Bryant Gumbel Is No Shrinking Violet, Like Most Black Commentators

All of this faux outrage at Bryant Gumbel's assertion that current NBA commissioner David Stern has things in common with a plantation overseer is laughable. After all, the statement was out there for two days before the outrage gained any steam.

As usual, networks have found no shortage of African American commentators to step forward and give Gumbel a swift tongue lashing. So, I guess you can say these African American commentators are the proverbial "house slaves" to Stern's overseer: They are helping him get his job done.

Unlike Stephen A. Smith or Charles Barkley, Gumbel's well-being is not predicated on his ability to pussyfoot around controversial issues and support the corporate message. He is free to make his observations and let the chips fall where they may. Smith is always at the mercy of public perception and email campaigns encouraging the folks at ESPN to fire him.

How many talk shows do you think would invite Charles Barkley's opinion if he said he agreed with the truth of what Gumbel was saying but disagreed with the context? The answer is probably not too many.

Why won't African American commentators refrain from commenting on these types of issues? They are complicit in propping up David Stern and his practices. Stern wants to sterilize the NBA, make its African American athletes more presentable to the world. Stern perpetuates this false idea that fans will not accept the NBA if it continues its embracing of the hip-hop culture.

Some African American commentators agree, but the record TV audiences and attendance figures seem to disagree. Instead of African American commentators, who supposedly have influence, speaking out or challenging the status quo, they are complicit. They fan the flames, taking the African American athlete to task rather than addressing the unfairness.

In the NBA, the players are the thing. It will never be the NFL which has an entire culture built around the games. The NFL product hardly adds up to its support with so many perennially bad teams in the league. Fans love NBA players and neither their tattoos nor love of hip-hop has dampened the fans appreciation for the players.

Stern and African American commentators don't see it that way. They want the players, who are responsible for the league's present success, to alter their lifestyles, and button up and become more corporate. The paying public is not making those demands.

Rather than countering Bryant Gumbel, why not speak out against the depiction of African American athletes by sports commentators online, on TV and in print? Forget Bryant Gumbel, there is racial bias taking place each day from sports commentators.

Read your papers or watch any sports programming, and take note of the disparate way African American athletes are portrayed compared to whites. The white athletes are always hardworking, gritty, tough, smart, team-oriented and dependable. The African American athletes, they are never any of things mentioned above. In fact I don't think commentators believe an African American athlete is capable of those qualities. Instead the African American athlete owes his success to natural gifts, to pure athleticism and raw talent.

This depiction of African American athletes is pervasive and affects young African American athletes and their approach to a chosen sport. They see themselves in the context of their ability to run fast, jump high and have a flair while doing so. The kids devalue all of the hard work put into gaining and sustaining their ability: The final product is all that matters. The media, meanwhile, purposefully ignore the hard work and always focus on the ability.

African American commentators routinely savage African American athletes. That's not quite true—African American commentators only savage African American athletes. There is never anything but praise for white athletes emanating from African American commentators. So the problems presented by the African American commentator is two fold: Primarily the perpetuation of unfairness in their profession and their willingness to constantly savage African American athletes. The latter needs more attention. 

Why do you think Magic Johnson is upset some people think LeBron James is a better player than Kobe Bryant? Isn't that childish? My kids argue over such a thing, but a grown man doing the same is absurd.

Why on earth would Jerry Rice savage Randy Moss by saying he did not work hard enough and instead relied on the aforementioned "gifts" and "raw" talent?

Why the attacks on Bryant Gumbel rather than saying, "I would rather not comment on that topic." An alternate statement could have been, "I would rather not comment on Bryant' statement, but I disagree with the use of terminology associated with slavery being used." That's a fair statement, and the commentator opens the door for greater conversation about the NBA lockout and the perceived heavy-handed approach by David Stern.

African American athletes are destroyed each Sunday during NFL commentary. Listen carefully, and you will hear what I mean. Rather than always savaging African American commentators like Bryant Gumbel, who has a forum to speak freely, why can't corporate African American commentators just address the issue of media bias that African American athletes face on a daily basis. 

In a battle of wits, I will take Bryant Gumbel over Charles Barkley. Bryant Gumbel is not an uninformed man. When he says something it is usually not an accident or a case of foot-in-mouth. His commentary is an important counter-punch to the sad state of African American sports commentary.