewed”

“The mass media is obsessed with reporting negativity. I know that is a very strong statement, but it rings true”

Ben Roethlisberger

“Ben never asked to be a role model for children. It is a mistake for people to expect a complete stranger that wears a Steeler jersey, enjoyed a good measure of success as a pro athlete, won a couple of Superbowls, and throws a football well to be their children’s role model”(Gilliam)

Ben’s Teammates Charlie Batch’s work in the homestead Max Starks’ charitable work Hine Ward’s community service Jerome Bettis foundation Troy Polamalu’s community work

Ricky Henderson All-star baseball player induced

into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame

Records include most stolen bases in a season and career, most runs scored, and most walks since Barry Bonds

Played 25 years in the major leagues, with over 3,000 hits, nearly 300 home runs and over 1,400 stolen bases

What was the problem?... His unbelievably large ego

Henderson was also recorded speaking of himself in third-person

“Lou Brock was the symbol of great base stealing. But today, I am the greatest of all time”

Psychology Today “Wouldn’t it be nice if the media would spend as

much time focusing on the behaviors that our children should model their behavior after, rather than simply the behaviors they ought not to model”

“If we want our children to learn, better to highlight and reinforce what they ought to do, not what they ought not to do. Otherwise, we may end up with a generation of kids focused more on avoiding failure and not screwing up and less focused on achieving success”

Tiger Woods

Tiger won 96 tournaments, 72 of which were in the PGA tour, and he was the first golfer to hold all four professional major championships at one time

However, we all know about Tiger’s affairs from 2009

Bleacher Report “Tiger never asked for the title of ‘role model.’ Why

should any of us get fooled into following the lead of an athlete in the first place – or allowing our children to do so? The fact is, given their track record as a whole, athletes – or celebrities in general – should be the last place we look for guidance.”

“We expect an excellence obtained by constant training, and we expect a single-minded focus on winning. Then we act surprised that somehow, these athletes – usually young people who have been handed millions of dollars – don’t act the way we want them to in public.”

The Daily Beast “Any adult with a social IQ greater than a 10-year-old

knows that athletes are hothouse flowers – worshiped, but isolated, from cradle to grave for their talent with a ball.”

“Spoiled-athlete syndrome begins early in sports socialization. From the time they could be picked out of a lineup because of their exceptional athletic ability, they’ve been pampered and catered by coaches, classmates, teammates, family members, and partners. As they get older, this becomes a pattern. Because they’re spoiled, they feel they aren’t accountable for their behaviors off the field. They’re so used to people looking the other way.”

In Conclusion…Athletes Should Not be Role Models

Athletes may perform well on the field or court, but they do not always behave well in their personal lives

Athletes often do not have character attributes such as honesty and good moral values

Parents, teachers, doctors, preachers, police officers, etc. should be role models

Works Cited http://www.middletownschools.org/page.cfm?p=8542 http://deadspin.com/5750485/mickey-mantles-outstanding-event-at-yankee-stadium-is-lewdly-outstanding http://www.californiasportshalloffame.org/inductees/2008/basketball/Cheryl-Miller.php http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/bill-russell-at.htm http://beautifulbrowngirls.com/2012/02/28/celebrating-the-women-of-black-history-jackie-joyner-kersee/ http://georgiafathersrights.blogspot.com/2011/01/dwyane-wade-waits-for-child-custody.html http://www.inquisitr.com/183535/serena-williams-wins-500th-career-match-enters-3rd-round-of-2012-

australian-open/ http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/charles-barkley-the-decision-that-was-torture_b86434 http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2011/07/06/armon-gilliam-dies-at-age-of-47/ http://www.nflpassers.com/ben-roethlisberger-restructures-contract-to-help-steelers-future/ http://thegoodinsports.com/2012/03/14/charlie-batch-best-of-the-batch-foundation/ http://technorati.com/sports/article/pittsburgh-steeler-hines-ward-arrested-for/ http://student.ccbcmd.edu/~dar759820/143/Jerome%20Bettis/index.html http://unlimitedradio247.com/troy-polamalu-ok-set-to-play-against-bengals/ http://rmcnab24.wordpress.com/pics/henderson/ http://pintsinthepaint.wordpress.com/2009/07/24/a-very-rickey-friday/ http://thesportlegends.blogspot.com/2011/04/real-maestro-of-golf-tiger-woods.html