They key lesson I see in all this has nothing to do with golf, marriage, or personal integrity. For me this sordid episode shows once again how media organizations WILL collude to cover up stuff —big, juicy stuff.
It seems like any mag that had dirt on him...? Tiger simply had to offer them OTHER news, and —POOOF!— the story about his marital failing just DISAPPEARED.
It’s very sobering, and it once again shows me how things came to a point where a former gift-shop attendant came to break MAJOR political news (Drudge), or how two college kids with a cam-corder and mini-skirt brought down a very large political organization (ACORN); they did have guts and talent, but they were NOT geniuses —it’s mainly that entities with all kinds of resources, gear, and money that used to really do their jobs simply stopped doing that. Gradually these organizations became integral parts of the machine they were supposed to report on, and here with a sports-angle we have that here, too.
A media vaccuum has developed, and over the long run vacuums cannot persist; something new will get in there, and occupy that space.
What other huge stories are known by journalists, but simply go unreported? Does anyone really thing there aren’t tons of them, with Zero around?
In view of how this has played out I feel more certain than ever that Rush (and many others) will be around for a very long time.
Awesome post bump!
Good post, but I’d suggest that the media is very much what it always has been. The press knew about JFK, but covered it up. Dittos for other sports figures.