Raheem Sterling's comments about the press

[WaspInWales]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/46498849

Do you think the comments Sterling has made about the difference in the reporting for similar stories is fair?

I'm not a Man City fan, so I have no idea who Tosin Adarabioyo is. That said, I know who Phil Foden is though. Do I know who he is because he is white? No, absolutely not. Foden has been making the headlines for a couple of seasons now based on performances.

It wasn't that long ago Ian Wright was suggesting any criticism of Sterling stemmed from racism. I don't mind admitting that I've been critical of some of Sterling's performances in an England shirt. I have praised his good performances too. My criticism of him has nothing to do with his race. I've been quite vocal about a number of England players in recent years, and race is certainly not something that connects those players.

I've no doubt racism is rife amongst many fans, and it needs to be dealt with severely with criminal action where appropriate, and at the very least life-time bans at grounds, but I'm not sure Sterling's comments in this instance are entirely justified.

It's not as if the press have never attacked a white player for lavish spending or their lifestyle.

The bigger picture to me is, why the fack what these players are spending their money on is being reported when the bigger issue of their inflated sense of worth is usually ignored?

[Stom]

His point is very valid. Those two stories are identical: 2 young players on similar money buy 2 similar houses for their mums for similar prices. One is praised, one is criticised.

Not very good.

The attacks on Sterling are insane. I do feel like race must come into it. That's just it. Institutionalised racism is extremely prevalent, just like institutionalised sexism over here.

He's speaking the truth, not like Sol Campbell... The reason it look him so long to get a job is because, well, he comes across as a bit of a twunt... And only applied to 15 jobs in 4 years ffs.

[WaspInWales]

His point is very valid. Those two stories are identical: 2 young players on similar money buy 2 similar houses for their mums for similar prices. One is praised, one is criticised.

Not very good.

The attacks on Sterling are insane. I do feel like race must come into it. That's just it. Institutionalised racism is extremely prevalent, just like institutionalised sexism over here.

He's speaking the truth, not like Sol Campbell... The reason it look him so long to get a job is because, well, he comes across as a bit of a twunt... And only applied to 15 jobs in 4 years ffs.

Fair comments Stom, and the continued harrassment of Sterling is reprehensible at times. No-one, in whatever profession, or anywhere for that matter, should be subjected to abuse based on their race.

I think Sterling is a good player. He has frustrated in an England shirt on more than one occasion based on performances, plus he does seem to like a dive now and then. At the same time, the threat he carries probably means he cops a few heavy challenges...plus, quite a few footballers have a reputation for diving. Regardless of race, that is the kind of thing that gets players singled out for abuse from fans.

The thing that bothers me a bit, is that it seems if someone has a negative opinion of what Sterling does on the pitch, they could be accused of being racist. At what point can people not freely criticise someone's performance based on objective events?

Personally, I don't give a shit about his lifestyle or his tattoos, or feel he needs to explain why he has such a tattoo. I still maintain that many footballers are grossly overpaid, but it isn't their fault, so they're hardly likely to turn down vast sums of money, and it's up to them how they spend it. They have a skill that in many cases, us casual footballers and armchair fans can only dream of. They being paid for that skill and top end footballers have to train bloody hard, so why shouldn't they see some of the massive advertising and TV money that is pumped into the game?

In terms of the newspaper article, do you think it's a valid comparison to make that the one article is highlighting the fact that one player, who is generally not well known, and is yet to play for his club, whereas the other is becoming an establised player and is well known?

Then again, this comes back to so what? Is it particularly newsworthy that football players buy houses?

[WaspInWales]

Bit of perspective from the reporter who wrote the story on Tosin Adarabioyo:

Anthony Joseph, who wrote the Mail Online article about Adarabioyo, has described the reaction to his story as "astonishing", saying it was "topical and not based on race", and a follow up to a story in the Sun.

He says he has received racist abuse over it, including since Sunday.

"The story was done in January at a time when BT aired a documentary on teenage footballers who are earning millions. It was topical and there was a huge debate about it. The same day there was at least an hour segment about the same issue on Talksport," said Joseph.

"I spoke to the player's agent, who had no issue with the story at the time and how it was represented."

Joseph says Mail Online stories are written by a different title and editorial team to the Daily Mail, which published the article on Foden.

"Reporters don't do headlines at Mail Online but I still don't feel it vilified him at all," added Joseph. "Nor did I even make a connection of his colour - it didn't even cross my mind.

Taken from:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/46504491

[Stom]

His point is very valid. Those two stories are identical: 2 young players on similar money buy 2 similar houses for their mums for similar prices. One is praised, one is criticised.

Not very good.

The attacks on Sterling are insane. I do feel like race must come into it. That's just it. Institutionalised racism is extremely prevalent, just like institutionalised sexism over here.

He's speaking the truth, not like Sol Campbell... The reason it look him so long to get a job is because, well, he comes across as a bit of a twunt... And only applied to 15 jobs in 4 years ffs.

Fair comments Stom, and the continued harrassment of Sterling is reprehensible at times. No-one, in whatever profession, or anywhere for that matter, should be subjected to abuse based on their race.

I think Sterling is a good player. He has frustrated in an England shirt on more than one occasion based on performances, plus he does seem to like a dive now and then. At the same time, the threat he carries probably means he cops a few heavy challenges...plus, quite a few footballers have a reputation for diving. Regardless of race, that is the kind of thing that gets players singled out for abuse from fans.

The thing that bothers me a bit, is that it seems if someone has a negative opinion of what Sterling does on the pitch, they could be accused of being racist. At what point can people not freely criticise someone's performance based on objective events?

Personally, I don't give a shit about his lifestyle or his tattoos, or feel he needs to explain why he has such a tattoo. I still maintain that many footballers are grossly overpaid, but it isn't their fault, so they're hardly likely to turn down vast sums of money, and it's up to them how they spend it. They have a skill that in many cases, us casual footballers and armchair fans can only dream of. They being paid for that skill and top end footballers have to train bloody hard, so why shouldn't they see some of the massive advertising and TV money that is pumped into the game?

In terms of the newspaper article, do you think it's a valid comparison to make that the one article is highlighting the fact that one player, who is generally not well known, and is yet to play for his club, whereas the other is becoming an establised player and is well known?

Then again, this comes back to so what? Is it particularly newsworthy that football players buy houses?

The abuse of Sterling is generally not over his performances, though: it's over the way he acts. The same was said about Hamilton. Hamilton was relentlessly picked on for his lifestyle in a way that Button never was. And it's not even arguable that Button was a bigger playboy than Hamilton has ever been.

The problem is when people like Campbell shout to the rafters about not getting a job (he has now) because he's black when the real reason is that he APPLIED FOR 15 jobs in 4 years!!! He used an example of Gerrard walking into the Rangers job. Well, he's done a decent job. He used the example of Barton, someone who was well known as a philosophical footballer and one deeply interested in coaching.

I actually would like to take a look at footballers of comparable achievements and their post playing careers. Because I don't think the stats are as bad as the 8 in 92 sounds.

[WaspInWales]

The abuse of Sterling is generally not over his performances, though: it's over the way he acts. The same was said about Hamilton. Hamilton was relentlessly picked on for his lifestyle in a way that Button never was. And it's not even arguable that Button was a bigger playboy than Hamilton has ever been.

The problem is when people like Campbell shout to the rafters about not getting a job (he has now) because he's black when the real reason is that he APPLIED FOR 15 jobs in 4 years!!! He used an example of Gerrard walking into the Rangers job. Well, he's done a decent job. He used the example of Barton, someone who was well known as a philosophical footballer and one deeply interested in coaching.

I actually would like to take a look at footballers of comparable achievements and their post playing careers. Because I don't think the stats are as bad as the 8 in 92 sounds.

With regards to lifestyle and off the field stuff, haven't footballers, and sports stars in general always been an easy target in the media in that respect?

Tbh, I have such a fleeting interest in F1 so would have trouble recalling the coverage on Hamilton against Button, but will take your word for it. I think the coverage of Hamilton is far more positive these days...and he's only had to prove he is one of the best racing drivers in history to get there

Plus there have been the odd mistakes by some players that have made them hate figures which have been fuelled by the media. Beckham's red card, and Southgate's penalty miss. If those players were black, would the negative press be racially motivated?

[Stom]

The abuse of Sterling is generally not over his performances, though: it's over the way he acts. The same was said about Hamilton. Hamilton was relentlessly picked on for his lifestyle in a way that Button never was. And it's not even arguable that Button was a bigger playboy than Hamilton has ever been.

The problem is when people like Campbell shout to the rafters about not getting a job (he has now) because he's black when the real reason is that he APPLIED FOR 15 jobs in 4 years!!! He used an example of Gerrard walking into the Rangers job. Well, he's done a decent job. He used the example of Barton, someone who was well known as a philosophical footballer and one deeply interested in coaching.

I actually would like to take a look at footballers of comparable achievements and their post playing careers. Because I don't think the stats are as bad as the 8 in 92 sounds.

With regards to lifestyle and off the field stuff, haven't footballers, and sports stars in general always been an easy target in the media in that respect?

Tbh, I have such a fleeting interest in F1 so would have trouble recalling the coverage on Hamilton against Button, but will take your word for it. I think the coverage of Hamilton is far more positive these days...and he's only had to prove he is one of the best racing drivers in history to get there

Plus there have been the odd mistakes by some players that have made them hate figures which have been fuelled by the media. Beckham's red card, and Southgate's penalty miss. If those players were black, would the negative press be racially motivated?

You might want to give this a read. Very good read.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/bl ... ohn-barnes

[WaspInWales]

You might want to give this a read. Very good read.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/bl ... ohn-barnes

It's a good read.

I do agree that tackling the problem in the stands won't beat the issue. I do think that it is important that clubs and the police take a no tolerance approach to racism in football. If caught and identified, the arseholes should be stopped from attending all matches in all grounds, and face criminal proceedings where appropriate.

In our wider society, laws and education are needed. In some cases, they can help bring about a change, but as Barnes noted himself, racism and discrimination are inherent in people. I don't agree that it 'is inside every one of us' though. Since humans have been capable expressing basic emotions, we've been ripping shit out eachother based on competition for resources, or just a general dislike of someone different. I don't think it's possible to eradicate racism, but things can improve and action must be taken when it occurs.

My point was whether Sterling was correct in his belief that racism played a part in those articles. I'm not entirely convinced he is correct, even though there is a difference in the reporting. One has to be sure if race is the reason for that, and as mentioned before, the media has been highly critical of many footballers, regardless of race, for their lifestyles...and also due to perceived mistakes, errors and weaknesses in their performances.

[Eugene Wrayburn]

The abuse of Sterling is generally not over his performances, though: it's over the way he acts. The same was said about Hamilton. Hamilton was relentlessly picked on for his lifestyle in a way that Button never was. And it's not even arguable that Button was a bigger playboy than Hamilton has ever been.

The problem is when people like Campbell shout to the rafters about not getting a job (he has now) because he's black when the real reason is that he APPLIED FOR 15 jobs in 4 years!!! He used an example of Gerrard walking into the Rangers job. Well, he's done a decent job. He used the example of Barton, someone who was well known as a philosophical footballer and one deeply interested in coaching.

I actually would like to take a look at footballers of comparable achievements and their post playing careers. Because I don't think the stats are as bad as the 8 in 92 sounds.

With regards to lifestyle and off the field stuff, haven't footballers, and sports stars in general always been an easy target in the media in that respect?

Tbh, I have such a fleeting interest in F1 so would have trouble recalling the coverage on Hamilton against Button, but will take your word for it. I think the coverage of Hamilton is far more positive these days...and he's only had to prove he is one of the best racing drivers in history to get there

Plus there have been the odd mistakes by some players that have made them hate figures which have been fuelled by the media. Beckham's red card, and Southgate's penalty miss. If those players were black, would the negative press be racially motivated?

Obviously not - though I don't recall Southgate getting vilified. But if someone is getting repeated abuse of a similar nature when he hasn't done anything wrong, then race is certainly one of the things one might look at to explain why.

[WaspInWales]

Obviously not - though I don't recall Southgate getting vilified. But if someone is getting repeated abuse of a similar nature when he hasn't done anything wrong, then race is certainly one of the things one might look at to explain why.

Southgate did get a lot of stick for missing a penalty. Although, he did manage to turn some of it around with the Pizza Hut advert.

Rooney has had his fair share of negative press too. His commitment to the shirt and England has been questioned numerous times. Then again, he has invited negative press through certain revelation about his private life. Whether stories about him banging a granny were really in the public interest is another question though. The same when a footballer decides to buy a house or have a tattoo?

Completely agree with the bolded bit. And I think that extends to his personal life. It's a massive shame we live in a society where social media is so heavily linked with 'news'. However, I still maintain that any criticism levelled at Sterling (or any other player regardless of colour), based on poor performances on the pitch is fair enough. As long as it's balanced when he has a good game.

[WaspInWales]

...and Sterling scores with his first touch after coming off the bench against Everton.