Every time an athlete is caught in some less-than-savory act—some famous golfer, say—the question is raised: Should celebrities be role models?
The fact is, (regardless of who you think should be role models) athletes and rock stars/ rappers are the most powerful figures in most children’s lives. For now, I will focus on athletes.
The question is not whether athletes should provide parenting; the question is whether or not people who making insane amounts of money through being social figures, should care about how they impact the society which is making them ridiculously rich.
Major media figures cannot pretend they don’t have major impact, and to act negatively, knowing they have wide social impact, is selfish and immature.
The concept is “Noblesse Oblige”: a person in a position of authority, however he or she got there, has the obligations that go along with the rewards.
In public, sports stars should remember that they are powerful social forces and remember that they are certainly benefiting from society. The least they could do is not publicly promote bad behavior.
When today’s star athletes were ten and eleven and dreaming of being sports stars, they were dreaming of the stardom as well as the athletic prowess; the acclaim, the notoriety, being known and respected figures in society.
When they reach that goal, they should remember when they were ten years old and idolized their generation’s star athletes. They should remember how they and their friends copied their moves, their speech, their actions, their whole personas. And they should care.
Most children see and emulate sports stars long before they can understand those stars’ psychological situations. And most kids, if they see sports stars fighting, think it is cool to fight; if they see them drinking, they think it is cool to drink. If the kids hear about the sports stars cheating on their wives …
Athletes should have pristine public personae. Athletes should be on their best behavior in public, just to show they respect the enormous benefits the public is offering them. All public figures should.
Just because some guy can dunk a basketball or sink a putt, doesn’t mean he should teach kids bad habits.
When on the court or on camera (post-game interviews, media appearances, or any appearance in public,) all public figures should be conscious of their impact and take great care not to reinforce negative behavior. Being publicly anti-social while reaping the benefits of society is selfish and cheap.
Any behavior by sports stars is liable to become public. So besides acting responsibly when on camera, star athletes should take great care with all of their actions outside of their homes.
These sports stars are reaping some of the highest rewards of this society. They should make the extra effort not to trash this society.
Tiger Wood dishonored himself and his family. If he didn’t want the benefits of marriage and a family, he should have stayed single. He used his stardom to get the benefits of being single while enjoying the benefits of being married. He should be visiting schools telling kids about the virtues of the institution of marriage.
Should athletes be role models? I don’t know, but I know they are. And as such, when they fail to hold themselves to the highest possible standards, they should take steps to offset the damage they have done.
The fact is, (regardless of who you think should be role models) athletes and rock stars/ rappers are the most powerful figures in most children’s lives. For now, I will focus on athletes.
The question is not whether athletes should provide parenting; the question is whether or not people who making insane amounts of money through being social figures, should care about how they impact the society which is making them ridiculously rich.
Major media figures cannot pretend they don’t have major impact, and to act negatively, knowing they have wide social impact, is selfish and immature.
The concept is “Noblesse Oblige”: a person in a position of authority, however he or she got there, has the obligations that go along with the rewards.
In public, sports stars should remember that they are powerful social forces and remember that they are certainly benefiting from society. The least they could do is not publicly promote bad behavior.
When today’s star athletes were ten and eleven and dreaming of being sports stars, they were dreaming of the stardom as well as the athletic prowess; the acclaim, the notoriety, being known and respected figures in society.
When they reach that goal, they should remember when they were ten years old and idolized their generation’s star athletes. They should remember how they and their friends copied their moves, their speech, their actions, their whole personas. And they should care.
Most children see and emulate sports stars long before they can understand those stars’ psychological situations. And most kids, if they see sports stars fighting, think it is cool to fight; if they see them drinking, they think it is cool to drink. If the kids hear about the sports stars cheating on their wives …
Athletes should have pristine public personae. Athletes should be on their best behavior in public, just to show they respect the enormous benefits the public is offering them. All public figures should.
Just because some guy can dunk a basketball or sink a putt, doesn’t mean he should teach kids bad habits.
When on the court or on camera (post-game interviews, media appearances, or any appearance in public,) all public figures should be conscious of their impact and take great care not to reinforce negative behavior. Being publicly anti-social while reaping the benefits of society is selfish and cheap.
Any behavior by sports stars is liable to become public. So besides acting responsibly when on camera, star athletes should take great care with all of their actions outside of their homes.
These sports stars are reaping some of the highest rewards of this society. They should make the extra effort not to trash this society.
Tiger Wood dishonored himself and his family. If he didn’t want the benefits of marriage and a family, he should have stayed single. He used his stardom to get the benefits of being single while enjoying the benefits of being married. He should be visiting schools telling kids about the virtues of the institution of marriage.
Should athletes be role models? I don’t know, but I know they are. And as such, when they fail to hold themselves to the highest possible standards, they should take steps to offset the damage they have done.
