Erin Andrews Video Scandal: The Sexism/Sports Culture Connection; Demand for Peephole Glimpse Still High, Maybe Not ESPN After All!

From the St. Petersburg Times, "Was Erin Andrews Video Born From a Sexist Sports Journalism Culture?":

That uproar you heard this week over a nude video of ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews isn't just fan boys salivating over explicit pictures of sports media's biggest sex symbol splashed across cyberspace.

Indeed, that blurry video, taken illegally with a peephole camera as Andrews primped herself in a hotel room, has wrenched the sports world into an uncomfortable discussion: Just what role does the industry play in the mass marketing of female journalists' sex appeal?

And as the issues percolate, a reporter with growing fame as an object of beauty has found her privacy ripped away by a creep with a camera and an Internet connection.

"I think all of us in the media have fostered this culture, in the hopes of driving more people to our networks, our columns and our radio shows," said CBS Sports reporter Lesley Visser, a 30-year veteran recently named No. 1 female sportscaster by the American Sportscasters Association, in an e-mail to the St. Petersburg Times.

"Every woman in this business has dealt with unwanted attention, but this culture makes it more difficult," Visser added. "Erin's America is the merger of a beautiful woman and a lawless Internet."

In the way only a juicy media scandal can, coverage of the sizzling controversy has burned some news outlets. The New York Post and CBS News in particular have taken criticism for showing images from the video, earning their own audience spikes while ruthlessly re-victimizing the sportscaster.

Also, more on that. See Rochelle Nikita, at Associated Content, "Erin Andrews Peephole Videos and Erin Andrews Peephole Pictures: Setting the Record Straight":

So let's get one thing straight about people searching for Erin Andrews peephole videos, peephole pictures, Rapidshare links, and so forth. They think if you take Erin Andrews' side in the peephole incident, you're a feminist, and a sad excuse for one at that. If you think she got what friend. What's that all about?

I typically try not to go the extra mile to insult my readers. But if they think insults in my direction are going to change my mind about Erin Andrews, they can forget about it.

Now I'll admit, Erin Andrews wasn't necessarily doing all she could to prevent something like this. For one, standing naked in your hotel room for several minutes (unless you're hired for a few nights by a United States governor) is not typical for most women I know ....

But one thing is for sure: just because I defend Erin Andrews a little bit does not mean I am a feminist. Far from it, actually. But do I recommend other women act like Erin Andrews? Hardly. I hope you're a little smarter. Erin might have brains when it comes to journalism and reporting, but evidently not too much common sense. You'd think anyone would know better than to wear their birthday suit while curling their hair and ironing their pants. It's a burn hazard.

And that's from a woman! Looks like Christine Brennan's not the only one spouting that line.

Indeed, this feminist writer takes issue with Brennan (and calls her a "sexist"):

I found this article (that is an excellent example of intelligent feminist commentary) which shares Brennan's catty comments on Erin Andrews. Everything she had to say was like one rape myth after another: she was asking for it because she is sexy, it was her fault for flirting with men, next time she should be more responsible, etc, etc. My question to you is, why do women constantly feel the need to show a difference between women who are victimized and themselves? Erin is being blamed for the crime committed against her, for the same reasons all attractive women are when they are harassed, abused or attacked in some way. According to the masses, because of the face they were born with, the way they wear their hair, and the clothes on their back, women, and especially attractive women, were "asking for it." I think humans have this desperate need, when something horrible like this happens, to find some reason why it could never happen to THEM. In actuality, sex crimes can be committed against anyone, regardless of how they dress, how pretty they are, or even how visible they are - because sex crimes aren't about any of these things; they are about power. They are crimes of opportunity, and crimes of insecurity. Sex crimes do not happen because of anything a woman did or did not do; they happen because she simply exists.

I had dismissed Erin's story as something I was going to write about until I saw the Salon.com article and realized that Erin's story is my story, and your story, and the story of, to quote Gloria Steinem, any woman who "chooses to behave like a full human being." Erin has been met by the armies of the status quo and needs her sisterhood, but unfortunately, it seems in this case her peers are the status quo. When will we stop pointing fingers at each other and put the blame where it belongs – SOLELY on the people, mostly men, who commit these crimes against us? Are we too afraid of sounding like feminists to actually be one? Where is Erin's sisterhood now that she needs it most?

But wait! Here's Lanie Grace (NSFW), "Erin Andrews Video: No Pity at all For Her":

I know I am going against the popular crowd but honestly, I don't feel any pity for Erin Andrews, not one bit. The whole thing wreaks of being a publicity stunt and furthermore, this is a woman who exploits her sexuality for fame and glory so please don't waste your time trying to convince me that men simply love her expertise on any given sport ....

One of my favorite lines from her attorney is "That we are still looking for the whereabouts of the unknown perpetrator. Here is the fault in that bogus statement.

"Hottie" knows where she has been staying and definitely being the celebrity she is indeed, it stands to reason she and her security people know exactly who is staying in the room next to her. Certainly the fact these videos were shot in two different Hotels should narrow it down some I would think.

I do not believe for a second the exact location of the two hotels and exact room numbers are still a mystery to anyone in her camp. I guess we are supposed to believe she parades around naked, shaking her ass like Tawny Kitaen on Whitesnake's car in so many hotels that she can't remeber which one it is. Yeah makes sense to me. NOT

Seriously girls, How many of us parade around in the total nude waving a curling iron prancing around in porn star mode while casually getting dressed. Better yet, how many of us curl our hair in the total nude under any circumstance?

I guess women are torn!

Here's USA Today on IndyCar driver Danica Patrick, "Patrick: Video Demonstrates Issues of Internet Age." Also, from the Sports Journalists' Association News, "Woman Sports Presenter in Nude Video Shock."

But here's more on "how she deserved it," at the guys' sports website Deadspin, which helped break the story wide open last week, "The One Where Everyone Talks About That Thing That Everyone's Talking About":

Save the sensitivity for Ms. Erin Andrews. Remember, she is a reporter; and reporters have no morals when it comes to getting a story for their careers (Geraldo, Cooper, ESPN's anchors).

How many times do paparazzi and reporters force their way into people's "private" lives, just to get a story? We always hear of everyone's privacy being exposed in the media, but not the reporters and anchors themselves.

Or how about this guy, at the Los Angeles Daily News? "MEDIA: To Catch an Erin Andrews Predator":

This is not to imply in any way, shape or form that she's remotely at fault for finding herself making national news as the victim in a hotel peephole video scandal, one that has her attorney threatening all kinds of punishment to anyone who dares show the clip or else they're an accessory to a crime.

But ...

In the same media-crazed, image-conscious, ethics-breaching world she works in, could she be that na ve to think she's impervious to perverted behavior and possibly taken better steps to protect herself from unwanted attention?

That maybe if she demanded more take her seriously and acted at least a bit more indignant of the fact that Playboy has awarded her the title, "America's sexiest sportscaster," the past twoyears in a made-for-Internet poll. We could try to overlook those times when she dressed inappropriately on national TV football, basketball or baseball assignments.

Speaking , we in the media know plenty of ways to objectify female reporters who don't deserve it.

But ...

Most of them try to nip that kind of treatment in the bud when they realize their career arc hardly will go far if that's how they're generally perceived.

We're in full agreement with the immediate response to this by USA Today's Christine Brennan, who launched a Tweet the other day that, of course, was immediately misconstrued: "Women sports journalists need to be smart and not play the frat house. There are tons of nuts out there. Erin Andrews incident is bad, but to add perspective: there are 100s of women sports journalists who have never had this happen to them."

That's something every female sports person has to be thinking about as they decide if they're more in tune with creating an image of media maven or a credible news gatherer.

You can try to have it both ways. But ...

Blog Prof has an analysis, "USA Today sports columnist Christine Brennan on Erin Andrews illegal nude peephole video: SHE WAS ASKING FOR IT!."

Okay, and NSFW (and not linked), you'll find full-nude screen shots at The Dirty, "Breaking News: The Plot Thickens, Erin Andrews Was Not a Victim," and the Something Awful Forums, "Sexist and Exploitative to Post Erin Andrews Peephole Pictures?" Plus, see this very critical report at Associated Content, "Erin Andrews Peephole Video on CBS and Fox News: Erin Andrews Peephole Video Goes Mainstream Media 'Disguised' as the News." Also, "Is Bill O'Reilly a Hypocrite for Showing Erin Andrews Video?"

And, in response to Lisa Bloom's comments this week that simply viewing the tape was illegal, see "Erin Andrews Nude Video Means We Should Regulate the Internet?" And, "So Now It Is a Crime to Even Watch the Erin Andrews Video?" (Reposting this one).

Okay, here's an interesting legal analysis, "The Erin Andrews Chronicles: A (Semi) Regular Look at Sports and the Law."

And on the continuing interest in the story, from an Indian newspaper:

Interest refuses to die down in Leaked Erin Andrews Peephole Tape Video. Watching the video has become a rage among teenaged Americans and sports fans. It is the hottest search on the internet for the whole last week.

And, "Erin Andrews Peephole Tape Video Spreading Like Wildfire."

But don't miss Don Chavez (but NSFW), who offers a new theory of the case, "Erin Andrews Peephole Scandal: the Other Victims & the Inside Job Theory":

Without a doubt, people love to look at pictures of Erin Andrews on the Internet. Just like they would look at photos of any other attractive female, whether she be a sportscaster, a Playmate, a Maxim Hometown hottie, the latest sex scandal teacher, or some random woman with a disgruntle ex-boyfriend. The Internet is not what caused this to happen.

The individual who videoed her did not follow her around the country. There were six video clips, all shot of her in the same hotel room, which were on Daily Motion. Once this story broke, those clips were made into a five minute compilation complete with the Sportscenter theme song at the end. So any talk you hear of more video is just someone referring to a smaller portion of the compilation that you “haven’t seen yet”.

Now as you will see below, the user Goblazers1 had a total of 40 videos uploaded to his account. This is the earliest known source of the videos on the Internet (which he has since removed), and Erin Andrews was not the only woman this individual had peeped on. As you will see in these exclusive screen shots that can only be found on Donchavez.com, one of the rooms have a likeness to that of the room Erin Andrews was filmed in.

However, one thing is for sure, not all of these peep holes were in the same location. So this could indicated that Goblazers1 has several peep holes at his disposal, is a traveling peeping tom that has other voyeurs who let him uses their peep holes, or he is a collector of voyeur footage.

Obama's 'Stupid' Remark Heats Up Police Organizations Nationwide

President Obama's defense of Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the Harvard black studies professor now at the center of a national debate on race and criminal justice, has enraged police departments across the country.

ABC News leads reporting with, "Cop Who Arrested Gates Not Ruling Out Defamation Lawsuit: Case Heats Up as Police Organizations Criticize Obama for Jumping Into the Controversy." (Via Memeorandum.)

Also, at the Los Angeles Times, "Police Debate Obama's Remark: One Former Chief Says it Could Prompt Some Self-Examination. Another Calls it a Big Mistake." And at the New York Post, "Bam in a Racial Uproar: Cops Across the Nation Lash Out at 'Stupid' Label."

Also, from the Boston Herald, "911, Police Tapes Key in Gates Case: Officials Mull Release of Recorded Evidence":

Mounting pressure to get to the bottom of the controversial arrest of black scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. is centering on recorded police tapes that may offer a dose of reality amid all the media and political noise.

Cambridge police brass and lawyers are weighing making the tapes public, which could include the 911 call reporting a break-in at Gates’ home and radio transmissions by the cop who busted him July 16 for disorderly conduct.

“It’s powerful evidence because the (people involved) have not had a chance to reflect and you are getting their state of mind captured on tape,” said former prosecutor and New York City police officer Eugene O’Donnell, who is now a lecturer at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan.

Plus, on the larger implications, see the New York Times, "Professor’s Arrest Tests Beliefs on Racial Progress":

“No matter how much education you have as a person of color, you still can’t escape institutional racism,” said Keith E. Horton, a sports and entertainment lawyer in Chicago who is black. “That’s what the issue is to me.”

Really? Check William Jacobson, "Race and Class in Harvard Square":

A simple request to step outside is viewed by Professor Gates as an affront to his dignity and the fulfillment of academic theories. The same request likely was viewed by Sgt. Crowley as a cautious step so as not to be caught alone inside a house possibly occupied not only by Professor Gates but also by a second unaccounted-for person (what did happen to the taxi driver?).

While there may be aspects of the case which reflect a "national Rohrsach test on race," this may be more of a national Rohrsach test on class. A member of Cambridge's intellectual elite viewing the scene from the perch of academic smarts, and a police sergeant viewing the same events from the perch of street smarts. A real class divide hidden behind the rhetoric of race.

In Gates' case, his academic standing gave him an entitlement mentality. The cops were beneath his station, and he refused to show the appropriate respect to law enforcement. Some "white sensitivity" might have helped as well (that is, knowing how tone and demeanor can make or break as situation like this).

See, for example, Michael Meyers, "Henry Louis Gates should Skip the Racial Histrionics: Instead, Teach Kids to Cooperate with Cops":

The most famous black professor at Harvard lives in a very safe neighborhood because, in part, residents look out for and report suspicious activities, and because cops respond quickly to reports of possible break-ins. Yet that's not how Henry Louis Gates Jr., director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard University, took it when cops showed up at his door after a neighbor reported two black men (Gates and his driver) seemingly pushing into a vacant residence, which turned out to be Gates' home.

He was arrested for disorderly conduct, and the rest is now histrionic history. (The charges have since been dropped, but the incident is not going away.)

Gates was returning from a trip to China, and he couldn't get in through a jammed front door, so he apparently went around the back, shut off an alarm and worked with his driver to get the door open.

In any neighborhood - especially one of the safest in America - that kind of behavior would be cause for suspicion and a call to the cops, no matter the color of the guys "breaking" in.

But when police showed up, the "he said, he said" has Gates indignant and, according to the cop, refusing to present himself and his ID, then complying and at some point getting loud - with Gates saying, according to the police report, "Why, because I'm a black man in America?"

Had I been the cop, I would have probably gotten suspended for saying to Gates: "No, stupid, because I need you to step outside so that I may do my job. I need to know that you are who you say you are."

The cop's job is not the most famous black professor at Harvard's concern. Yet Gates' automatic reflex was racial - that of a victim rather than a property lessee. The man with all the brains did not have the common sense of the average citizen who appreciates good and effective police work.

Read the whole thing, here.

Also, from Gateway Pundit, "President of International Brotherhood of Police Officers Slams Obama! ...Update: Cop Considers Lawsuit Against Gates."

Also Blogging: Althouse, American Thinker, JustOneMinute, Macsmind, PrairiePundit Riehl World View, Don Surber, VDARE.com, and Wizbang .

More at Memeorandum.

Privacy Tips Lead News on Andrews Video Scandal: Sports Writers Feud Amid Blame-Game Sweepstakes; Will Female Sideline Reporters Get New Respect?

The Erin Andrews privacy story is wrapping up for the week with this piece from ABC News, "Tech Tips for Outsmarting Peeping Toms: Counter-Surveillance Technology Detects Some Hidden Cameras." (Here's a tip: "The SpyFinder Camera Detector, for example, is a pocket-sized, battery-operated device that sells for $99.50 on SpyAssociates.com.")

Along the same lines is the Hartford Courant, "Media Decisions, Privacy Law In Spotlight After Internet Video Wildfire":

The secretly taped video of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews in her hotel room is an example of media at its most viral — although online for months, it didn't catch fire until last week when it became Google's most-searched subject and put the Bristol-based sports network at the center of the story.

Also, check the Courant's graphic, "How Video Became a Hot Topic." And recall yesterday's report, "Erin Andrews Video Peep Pictures: Will the Search Ever End?"

...the Erin Andrews peephole video controversy is a huge, huge, story. It speaks to many issues, including the role the Internet plays in perpetuating prurient new stories, the emergence of female sports reporters, sexism in pro sports, voyeurism, betrayal, publicity, the public's fascination with celebrities, etc.

More, "Erin Andrews Peephole Tape Continues to Stir the Web." And, "Erin Andrews Story Dominates Web. Why? Need You Ask?."
Actually, the story has peaked by now, although "Erin Andrews" continues to be a hot search item on Google Trends (but some residual fascination in seen in the release of an Erin Andrews doll, according to New York Daily News, "Erin Andrews is About to Become a Real Doll").

Of course, sports journalism industry has been churning in angst amid this week's rocketing attention to the Erin Andrews peephole case. The media controversy early yesterday focused on the nasty spat between ESPN and the New York Post. See, MediaBistro, "ESPN & Post Face Off Over Andrews Scandal."

But ESPN has also come under fire for its blackout of reporting on its own internal stories. See, "Erin Andrews tape, Roethlisberger Story Puts ESPN in Spotlight":

Over the years, the biggest criticism of ESPN, the self-proclaimed "Worldwide Leader in Sports," has been that it engages in shameless self-promotion that often makes it seem as if the network is bigger than the stories it covers. But in a strange twist, two stories have developed in recent days that have thrust ESPN into the national spotlight and made the network the story. Here's a look at those two stories one that made the network the focus through no fault of ESPN's and one that did through ESPN's doing and how they have been viewed.

See also, The InquistR, "On Defence, ESPN is Dodging Some Big Sport Stories." And out today, at the Boston Globe, "ESPN Taking Cover of Late."
Of course, I've covered the Andrews story exhaustively, but the link between the peephole crime and the Roethlisberger allegations is potentially expostive for the network. See, Maurice Everything, "ESPN / ABC / Ben Roethlisberger Conspiracy Theory!":

CONSPIRACY TIME!

1. Shaquille O'Neal has a new show on ABC called Shaq Vs.

2. The premise is that Shaq (pictured here with a panda bear) challenges professional athletes from different sports and tries to beat them at their own game.

3. The show's first episode airs August 8 and filming began today in Pittsburgh with Shaq competing against none other than BEN ROETHLISBERGER.

4. ESPN is owned by ABC.

5. In an attempt to not ruin the premier episode of Shaq Vs., ESPN has downplayed the Roethlisberger story because, hey, who wants to watch Shaq play football against a rapist?*

There you have it. Corporate ownership, kids.

You're still my boy, Big Ben.

See also Joe Santoro, "ESPN is Everthing That is Wrong With Sports Journalisim Today."

Also raging Thursday was sports journalism's battle with Jason Whitlock and his scathing piece, "Erin Andrews Nude Video Scandal: Whose Fault?" I cited the essay in my previous report. I didn't, however, notice the the Fox Sports homepage had pumped up the Whitlock piece with the Photoshop above. The picture, splashed across the front of Fox Sports Online, served as a banner headline for Whitlock's essay. Readers can make inferences. The racial implications alone are revolting (of a black man stalking a beautiful white woman through a peephole). But the reactions go both ways, from outrage at the insanity to back-slapping humor.

Here's the logical inference for a quick look at the graphic, from Mr. Irrelevant, "Breaking: Fox Sports Outs Jason Whitlock as Erin Andrews’ Peeper." And also, David Martin, "Jason Whitlock Sees You!":

Adverb-addicted Kansas City Star columnist Jason Whitlock has weighed in (har, har) on the secret videotaping of ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews. The piece is less about the wrong done Andrews than the grievances Whitlock has accumulated in the course of becoming a high-profile commentator.

Editors at FoxSports.com outdid themselves with the presentation of J-Dub's column. For users too obtuse to catch the pun in the Web headline ("The 'Hole Story"), Whitlock's head shot is pasted behind an oversized keyhole; in the foreground, Andrews models evening wear, a peeping victim once more!

But see, the Mouthpiece, "Fox Sports Graphics Monkey Either Brilliant or Insane":

Yes, that is Erin Andrews, superimposed over a keyhole graphic, through which stares … Jason Whitlock! Ahhh! And that is not a kind, knowing, forgiving Jason Whitlock. That is a creepy peephole Jason Whitlock. That is the last photo of Jason Whitlock you see before you die.

As for his column itself, it’s just insane. In sum: Racism, Deadspin, Daulerio Leitch Leitch Daulerio, White Woman, Racism, Real Talk. I just saved you three minutes. You’re welcome.

Plus, here's the first commenter from Deadspin's piece, "It Was A Rough Week For ESPN":

The Whitlock/keyhole pic deserves its own post. First, it's Whitlock, the crown prince of judging women by their asses. Second, "black man peering through a keyhole at a white woman" apparently doesn't register on anyone's race panic radar. Third, is he drunk in that photo?

Also, from FanIQ, "Jason Whitlock Gets on His High Horse and Blames Sports Blogs For the Erin Andrews Incident." But the Arrowhead Addict didn't seem to mind, "Hilarious Erin Andrews/Jason Whitlock FOX Sports Image." Added: "When is a Graphic Too Graphic?"

And that leads us to the future of women in sports broadcasting? Are we in a new place in the sociology of gender in the wake of the peephole controversy? Here's Marc at Feministing laying down the ideology, "Professional Sports, Masculinity and Erin Andrews":

Where do these identities of masculinity come from, though? If we're going to blame sports for misogyny and sexism, then we might as well start at its lowest level - on the baseball diamonds of Little League and school playgrounds, where little boys are told to be tough, in control of their emotions, and not to cry. Guilt is found in every coach who's ever told little boys that they throw "like a girl," and every parent who's told their child that boys do not cry, lest they want to look like little girls.

But the biggest blame here lies in the millions of men who have, since the assault of Erin Andrews, chosen to support her exploitation by searching for the video. That they might or might not have masturbated to orgasm watching this video is immaterial. What matters is that they knowingly supported the violation of Erin Andrews - and even worst, sought to derive satisfaction, whether emotionally, sexually or otherwise, through her assault.

Just admitting guilt, however, isn't enough. Guilt, after all, never helped free women of other oppressions, and it certainly didn't help them attain the freedoms they've gotten to this point. What we need, then, is action. We need to speak up. We need to call others out for their sexist actions and statement - but to do that, we must call ourselves out. The journey to ending sexism toward Erin Andrews and all women, those in our lives and those we do not know, starts with an admission of guilt. We are all guilty.

Also, at VolNation (an ESPN comment board), "Erin Andrews, Women and Sports":

The Erin Andrews affair tells lots of us that we should do better. We should not joke in ways that degrade innocence. We can call a whore a whore but we should not project lust and evil on someone who is innocent. Beautiful women are one of the great gifts God has given the world, and in the South, and at football schools, you can see lots of beauty on display. It is fine to respect and admire that without being trashy or dirty. Whether it is signature pictures of models put up by old men who are lonely, or comments about how someone has a busted nose by guys who are fat and have enough back hair to knit a sweater, our sports boards do not need it.

Now, let's hear it from the feminists (women, I think). From BrokeHarvardGrad, "Female Sports Report Recorded Through Peephole." That piece links to an earlier article from the Washington Post, "For TV's Female Reporters, It's Strictly a Sideline Job: From NFL to NBA Telecasts, the Booth Still a Glass Ceiling." Plus, at the Bleacher Report, "Are Sideline Reporters Necessary Or Just a Distraction."

And Vivian Bernstein has a brief but potent essay, "Erin Andrews and the Ugliness of Judging Beauty." But see Jessica Quiroli, at High Heels on the Field, "Erin Andrews Doesn't Deserve Your Lousy Behavior":

Women in the sports journalism business have busted down clubhouse doors to gain respect.

Being a pretty blonde who appears to some to be too friendly, is not an affront to the women who fought so hard. What is an affront to all women and all those trailblazers, is the attitude that a woman who's considered attractive, should be treated like a whore.

Tell me, friends, did it make you smirk when ESPN reporter Erin Andrews was violated in her hotel room by a peeping tom? Did you immediately jump to her defense? Would you have if it was, say, Christine Brennan treated in this manner?

If you didn't defend her, you are beneath the dirt of a baseball field. You're not even fit to be the spit on a spit ball.

A friend in the business has a great response to men who mistreat her in any clubhouse. "If I were your wife, or sister, or daughter, and some guy were treating her the way you're treating me, how would you feel?"

What if, a girl you're close to or related to, was filmed naked against her will? I don't believe you'd take the attitude that she deserves it.

News flash to all: being friendly and pretty, doesn't constitute being mean you have a right to treat a woman any way you please. It's not an invite. You may not agree with how friendly Erin Andrews has been seen to be, but that's her personality. Her body and her hotel room are not your right for that reason.

News flash to women in the business: We are in this together. We are outnumbered. There is strength in our numbers if we support each other. Let us not be weakened or our bond be damaged. We've come too far. It's too important. It's a piece of feminist history. Never, NEVER forget that. Lipstick and a sundress don't make me less of a feminist or baseball writer. That's male designed thinking. Don't join them. WE ARE BETTER THAN THAT.

Also, "WSU's Brunson Feels for ESPN Colleague Andrews." And, "A Perspective on the Erin Andrews Incident from the Other Side of the Blogger’s Fence."

So, where are we, after a week of the Erin Andrews nude video scandal?

Well, maybe back where we began. Check out this piece, out today. It's basicallly comparative sensationalism, "Tale of The Tapes: The Erin Andrews Peephole vs. The LeBron James Dunk":

Over the past week or so, we have been blessed with the unveiling of not one, but two tapes that will forever be entrenched in the history of the sports blogosphere.

It all started last Friday when we were treated to the creepy (yet incredibly hot) peephole video of ESPN sports reporter Erin Andrews as she curled her hair, ironed, and got a squat or two in there as well. It has since received an enormous amount of attention. Even Bill O'Reilly and the people at FOX News couldn't resist the temptation of showing viewers a sample clip.

And here's this one, from the New Orleans Conservative Examiner, "Erin Andrews Peeping Tom Drama is a HOAX."

Actually, no. It's not a hoax, not at all. We don't know everything about this story yet, but we know that Erin Andrews was manipulated and brutally victimized. There's a lot of greed and sexism stewing in America today, and much of it is getting swept under the rug by our fears - all kinds of fears, and especially the fear of looking inside of ourselves and acknowledging our fallen state. I'll have some more thought on this in my Erin Andrews traffic report tomorrow. The results - and my conclusions - might surprise you.

**********

UPDATE: Here's the latest for Erin Andrews on Google Trends (10:00am PST):

Jul 24, 2009 - change date
Updated 1 minute ago

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Showing 1 - 20

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erin andrews peephole tape video
Hotness: Volcanic
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Peak:
1 hours ago

Also, at Hollywood Gossip, "Great Moments in Erin Andrews Peephole Coverage." And, at The Frisky, "Holy Exploitative: An Erin Andrews Action Figure."

Some people will stop at nothing to make a profit and HeroBuilders.com is no exception. This site specializes in making action figures of newsworthy folks like Sarah Palin, Jon Gosselin, and George Bush. But now that ESPN sportscaster Erin Andrews has been catapulted into fame because some creep decided to film her naked in her hotel room, the site is going to immortalize her forever in colored plastic.

She’s going to be made into two dolls, one will look all professional and the other is going to be rockin’ a red sundress. A red sundress? Ugh, I wouldn’t be surprised if they made a special-edition nude one, too. The dolls usually cost around $40 and look way more muscular than the people they’re supposed to represent, but as long as the site makes money who cares, right?

And Sports Illustrated has a new piece on Leslie Visser, "With Smarts, Grace, This Female Sportscaster Broke Down Barriers":

Back in the day, the righteous fight was for respectability. Women weren't objects. Or playthings. Or idiots. Every time a female reporter entered a clubhouse, or asked a thought-provoking question to a chauvinistic jock, or wrote a breathtaking lede, the slow-moving world of sports took another small step toward enlightenment. That was one of Visser's aspirations then -- not to be seen as some sort of trailblazer (which, without question, she is), but as a professional. As an equal. Now, however, thanks to this odd physical obsession over all things Erin Andrews, as well as to the ritualistic hiring of women reporters based first and foremost on looks, we are back in the dark ages.

Also, I missed this one earlier, but check out Kashmir Hill, "The Erin Andrews Tape: ‘Privacy is the New Nudity’."

**********

UPDATE II: From the Hartford Courant, "Erin Andrews Video an Inside Job? Theory Gains Strength":

The theory that ESPN reporter Erin Andrews was the victim of someone who knew her, possibly a fellow ESPN employee, continued to gain more credence on Friday.

A number of websites, as well as a report by CBS News, used sources to conclude that the infamous video was shot by someone who knew where she was.

"I would say it would probably have to be somebody who's close to her, just to get in the area of her," Patrick Malkmes told CBS News. Malkmes was identified in the report as a private investigator and CBS consultant.

The website RadarOnline.com, using sources, said the shooter of the video was "probably a fellow ESPN employee, since it's the network that books the hotels for employees traveling on assignment."

The same source told RadarOnline.com that ESPN is "freaking out" as the investigation continues into how this happened.

The video, lasting several minutes, was shot through a peephole and showed a nude Andrews inside her hotel room.

Meanwhile the New York Post furthered the story on Friday's editions by reporting that the website where the videos first appeared, Dailymotion, has not been contacted by police.

"We have not been contacted by authorities or heard from investigators," a spokesman for Dailymotion told The Post.

More at the link.

The Post's story is here, "Questions About Erin Andrews Peephole Video Investigation":

The Web site where voyeur videos of ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews first appeared has yet to be called by police -- raising doubts about how aggressively the case is being pursued.

"We have not been contacted by authorities or heard from investigators," a spokesman for Dailymotion told The Post yesterday.

Computer-security experts said cops could quickly find the peeping Tom's identity by subpoenaing the site's records.

Andrews' lawyer, Marshall Grossman, refused to say which authorities had been contacted about the case and why no law enforcement had yet reached out to the site.

"For any investigation to have the maximum chance of success, it is wise not to publicly comment on it," Grossman said.

A person using the online handle "Goblazers1" in February posted a half-dozen video clips showing Andrews, 31, nude in a hotel room, brushing her hair.

The videos were shot though a peephole, with the striking blond sports journalist unaware of the voyeur.

The posting by "Goblazers1" did not identify Andrews by name.

The city where the video was shot has not been identified, and no law-enforcement agency has said it is investigating. The FBI has said it is not involved.

Andrews notified ESPN of the videos on July 16 and asked for help taking them down, a network spokesman said.

ESPN's general counsel then sent out a letter demanding they be removed, without mentioning Andrews by name.

That letter sparked speculation among site operators that the woman was Andrews. Shortly afterward, her lawyer confirmed it was her and threatened legal action against people displaying the images.

Meanwhile, here's this from TMZ, "Erin Andrews Calls 911 on 'Suspicious Person'":

TMZ has learned ESPN reporter Erin Andrews made a call to 911 Wednesday claiming a suspicious person was outside of her Georgia home.

Just days after her peeping Tom incident became national news, Andrews made a call to Dunwoody police around 2:10 PM, claiming someone was knocking on her door and wouldn't leave.

When cops arrived on scene, they discovered the person was a member of the news media looking for an interview with Erin, and eventually allowed the reporter to leave without incident.

Also, from RadarOnline, "EXCLUSIVE: Erin Andrews Still “Shaken” and “Paranoid” After Peeping Tom Incident":

Things are still amiss for EPSN correspondent Erin Andrews. In the wake of the release of footage videotaping her naked in a hotel room without her consent, Andrews is currently taking any means to put her life together. A source tells RadarOnline.com exclusively that the TV personality is trying to put on a brave face, but is privately struggling and has problems sleeping and feeling comfortable alone.

“She’s shaken and kind of paranoid,” the source said. “Everyone is very nurturing to her- which she appreciates- but you can tell the whole thing has devastated her. It’s all so reprehensible.”

Since the incident, security now does multiple sweeps of her rooms before entering and after leaving. She also fears being alone and has talked to a therapist.

Andrews Nude Controversy Puts Spotlight on Media Hypocrisy; Social Taboos Fall Away in Internet's Anything-Goes Culture, Peep Investigation Continues!

ABC News leads reporting again this morning with, "Did Andrews' Sex Appeal 'Encourage' Nude Vid?: Sports Writer Christine Brennan Asks If Andrews Brought on Peeping Tom Video; Later Says She's Misunderstood."

But that's just for starters: See Steve Johnson, at the Chicago Tribune, "Erin Andrews Nude Video Coverage Full of Hypocrisy":

If nothing else, the Erin Andrews nude Web video flap has produced one moment of high comedy.

In its diligent reporting on the issue, the gossip site TMZ.com ended one dispatch with this: "We will not post this video because it is a clear invasion of privacy."

Yes, that would be the same TMZ that has videographers scouring Hollywood trying to catch celebrities in the act of leaving a nightclub intoxicated, being with someone who is not their significant other or getting annoyed at the videographers trying to catch them getting annoyed.

Then there was the media Web site - we're looking at you, New York Post - that railed against the "peephole pervert" exploiting the "sideline siren," then posted that story alongside a slide show of images captured from the video, complete with black bars covering Andrews' naughty bits.

Beyond the heaping tablespoons of hypocrisy, though -- oh, and the fact that most sites still claiming to have the video will probably load malware onto your computer -- there's not much that's funny here. Andrews, a 31-year-old ESPN sports reporter who also happens to be slender, busty and, by most estimates, beautiful, was apparently filmed illicitly in two hotel rooms naked.

There's nothing extraordinary about what she's doing in the clips - brushing her hair, ironing pants, checking her backside in the mirror - but the fact that it is Andrews, lust object of a high percentage of young American men, has made the video into the Pamela Anderson tape of the moment.

Judging by Google Trends data, much of the nation has spent most of this week looking on the Internet for some variation on "Erin Andrews peephole video."

More at the link.

And, more on the New York Post, "Reports: ESPN, New York Post at Odds Over Andrews Story." Plus, at Deadspin, "New York Post: ESPN Made Us Exploit Naked Lady." See also the outraged Lynda Johnson, "Pop! NY Post Erin Andrews (Photos) Christine Brennan ..."

The Post is fighting back. From AP, "NY Post: ESPN Outed Own Reporter in Nude Video." Check the Post's own report here, "ESPN Outed Erin Video":

NO one would have known that a sick voyeur had secretly videotaped ESPN reporter Erin Andrews nude in her hotel room, if the Mickey Mouse sports network hadn't sent a letter to an obscure Web site demanding that it take down its link to a fuzzy video of an unidentified blonde. The video had gone largely unnoticed since it first went up in February, according to a girlie-posting site, DonChavez.com ...

And that would be the message from the Post's editorial cartoon yesterday, "Sean Delonas' Cartoons" (posted above). More commentary at these sites: Extra, The Superficial, What Would Tyler Durden Do, The Blemish, The Hollywood Gossip, Watchdog, and TV Tattle (some of these are NSFW, via WeSmirch).

Okay, here's some news from inside the sports world's guilty angst: Jay Mariotti comes awful close to saying "she had it coming," in "Lesson of Erin Andrews: Grow Up, Boys!":

Unlike one of the Erin-consumed leeches - who admitted this week, "I have never met Erin Andrews,'' - I have met her as an ESPN colleague. She could not be more friendly and down to earth, which, in this case, probably contributed to the rampant EA Mania. If she were aloof, she wouldn't be nearly as popular and droolworthy among the testosterone-fueled masses. But by smiling everywhere and saying hi to everyone - from the face-painted freshman at Michigan State to, yes, even the very bloggers who exploit her -- she only fed the monster and left the absurd impression that she actually might dig them. Wrote Christine Brennan, the USA Today columnist: "I wish it didn't happen to Erin, but I also would suggest to her if she asked (and she hasn't) that she rely on her talent and brains and not succumb to the lowest common denominator in sports media by playing to the frat house.'' In truth, Andrews has been vexed in handling the intense amounts of attention, including her distinction as Playboy magazine's "sexiest sportscaster in America.'' One minute, she's on the dance squad at the University of Florida. The next, she's wondering how many millions of perverts are blowing up her photos on the Internet. Or what rumor is surfacing next on a blog about this sex tape or this baseball player or this college basketball player, none of which involved any attempts by the bloggers to substantiate.

But when another sleazy day has ended and the creeps tell their bosses about all their Erin-generated page views, Andrews still has to live with the fallout. She grew to be a well-respected sideline reporter who was placed on college football and basketball because, well, she's young and relates to her audience. They're not stupid in Bristol; she brought in ratings. And for anyone who suggests she exploited sexuality with some of her outfits, I'll remind you that it's 2009 and no one should expect her to dress like a Granny. I've seen Katie Couric wear shorter dresses. Last summer, Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella saw her in a stylish summer dress before a game in Milwaukee - professionally acceptable, according to my sample poll of females -- and cracked, "Is this a baseball game or a modeling assignment?'' That prompted an Illinois sportswriter to columnize that she "sauntered around the visiting clubhouse, flitting from one Cubs player to another. Her skimpy outfit - designed to accentuate her, um, positives - had players leering at her.''

What you need to know: Piniella is 65; the writer in his 50s.

"It's really sad that ... I have people watching every single move I make," Andrews told a Minnesota newspaper at the time. "These players are not into me like that. If anything, I think these guys look at me like a little sister or one of the guys. I don't look at myself as a sex object. I've never carried myself in that way. I'm a girl that loves sports. I'm a tomboy. That's the last thing on my mind when I'm in the clubhouse -- worrying about players checking me out.

"I thought at some point we were all past this. I'm not going to change. I can't change.''

Unfortunately, the perverts didn't change, either. It's unconscionable to think a human being would hatch a plot knowing the hotel location, the number of her room and, apparently, when she would disrobe long enough to shoot video footage through the door peephole. She is seeking criminal charges and filing civil lawsuits, but face it, she has been robbed of her privacy and equilibrium forever. How can she return to a hotel room without wondering if someone's peeping? How can she live wondering 24/7 if someone is leering? I wouldn't blame her if she left the sports business and entered the entertainment world. Just a few months ago, USC linebacker Ray Maualuga approached her from behind on the sideline and did a grind dance, which invites other athletes to do the same. But I fully expect her to stand firm and report back to work in September, when her college football duties begin on -- gulp -- college campuses across the land.

After reading this stuff all week, I'm not impressed with Mariotti's analysis, much less the blaming. He's getting some pushback, in any case. See Deadspin, "Jay Mariotti On Erin Andrews, AutoSummarized."

But, check the Wall Street Journal, "Assessing the Erin Andrews Feeding Frenzy." Lots of links there. Plus, see also Jason Whitlock, one of my favorite sports writers, "Who's to Blame for Erin Andrews Scandal?":

Invasion of privacy for profit is what we all do to some degree in this day and age of Internet, camera-phone journalism. We're in desperate pursuit of clicks and ratings. There was a time when athletes could visit nightclubs and whatnot without fear of being photographed or videotaped.

Actually, probably the second most important explanation for all of this comes from the female commentators. Check Jezebel, "Did Erin Andrews's "Good Girl" Image Work Against Her?":

Erin Andrews isn't the first "good girl" to be exposed in this way. Vanessa Williams famously resigned her Miss America title after someone tried to publish nude photos of her without her consent. A relatively tame sex tape purporting to feature Kristin Davis (Sex & the City's prudish Charlotte), surfaced last year. God-loving, gay-hating Carrie Prejean raised a stir with her topless photos. And just last week, celebhotline.com claimed to have nude footage of Gossip Girl's Leighton Meester doing something or other with her feet.

So why are the anonymous and click-happy denizens of the interwebs more interested in a princess than a Playboy model? The simplest reason would be the opportunity to see something they don't ordinarily get to see — a body not usually on such display. Another, creepier reason, though (especially creepy in Andrews's case, because she didn't even know she was being filmed), is the unwillingness factor. Unlike a Playboy model, a princess doesn't want you to see her naked ...

Maybe the fascination of the Andrews footage is partly about "candor," but it's also about taboo — the thrill of seeing something you're not supposed to see. And it's about the sexual value of a woman's perceived virtue — as 1960s frat boys will tell you, a fallen Madonna is better than a whore.

Check also, Monica Hesse, at the Washington Post, "You Know You Want To Watch That Video: But Erin Andrews Would Rather You Not."

After you read Jezebel and WaPo above, be sure to go back and read Clay Travis at Fanhouse, "Erin Andrews Video Straddles Sports Culture's Sexual Fault Line" (this is the most important theory of the phenomenon, IMHO). There will be lots more analysis, but I think the Travis piece and the Jezebel article offer the best theories.

Also, pointing a little toward the way forward, see Captain Polemic, "A Turning Point in Female Sports Journalism – The Erin Andrews Story." (And some folks are behind the curve on this story. See another handwringer, for example, "Erin Andrews Saga a Reflection of the Sad State of Society Today.")

Okay, what about the investigation? Actually, the ultimate criminal, the original hotel stalker who taped Erin Andrews nude, will never be caught - unless, ESPN indeed did play an inside game and they know the identity of the perpetrator (and legal action forces the network's hand). That hypothesis, by the way, sounds supremely horrible if true. Remember yesterday's report from the New York Daily News, "Erin Andrews Peephole Video Likely Shot by Fellow ESPN Employee: Report."

Meanwhile, from Bob's Blitz, "Post Pervs Banned by ESPN Due to Erin Andrews Photos - Editors Could Face Sex Crime Charges."

And CBS News has a more tasteful video report this morning, "ESPN's Andrews Fights Voyeur." And the related report, at the Detroit Free Press, "Private Investigator Calls Erin Andrews Taping an Inside Job."

Finally, this one's NSFW, "Sportscasters Now Afraid of Peeping Toms." And, at the Boston Herald, "Heidi Watney: ‘I Did Cover the Peephole’: Nude Video Spurs Host to Watch for Perverts."
Updates forthcoming throughout the evening ...

**********

UPDATE: Bombshell for conservatives! Bill O'Reilly shows Erin Andrews nude, "Erin Andrews Peephole Video Shown by Bill O'Reilly With Lame Excuse":

Read the analysis, here.

Actually, it's no surprise: O'Reilly's show is all about shock conservatism with hot-babe analysis. Frankly, I wish he'd have Courtney Friel and Jane Skinner on the broadcast more often.

Added: More on O'Reilly from Gawker, "Pervy Flesh-Peddler Bill O'Reilly Plays Erin Andrews Peephole Video On-Air." And at Seattle SportsNet, "Erin Andrews Video Scandal an Indictment on System of Double-Standards: "Then there are those hellbound bastards who have seized the opportunity to boost their ratings by taking further advantage of ESPN’s sideline goddess. Yes, I’m talking about you, Bill O’Reilly."

Also, another bombshell! It's not just the guys!

From Associated Content, "Erin Andrews Video Peep Pictures: Have We Not Had Enough Yet?":

What bothers me more is how many women want to see the video of Erin Andrews undressing in her hotel room, some just as much as men. In earlier years, women might have stuck together, and instead of calling her a sleaze, they'd take the position that she has been malignantly exploited by some creep at hotel with a video camera.

Plus, check this analysis of the Erin Andrews search-index rankings, "Erin Andrews Peep Tape Brings Her From 0 to 100."

Yet more, recall the Jason Whitlock citation above; and then check out Associated Content, "Michelle Beisner Dragged into Erin Andrews Controversy by Columnist Jason Whitlock."

The piece hammers Whitlock for linking Beisner, a former Denver Broncos cheerleader, to Deadspin, the online sports magazine:

Jason Whitlock believes that the influential website Deadspin is largely responsible for popularizing and perpetuating the Erin Andrews peephole controversy because it posted a link to the website hosting the Erin Andrews peephole video (it has since been taken down). Whitlock points out that until Deadspin mentioned it, the Erin Andrews peephole video had been virtually ignored.

Whether this is true or not is highly debatable, but it does demonstrate in no uncertain terms that Whitlock has some issues with Deadspin.

Actually, it's not debateable at all: Deadspin indeed linked to the hosting website on Sunday, and on Tuesday former Deadspin columnist Will Lietch wrote his big mea culpa, "Erin Andrews and Guilt, Imagined and Otherwise."

And related, "Michelle Beisner: the Original Erin Andrews?"

Okay, more commentary on who's to blame: What about the hotel? See, "Erin Andrews' Nightmare":

What's interesting is that some hysterical commentators have taken the knee-jerk "blame the internet" view of the situation. Almost nobody has yet so much as pointed out that a presumably reputable (but as yet unidentified) hotel allowed a logistically mystifying act of privacy violation to take place on its premises. Privacy is the very pith of the hospitality business; it is part of what we buy when we rent a hotel room. The internet has been an engine of fame and fortune for Erin Andrews, and its power to intensify the effect of the original crime committed against her is inherently equal to its power to make her a celebrity. But what was done to her in that hotel -- and surely the hotel needs to be named and shamed, for the benefit of the world -- would be a sadistic crime of equally severe import whether the internet existed at all.

And, more from Deadspin, "It Was A Rough Week For ESPN," and previously, "ESPN Doles Out Swift Bristol Justice Over New York Post's Erin Andrews Coverage."

Plus, another attempt at explanation, from Michael Rand, "Sports Voyeurism."

And here's an analysis that combines legal aspects with moral condemnation, "Is it a Crime to Watch the Naked Erin Andrews Video? No, But it Makes You a Total Jerk." Yet, millions have now searched for and likely watched the video. See also, The Week, "What Made People Watch Erin Andrews Video Peep Clips: Was it the Media's Fault, or Yours?"

**********

UPDATE II: From Jessica Valenti, at Feministing, "Erin Andrews and Consent":

I've been really happy to see that a lot of male sports bloggers are writing about feeling badly and almost feeling complicit in the objectification of sexualization of Andrews because of past posts they wrote about how hot she is, or featuring pictures of her that were meant to somehow titillate their male audience.

I also think that it's awesome that our own Community bloggers - like Dangerfield and Marc - have taken on the broader questions surrounding sports culture and masculinity.

What I'm really interested in, however, is the non-consensual issue that comes up in this story. People aren't interested in this video, this isn't a big internet sensation, because Andrews is a hot celebrity who people might be able to see naked. You can see plenty of hot women naked online. Folks want to watch this - and people find it interesting - precisely because Erin Andrews didn't know she was being filmed. And that reveals something really fucked up about the way American culture views women.

This would be a great analysis, up there with Jezebel above, except that Feministing, which is Jessica Valenti's personal blog, displays naked tail-flap women at the top of the banner masthead (an obviously sexist peep-exploitation gimmick that helps keep reader-eyes glued to the page). In other words, Valenti's a total hypocrite. Plus, she was called out big time for pumping-up her breasts in a comely sweater for ex-President Bill Clinton a few years back. Ann Althouse pointed it out her post, "Let's Take a Closer Look at Those Breasts," and Glenn Reynolds linked:

Quoting the title of this post unleashed some serious Instalanche action. (I knew it would.) The most ever, actually. And late on a Friday! What are you going to do? Guys love breasts. I think Jessica knows that quite well. And I think for all her gasping outrage, she's thoroughly pleased to get this attention.

The attention to her breasts, that is. She's a babe too, and recently married (to a man), so there's always hope for randy guys who meet her scheming for an untimely divorce. See Jessica Valenti, "My Big Feminist Wedding."

Added: Another woman writer who breaks with the hardline feminist meme: See, Kitt Badlove, "Erin Andrews Sexy Video is Instant Career Boost":

If you are not aware, ESPN sports news correspondent Erin Andrews has an illegally shot video of her walking around her hotel room naked buzzing around the Internet. Yes it's hard to find if you just browse the web and I'm not in the biz of telling how to easily find it. But what I can tell you is this. The video itself is no big deal. Yet for Erin it has accomplished a great deal for her. It's what I call the Paris Hilton Effect. Scandalous video equals instant celebrity status. After all, Paris Hilton was just a rich nobody until the video of her having sex with an ex boyfriend hit the Internet.

OK, the guys reading this are asking, what does Erin Andrews look like naked? In this case Erin Andrews was just standing in her hotel room naked, doing her hair. In the video there is nothing to see. The resolution is low and the poor video could really be of any tall nondescript blond. Yes you can see her fully naked but frankly it's not of an overtly attractive body. She's not overweight, but other than what appears to be evidence of potential breast implants there is nothing remotely exciting either.

A couple of points: One, while a single case (from an essentially anonymous blogger), here's a clear example that men aren't the only ones interested in watching the video. Indeed, in the case of Kitt Badlove, this is the most nonchalant secondary voyeur's account I've read yet. And second, I have to completely disagree that Erin Andrew's peephole invasion is a "career boost." Hardly anyone is speculating as to what Ms. Andrews should do next. But she's scheduled to start sideline reporting for ESPN's college football programming in September. When the football games start, the working assumption has to be that every guy in the stands has seen Erin Andrews nude. Ms. Andrews has declined interview requests, and ESPN - for all the scandal and speculation on an inside perp - appears set to keep Andrews on as scheduled. Yes, the fame will propel Andrews into the ranks of the media elite if she chooses to move on from the network. But who knows her psychological state? Not only will every handshake from a stanger feel like someone's copping a feel, but the small-town innocence that made Andrews so approachable to the fans by necessity must be abandoned. Anyone could be the next stalker.

Race-Baiting Escalation in 'Yo Mama' Arrest Controversy at Harvard

This story is really getting a lot of attention since the Presidents weighed in. See, ABC News, "Cambridge Cop's Lawyer: Obama was 'Dead Wrong' on Gates: Cop Involved in Gates' Arrest And His Union Lash Out at Obama For Taking Sides":

There's been some controversy over access to the police report. See, Newsbusters, "Boston Globe Scrubs Henry Louis Gates Arrest Report From Website." But Professor William Jacobson has a copy. See, Legal Insurrection, "No, It Wasn't Racial Profiling."

Plus, at the New York Times, "Obama Wades Into a Volatile Racial Issue." And, William Kristol, "Obama Attacks Docs and Cops."

Also, Dan Riehl, "Obama Destroyed His Post-Racial Theme." And Dr. Melissa Couthier, at RightWingNews, "President Obama: The Black President Rather Than The American President Who Happens To Be Black."

But in what's most damaging to the leftist race-baiters, see the Boston Herald, "Officer in Henry Gates Flap Tried to save Reggie Lewis: Denies He’s a Racist, Won’t Apologize":

The Cambridge cop prominent Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. claims is a racist gave a dying Reggie Lewis mouth-to-mouth resuscitation in a desperate bid to save the Celtics [team stats] superstar’s life 16 years ago Monday.

“I wasn’t working on Reggie Lewis the basketball star. I wasn’t working on a black man. I was working on another human being,” Sgt. James Crowley, in an exclusive interview with the Herald, said of the forward’s fatal heart attack July 27, 1993, at age 27 during an off-season practice at Brandeis University, where Crowley was a campus police officer.

It’s a date Crowley still can recite by rote - and he still recalls the pain he suffered when people back then questioned whether he had done enough to save the black athlete.

“Some people were saying ‘There’s the guy who killed Reggie Lewis’ afterward. I was broken-hearted. I cried for many nights,” he said.

Crowley, 42, said he’s not a racist, despite how some have cast his actions in the Gates case. “Those who know me know I’m not,” he said.

Yesterday, Lewis’ widow, Donna Lewis, was floored to learn the embattled father of three on the thin blue line of a national debate on racism in America was the same man so determined to rescue her husband.

Plus, Jules Crittenden, "Sensitivity Training Now," and Don Surber, "“Rogue cop” is a Hero, Too."

Also, see my earlier coverage, "Cop Not Sorry in Arrest of Harvard's Henry Louis Gates, Jr.," and "Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and the Racial Cesspool at Harvard." Recall that Gates' was belligerent with the officers. He snapped, "I'll speak with your mama outside," when the police requested he move outside. See, TMZ, "Busted Harvard Prof Drops 'Yo Mama' Joke on Cop."

Lots more at Memeorandum.