"Are athletes now going to use social media as a form of retaliation?"

Garry Smits files an SI My Shot this week about the John Daly cell phone posting saga.

At first I was mostly amused and then a bit annoyed when the call count surpassed my usual golf score. But my main concern was the precedent. Are athletes now going to use social media as a form of retaliation? Daly posted my office cell number — in reality, no big deal. But many athletes have reporters' home numbers. Will that be the next line crossed? I would not have wanted my daughter to hear some of what her father heard. I can take it, but my child or my wife shouldn't have to.

Comments

[AA]

Is it just me cause it seems like golf has become a really bad reality tv show? Daly, Tiger, old Ping wedges, Feherty coming out of the Tiger closet, Poulters finger, etc etc etc

[AA]

how could I forget Greg and Chrissy

[LiquidKaos]

In my opinion, depending on the style of story run on them...I truly think that the athlete can have a retaliatory voice through "social media".

A great majority of the "news" in general being bandied about on a daily basis(by both online and mainstream "journalists") lately seems to be of the tabloid variety, or recycled information stemming FROM a tabloid hit piece.

In those situations - why shouldn't the athelete have a platform to comment, if they choose to? It's doubtful a newspaper or magazine will give them the space to air grievances against fellow members of the media...

Anyway, watching the athlete have a hissy fit will only prolong whichever contrived "story" is currently being thrown at us...that being said - it should still be their right.




Cheers,

LK

[DMazza]

This guy comes off as whining and a drama queen. His office number is no state secret, and his hysterics about his home number possibly being handed out by PGA Tour players is childish.
Episodes like this are symptomatic of the funk golf has been in lately.

[sir real]

DMazza, Couldn't agree more. Imagine the press not happy when the table is turned on them...gotta love it...JD is a bit crazed...but this guy deserves a little thrown his way. Fear is healthy in certain cirmustances. I'm glad he's a bit unsettled....maybe his reporting will improve!

[Raising Hell For Jesus]

Reporter becomes part of the story. How does it feel, reporter?

[Dr. Phillips]

"the next line crossed..."

What a f'g joke.

[Former S&T Convert]

Daly is a clown and it is not secret. But Smits crosses a line inserting himself into the story and playing victim. He said he could take it, but clearly he couldn't.

Or maybe he would write just about anything to have it published by SI.

[Patrick]

How did the reporter insert himself into the story? It seems that Daly did that by making it a personal issue. I am tired of Daly's victim mentality when he is only the victim of his own poor choices.

[Frank]

Golf is in the muck, no thanks to a few.

[Claude]

People who get their world view from Fox News probably have been getting the idea that harassing journalists you don't like is pretty cool. Happens all the time on O'Reilly.

[Arm Chair Q-B]

Smits digs up John's personal PGA Tour file that became public knowledge in a lawsuit John has going on.

Public record is public, but Smits grabs this wet sheet and hangs it out for the whole world to see, Smits crossed the line, he made it personal.

The amusing part of all this is free speech!! New media and athletes no longer have to rely on writers to "get it right".

[thusgone]

also, who's to say daly isn't himself a journalist when he does this kind of thing? for a discussion of the first amendment implications of this connected age, read my colleague, scott gant's book, "we're all journalists now."

[Chuck]

Nothing good ever happens after 2am, and nothing good ever happens on Twitter.

[Patrick]

I still don't see how what Smits reported made it personal. He reported on details of Daly's professional life, his suspensions, fines and investigations by the Tour. How is this different from ESPN reporting about Pacman Jones' latest suspension? He wasn't reporting on details of what Daly did at a Hooters or the conflict with an exwife.

The one questionable point is the timing by releasing the article in the week Being John Daly premiered. That was an editorial decision to capitalize on Daly's name being in the news anyway. That is worth criticism.

[thusgone]

chuck, normally i'd agree with both statements, but have you read "shitmydadsays" on twitter? awesome stuff.