Tiger Woods' Apology Not Convincing: Where's Apology for Media and His Mistresses?

I have to admit while watching Tiger Woods' highly anticipated mea culpa last Friday, I quickly lost interest. It was evident Woods was reading from a script and his apology lacked sincerity. In fact, I wish Tiger had my number because I could have written a more believable speech for a fraction of the cost he must have paid some high priced pr firm who didn't really get the job done.

The operative question is: What was Woods apologizing for? The answer to this question is simple. Woods couldn't come back to the PGA without some kind of admission of guilt regarding his extramarital relationships with at least 12 women. The PGA wanted him to apologize, the media which fawns over Woods wanted him to apologize and, most of all, the companies which endorsed him wanted Woods to apologize. This apology had nothing to do with morality or Woods lack thereof. It was all about money. Now Woods could return to the PGA tour with his problems all put behind him. Well, at least that's how some in our society will see it.

What I'd like to see is an apology from the media who covered Tiger Woods' career from his days as an amateur through his winning of 14 major tournaments before the fall from grace which shocked the world. You see, from the beginning, Tiger Woods was treated as something special. And, to be truthful, he was...as a golfer. But I am certain of this. There are those in the press who knew of Woods' womanizing tendencies. They had to know and they kept the story a secret.

But why? The profession of journalism is dependent on a very important word and that word is access. If a lone reporter on the golf beat had come out with a story reporting on Woods' multiple affairs, two things could have happened. The report may have opened the flood gates for greater scrutiny of Woods who was portrayed by the press as a pillar of virtue. Or the journalist who wrote the piece would have found him or herself on the outside looking in, being labeled as a vicious spreader of rumors regarding Tigers' personal life.

I've seen this happen in the coverage of Chicago-style politics. Many journalists are aware of the corruption which exists in the city, but fail to report on such things because they would lose access to the sources they cover. No source, no story. No story, no job. It's that simple. But yet it's insidious, just the same.

However, in most things, like in the case of Tiger Woods, there was a double standard when it came to the scrutiny of John Daley, a golfer with extraordinary talent who was plagued by unrelenting demons. Daley only won two major PGA tournaments, so he was more vulnerable to criticism from the media. There were stories about how many diet Cokes he drank, how many cigarettes he smoked, how much money he spent on gambling and his marital problems which led to multiple divorces. But Daley isn't Tiger Woods. And though Daley had a strong and loyal following, he wasn't quite the cash cow that Tiger is to the PGA tour.

Supposedly, because of his mixed heritage, Woods opened up the sport of golf to millions who wouldn't otherwise have been exposed to the sport. In essence, he was too important to write bad things about, until that fateful Thanksgiving night when he ran into a fire hydrant at 3 A.M. trying to escape the wrath of his wife. And if anyone buys that story about Mrs. Woods breaking out the back window of her husband's SUV in order to save him, I've got some ocean front property in Illinois for sale to the highest bidder.

Let's put Tiger Woods aside for the moment. Where is the apology from the 12 or more women who helped Woods break his marriage vows? To the contrary, noted publicity seeker and lawyer Gloria Allred is suing Woods on behalf of one of his mistresses because she wasn't the only mistress. As comedian Yakov Smirnoff used to say "What a country!"

However, don't you Tiger Woods fans worry. You will soon see him back on the golf course and all will be forgotten...well, sort of. Woods will throw a few pieces of grass into the air for wind drift. As he is standing above his ball, an eight year old will snap his picture which will invoke a tirade of obscenities from Woods. Then Woods will take a giant swing and launch his ball down the fairway of a 550 yard par 5 while some idiot in the crowd yells "in the hole" even though this is a physical impossibility.

You know, as a woman who would not forgive my husband ONE incident of cheating, much less 12+, I find this fascinating!

There is a double standard here, and it is being applied AGAINST Tiger, not in his favor.
I like him as a golfer, I still do, he’s a phenomenon. As a human male I think he’s an alley cat with the deductive reasoning of a turnip. I can separate the two because I never felt the need to identify and cast him as a paragon of virtue based on his athletic abilities.
That so many did- and that the press promoted it- is the point here.
He was protected by the press? Ummmm- how many years for it to become known to the public that the sainted JFK was a cheating hypocrite? Yet he is STILL worshipped by many!
The press not revealing Tiger’s anti-image personal life is nothing new- and its not just for him that this image protection exists. Who else are they protecting in golf, or football, or any other sport? Why? And why do they turn on them when they do? Stupidity on the part of the individual, or a desire to tear down what they built up?

I know why Tiger’s personal life is being dissected now- what I’d like to know is why the lives of other ‘heroes’ are not. Tiger’s stupidity earned his dissection- how are others avoiding theirs? Is it that the media awards discretion and punishes those who make the whole production and promotion of image for profit look bad?

Is ANYONE naive enough to think that most famous sports jock types are what their image is? Lets talk NFL for an example- the current ‘golden boy’ Drew Brees( who I think is an adorable hunk of man). He’s the PERFECT ‘hero’- handsome, beautiful wife, precious little son, kissing on camera after winning the Superbowl. He’s damn near godly in these parts! Is he 100% faithful, is Sean Payton? Do we want to know? If not, why not?

WHAT IF he isn’t all that his image portrays? What if any favorite football player, or other athlete, is unfaithful to his family and image? Somehow I don’t think the Superbowl win would mean less, and I don’t think the stadiums would be empty.If standards were fairly applied, they would be.
For pity’s sake, ministers and priests( who VOW to be moral) are being revealed as hypocrites all over the place- and we seriously expect big-ego-ed, macho type sports figures will be Dudley Dorights? I would be willing to bet over 50% of the athletes cheered on every day are damn near as bad as Tiger- they just haven’t been found out yet.

Am I defending Tiger’s repulsive, selfish, arrogant behavior? I am not. The light of truth has outed him for a reason- mainly caused by his appalling stupidity!

He could have had a staff that covered his tracks, he could have realized that in this age of instant communication NOTHING is secret for long, he could have expected that one of his tramps would talk for $$. He could have decided that- despite the temptation- risking his endorsements and his children was not worth the Horizontal Hula with a bimbo.
His STUPIDITY is what surprised me here- not his ‘think with his genitals’ behavior. Maybe he’s a savant type- great at one thing( golf) and clueless otherwise. Maybe he’s just an arrogant sociopath who thinks he’s entitled and figures he deserves everything he wants.
But what he is NOT is unique. Not in sports, or politics, or religion, or daily life. In our neighborhoods there are married men who are doing the same thing- they’re our friends and co-workers , they go to PTA meetings and take family portraits and have one affair after another that the wife either knows about( and ignores for financial/family reasons) or is totally clueless about. Some are smart enough not to get caught, and the perfect family man face remains intact.
Tigers is gone- along with everything he risked to have sex with any willing, warm bag of silicone.
I wouldn’t take him back- but God may forgive him if he is truly willing to change. If not, he should stay single and earn his title as Casanova Supreme without wearing two faces or breaking vows.
I daresay he would be worshipped and envied by many men- and the press-then.
As it stands now- he’s still the greatest golfer in the world- who happens to be a stupid, immoral man as well.
Those who would erase his public record because of his personal life had best be going around schools and public buildings tearing the pictures of JFK off the walls.
One standard for all.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.