So far, the Olympics have mostly been super fun — but at times, they’ve exposed how much times have changed in the last few years, and how poorly sports reporters have kept up with them.
You’ve probably seen some of the sexist and racist coverage that’s come out of the event — one medal-winner was only identified by her husband’s name, another was referred to only by her race in a headline.
And now, a BBC commentator is being called out for a borderline-homophobic, machismo-dripping comment on a tennis match. British player Andy Murray cried when he won a victory over an Argentinian player last night. BBC commentator Paul Hand couldn’t bear the sight of it.
“We’ve had macho tennis, but not a macho response, right?” he said. Oh, lord. Can you imagine being as delicate and hysterical as Paul Hand? If the sight of another man crying makes him nervous, he must truly be dealing with some troubling personal issues.
His comments touched off a firestorm of complaints on Twitter, and eventually the BBC non-pologized that his comments were “ill-judged.” But the more important question is: is Paul Hand getting counseling for his obvious emotional problems?
This isn’t the first time he’s had a misstep at the Olympics. Just a few days ago, he freaked out at the idea of two men kissing, when a stadium kiss-camera was making the rounds. He was narrating how the couples were embracing or not embracing, and said “it’s lovely to watch” about straight couples. After some time, he added, “let’s hope they don’t go on two blokes next to each other.”
Let’s hope not, because apparently Paul Hand’s manhood can’t survive the idea that gay people exist.
These irritating behaviors might’ve been shrugged off a few years ago, but the internet’s helped us become more aware of how unfair it is to treat people this way.
No comments:
Post a Comment