Notes… ESPN, John Saunders, Barry Bonds: A Peek Inside the Mechanism of “The Big Lie”
May 11, 2008
In the epilogue segment of ESPN’s Sports Reporters, John Saunders said the following about Barry Bonds in an effort to brush aside the charges of collusion - formal or informal - against Major League Baseball’s team owners and their chosen commissioner, Bud Selig:
“You can’t bury a federal indictment in concrete ( a snarky reference to the remnants of Chernobyl being buried under the same material).”
I wonder when ESPN talking and writing heads will get it through their Bonds-biased heads that Bonds is not scheduled to go to court until the summer of 2009 and that the indictment will in no way inhibit him from playing a full season in MLB?
Perhaps, though, this is another of the Big Box’s superb use of this adage:
“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.”
Lat’s break that one down in relation to sports and ESPN.
“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.
They will lie and repeat the lie. Soon enough people believe the lie. Thanks to Disney, ESPN is the sports media outlet monolith. Their ability to flood television and the Internet with their brand of news and opinions makes them the first place for nearly every other smaller source of sports news, commentary, and opinion. ESPN’s widespread ability to influence opinion cannot be overstated. With their various “enterprises” in the television, Internet, and print mediums they can easily shield sports fans from the consequences of the lie.
“The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent…
Those “consequences” are (among others): exposing owners for the money-grubbing plantation masters that they are; exposing most commissioners as pawns of and front men for the owners; acting as jingoist flag-wavers for their friends in government; the furthering of race and gender stereotypes. Because they televise games for the NFL, NBA, MLB, and the NCAA, and much, much more, plus pursue advertising with the sponsors that also spend their dollars on those sporting leagues and associations they are automatically beholden to the very entities they cover.
…for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.”
So, what do you think results when you’re in bed with the leagues and associations and the corporate sponsors of those entities? The whole truth about those entities can never be told. As we have come to know here at SOMM and other independent sports news, commentary, and opinion outlets,other there are often other valid perspectives within stories that ESPN, even with its huge staff of researchers and writers, never bother to pursue, let alone investigate.
The Saunders utterance has been oft-used by ESPN “talent” to illustrate the problems with Bonds playing another game in the majors. Another of their pet lies that they actually aid in manifesting is the claim that Bonds brings a circus-like atmosphere with him or that the same air surrounds the slugger in a clubhouse. As is well known, the progenitor of that atmosphere is ESPN. Their round-the-clock coverage of Barry Bonds’ on and off-field exploits went so far as to include an alleged “inside peek” half-hour show starring —- Barry Bonds.
Oh yeah, and who did that quote come from?
None other than Joseph Goebbels.
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16 Responses to “Notes… ESPN, John Saunders, Barry Bonds: A Peek Inside the Mechanism of “The Big Lie””
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Oooo…chilling, isn’t it.
Regardless what you believe about the Bonds issue, I believe EVERY sports fan needs to hear this fact about ESPN first before they ever lay eyes on it. Once you understand that ESPN is beholden and has an incentive to uphold the sanctity of the leagues they have contracts with, you can see it for all it is. It’s akin to the New York Times getting a partnership with the US Government–but for some reason people don’t really acknowledge that fact. I know when I have kids, this will be the first thing I tell them about a network like this (yes…they will be cynics, probably).
dwil, the Goebbels quote can be attributed to any number of ESPN reports… very sad
Ap, very true… and how do you think the Tim Donaghy story got buried…
Great piece Dwil. AP and Modi you guys make some great points. But this is how it is with the media and sports or government for that matter.
And Modi it is funny how that Donaghy story got buried. He11 I didn’t know till 2 months ago that the owner of the hornets was in court for a rape trial a few years ago. I guess that was buried too.
The thing that always bothered me was that the media always called out players but would never call out owners. Except the ones that wouldn’t kiss the medias @ss (I.E. Daniel Synder and Al Davis).
Speaking of how the media and government are in bed together……have you heard Modi how Stallone has been trying for years to get a movie done in which he believes that the LAPD had something to do with Biggie Samlls death? Well Stallone has been trying to get the movie off the ground for about 8 years. All the studios keep telling him to remove the part about the LAPD.
Well anyway he finally got HBO to carry a documentary that he made about Biggie’s death. However out of nowhere HBO pulls the plug on the documentary.
This same thing has been happening to Denzel Washington and Spike Lee they have been trying to get a movie based on Ricky Ross done for about 10 years. Basically what they were told was to remove the part about the whole CIA involved with the crack thing.
Yet folks swear hollywood is sooo anti government…………………..yeah what ever.
By the way guys I see that the monster is being feed again. Looks like ESPN has breaking news that Mayo got money while at USC. So lets see they tried to make him out to be a thug his last few years in highschool and his first year in College……..but he foiled their plans because he didn’t get in trouble.
Next they tried to say that he was a selfish player. But he foiled that because he was far from a selfish player and his teamates and coaches agreed.
So now they get him on the….”he took some money tip”. So I guess to the media he is this new generations version of the fab five minus 4 players. SO he is cocky, a thug and took money while in college.
Hey got to make a new bad guy (Vick is in jail, Zeke lost his job, Pacman can’t play yet, Chris Henry doesn’t have a team, Carmello gets in trouble but always apologies) so what does the media do????
Make a new villian.
“I didn’t know till 2 months ago that the owner of the hornets was in court for a rape trial a few years ago.”
Origin, well, I didn’t know until 2 minutes ago!!!
There are many examples of the owner’s free pass… many… The Donaghy report was buried two days after the investigation where every ref on record was guilty of violating the gambling stories….
Wow!! I didn’t know that abbout Stallone/Biggie… that is a shame… I think that it is pretty well-documented that the LAPD was shady in Biggie’s death
Didn’t know about Denzel/Lee on Ricky Ross thing…
origin, you may have me googling for the next hour…
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also, watch the Sports Reporters on tape delay… and John Saunder dismiised Bonds on collusion as “ridiculous…
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nice move bt Utah’s Ronnie Price!!!
BTW, Utah’s trade for Kyle Korver most underated mid-season trade
Yeap the Kyle Korver trade was underated. Man that dude can shoot. I was telling a coworker of mine that he needs to be on the Olympic team. Just to be a zone buster. Korver hit from downtown blind folded and with the lights off in the gym.
Sorry to quote myself, but I’ve also been on OJ Mayo’s side for a while: http://mcbias.blogspot.com/search/label/OJ%20Mayo I agree the kid’s not perfect, but why are so many hating on him for showing some independence in picking a school and common sense most of the time? There’s something rotten about all of this, and it’s a shame. Good thing he can go to the pros this year; for once, I am in favor of a player leaving early.
Good work Mcbias. Its basically the fact that he went against the system.
Same as the fab five………..the main reason they were hated IMO is because they all made a pact to go to the same school. So basically instead of the people in power making the decision it was these young men. In the powers that be eyes……..this was a no no.
IMO the move by MAyo and the fab five was the right move and the most intelligent one. At 18 years old a young man can go to a war and die, but he can’t pick and choose where he wants to go.
Look at all the heat ( calling him selfish ,ignorant, trying to highjack the decision process of other top recruits. Even though his father told him to take his time in order to make the right decision) that the QB from Ohio (pryor) has gotten. Just because he didn’t make his decision when scouts inc and ESPN felt he should. The media is worse then groupies. If you aren’t a yes person and kiss their behind 24/7 then they want to come after you. I guess their feeling is they are gonna make money off of you one way or another (you will be either a villain or a good guy).
Not to change the subject but why is ABC changing the camera on the last possesion.
Man I can’t stand ESPN/ABC NBA presentation.
Thank goodness the lakers called TO. Or else they would have stayed in that dumb camera angle.
sorry, off topic, but the officiating in this Utah-Lakers game is atrocious:
– Kobe get no call, but Kirilenko gets love tap call on previous possession?
– Turiaf gets thrown out?
– Yet Ronnie Price clearly bangs Luke Walton with the body and no call whatsoever?
– Bunch of other terrible calls that I’m forgetting…
— This might be why is why Utah has that great home record
dwil,
Whitlock with another “Black KKK” column in this month’s Playboy…
and you said I didn’t read the articles
I was surprised by the way Saunders came out of the box this morning on Bonds but then again maybe I shouldn’t have been and just expected it to be par for the course. Despite towing the corporate line, something is going on behind the scenes that’s freezing Bonds out this season just to keep his record within reach for more manageable players like A-Rod or Griffey.
Lets cut through the b.s. Bonds is healthy. He proved last year, again, that nobody dominates a game the way he does. He had a NL leading OPS of 1.045. While playing left field. The leaders in the AL were Alex Rodriguez and David Ortiz with an OPS of 1.066, and Ortiz did not have to play a position. Everybody else in MLB posted a lower OPS than Barry Bonds. EVERYBODY. Including Jim Thome. Rick Ankiel, Chipper Jones, Matt Holiday, Carlos Pena, Jack Cust, Mike Lowell and any number of players who appeared and did not appear on George Mitchell’s list. Everybody finished with a lower OPS (On Base Percentage plus Slugging Percentage). All manged to find employment. Even the “violent and aggressive” Richie Sexson (not my words, those are the words from MLB following his incitement of a benches clearing brawl following a high pitch from Texas lefthander Kason Gabbard) with his .sub 700 OPS has a job.
And not once has Barry Bonds ever incited violent nor aggressive behavior towards any pitcher and countless are the times I’ve witnessed him being deliberately thrown at and hit over the years. Countless. Not a single solitary time did Bonds charge the mound. Ever. In his entire career.
And nobody. Not a single solitary player dominated a lineup or a game the way Bonds did. Bonds was essentially surrounded by a AAA lineup and over the hillers and still managed to keep the Giants competitive. No other player could have done that. No other player in modern history has made so few outs in so many opportunities. And he continued to dominate pitchers like no other last year.
But no. There is no collusion. I don’t know if Saunders is a sell-out or just blinded by the environment. I mean, why the hell would anyone set up shop in Bristol Connecticut except for the ability to set up a company town mentality.
Last night ESPN did a small feature between innings of their Sunday Night Game on their on-air “personalities”. What a pathetic cast of characters. Biased, obnoxious, rude, overly loud, condescending were the terms that came to mind. An awful horrible network. They would have fit right in Goebbels’ sports propaganda machine. A despicable organization.
A great dissection Dwil. A most worthy comparison.
E
Just another sellout!
E,
Bonds is a 43 year old ballplayer with absolutely horrible knees. He no longer can play the outfield, he no longer can run the bases. Wow, his OPS was highest in his league. He played in 110 games, he went through the worst slumps of his career, he had the 3rd fewest hits of his career (94.. the other lows are 92 and 93), he averaged just over 7 innings playing in the field. His OPS is only as high as it is because he still walks a lot, but if you walk 130+ times in a season in which you hit .270, of course your OPS is going to be gaudy because your OBP is high. Bonds didn’t dominate pitchers last year, his batting average the last 2 years were his lowest since 1999 and before that you had to go back to 1989 when he hit .242.
the last 2 years his slugging percentage has been the lowest he’s had since 1991. He’s clearly fading away from being a productive player in Major League Baseball. Outside of a Daryle Ward type DH role, there is no team in the league that will start the man in the outfield. He can’t run, he can’t throw, he can catch (as evidenced by his only making 4 errors last year. Bonds is a smart enough outfielder that he takes proper angles, it’s hard to give an outfielder an error). He’s a left handed Frank Thomas. Frank Thomas is in the league because he was signed to a ridiculous contract by the Blue Jays, and then the A’s signed him because he had played there just the season before last.
Richie Sexson is in the league because he is still under contract. Dan Johnson (this is from an earlier comment) is still in the league because he’s young enough that there might be a chance for him to show the potential he once had in the minors, plus he can play in the field. You may not have ever seen him charge the mound, but he has fought with teammates in the dugout.
OPS is not the be all, end all statistic. If you get a single, walk twice and cause an out, your OBP is a respectable .750, and your SLG % is .500, so your OPS is substantially higher than 1.045…
Bonds had a marginal year last year, for his and everyone else’s standards. He’s an aging baseball player, in the mold of Jake Taylor from the Major League movies. He’s not going to put a team over the top, he’s just not. He MAY provide a spark off the bench, but if you’re counting on him to provide .280 BA with 30 bombs and 80+ rbi you’re counting on too much. He’ll give you power in the teens, .250 BA maybe 50 rbi at this point, max. His body can’t do it anymore…
That’s why I don’t think it’s collusion. If Kenny Lofton were on a team with a multi year deal, maybe I’d consider it even though they’re 2 totally different players. Lofton isn’t that great of an outfielder anymore either…
Can somebody name an instance in which any sports franchise hired an employee who was under federal indictment at the time of the hiring? Perhaps the New York Yankees with crack addict Steve Howe, an eight-time drug loser. But that’s the Yankees, a morally bankrupt franchise for a century. Nobody else takes such a chance.