Christine Brennan, who alleged that ESPN's Erin Andrews "had it coming," was scheduled to appear on CNN's Reliable Sources this morning. I'll update with a video when it becomes available. From Howard Kurtz on Facebook, "Christine Brennan of ABC will join us Sunday to talk about the media's role in publicizing that peephole video of ESPN's Erin Andrews."
As seen in this Hartford Courant graphic, the story first broke on July 17th, and coverage in the mainstream press peaked on July 21st. The Blog Prof has a roundup of some commentary this morning, but for the most part conservatives have shied away from the shocker. Yet, Sister Toldjah offered a lengthy analysis of the story, and she defended the controversial "she had it coming" meme. See, "The Erin Andrews Video Controversy: Did She “Deserve” It?" I'm especially impressed with Sister Toldjah's piece for having rounded up some out-of-the-way commentary. Noteworty is Ed Berliner's essay, "Brennan 'Dead Solid Perfect' Comments on Andrews Tape":
There are far too many female sports journalists who believe the road to respectability is paved with push-up bras and snuggling up to athletes with more than an interview in mind. In the same breath, there are far too many TV station and network executives who force female reporters in both news and sports to accentuate their positives, and I don’t mean writing skills. I have watched from the insider’s perspective as some very good female reporters careers were derailed thanks to consultants and demographics experts who made them repeat the mantra, “Style over substance”, instead of the proper manner in which it was long taught.Sister Toldjah is sympathetic to Brennan's analysis, and she suspects Erin Andrews herself has been injudicious in professional dress and mannerism. She cites an Erin Andrews "advice" column at Men's Health to support her conclusions: "There's Nothing Hotter than a Guy Who Has the Confidence to Take a Quick Shower."
Here's this from the post (link):
I can only imagine the emotions that Andrews has gone through since she found out about the video. I imagine it’s like being assaulted but without being physically touched. Someone’s watching you in some of your most private moments, moments not meant to be shared with every horndog who has scoured the I’net for copies of the video. I’ve read articles about this type of invasion of privacy, and some of the women interviewed talked about how for weeks and months – and even years – after finding out they were secretly videotaped that they didn’t feel comfortable showering, dressing, sleeping or anything having to do with showing their bodies in any way for fear that they were still being watched, becoming almost phobic about being in a state of undress (the Susan Wilson story is one of the more prominent and shocking stories out there about video voyeurism).Be sure to read the whole thing, here.
Andrews is on hiatus from ESPN until September (a hiatus unrelated to the video, I think). It will be interesting to see how – beyond the eventual legal proceedings – she responds to this issue, if at all. All I can say at this point is that I hope what happened to her doesn’t discourage her from returning to sports journalism. Maybe after the shock wears off, this incident will give her a fresh perspective on where she wants to go in sports journalism and how she wants to go about getting there. It would be a shame for her to stay in the shadows rather than return – that would mean that the video voyeurs, the jerk-offs who do this sort of thing for sport and profit, have won. Incidents like this one could also discourage young women from getting into sports journalism, which would also be unfortunate.
Sister Toldjah goes on to speculate on Erin Andrews' success in getting back to work; she also looks at the larger issue of women in sports journalism.
(And note that Michelle Malkin condemns Christine Brennan, "USA Today Columnist Blames Peeping Tom Victim.")
I wrote previously on the circumstances surrounding Andrews' return to work (here): "When the football games start, the working assumption has to be that every guy in the stands has seen Erin Andrews nude." And thus, my sense is that Andrews might never fully regain her confidence, and she may decide ultimately to leave sports broadcasting for good. See also, "EXCLUSIVE: Erin Andrews Still “Shaken” and “Paranoid” After Peeping Tom Incident."
Now it turns out that AskMen.com has published a provocative piece on the way forward for Andrews, "What's Erin Andrews' Next Move?":
Our society is one that is delving deeper and deeper into voyeurism. With technology, we can watch people all over the world from the safety of our own computer chairs. Men will watch women do the most menial things on a webcam - brush their hair, eat an apple, put on makeup - and pay for it ....Not only am I hesitant to "embrace" this proposal, the idea took my breath away as well. Much of the pain of violation is the complete loss of control. But frankly, a nude pictorial, produced on Erin Andrews' own terms, would indeed restore some balance of power back to her, and may help her in the long healing process that will last a lifetime.
So, what comes next for Ms. Andrews? The way I see it, she has three options ...
The third and most controversial solution is to pose for Playboy. Thousands of people have seen her naked in a circumstance that she couldn’t control. It’s time for her to get Hugh Hefner on the phone and take the control back. Instead of the lasting image of her being a fuzzy, creepy video, she can make it a classy photo shoot that takes pride in her body on her terms. It can give your career a boost. Just ask Lisa Rinna.
I don’t want to say “embrace this,” because she was still the victim of a crime, but she has to get past it one way or another. She can do so by laying low, by fighting back, or she can do it with her head held high and a middle finger in the air to the guy who did this to her.
Here’s hoping for the finger.
And what about other women in sports journalism? SportsMediaWatch offered an analysis, "The Next Erin Andrews":
All the sadness and outrage over the Erin Andrews video could conceivably make one think that such a thing will never happen again.Check the essay for the rest.
But even if the crime against Andrews is never repeated, the continued objectification of female sports journalists will no doubt continue. Andrews will likely never attract the same attention she used to once she returns to the air. But that may have less to do with any sensitivity from the media, and more to do with the fact that many of the people lusting after her have already seen what they wanted to see.
The question now is, who replaces Andrews? Who is the next female sports reporter to become famous for something other than her reporting, get attention by the mainstream media and the blogosphere, and then eventually become a topic of deep introspection after someone inevitably crosses the line?
But, unbelievably, other top women sports reporters will have to wait their turn, if prominent sports personalities have their say about it!
It turns out that Shaun Phillips, an outside linebacker for the San Diego Chargers, requested the Andrews videotape on Twitter. See, "Shaun Phillips Wants That Erin Andrews Video, Asks Twitter Peeps." Also, "Chargers, I Am Told, Are Often Misunderstood."
Phillips' tweet is still up at time of publication (here). Phillips' website is here.
No word yet from Cassandra at Villainous Company.
Cassandra, for some unfathomable reason, fails to see that her scantilly-clad model pinup at the banner - with a fully revealing lace adjustable garter - might not actually be "fully-clothed." Perhaps readers might have a word to say about "that kind of total hotness!" But hey, it's not my place to criticize Ms. Cassandra! Self-interest is a powerful motivator, of course; and the concept of ego-rationalism I've developed here works on the assumption of moral consistency. It's not clear what compelling response Cassandra might develop. Right now, she's got nothing. Just saying, yo! Must be a radical feminist thing, in any case. They're real nice women!
Oh, and as ESPN's heavily implicated in all of this, don't miss the latest on the Ben Roethlisberger, "Truth and lies about Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, Andrea McNulty."
See also, "Making the Rules Between Media Restraint and Media Agressiveness in Ben Roethlisberger Case."