Last week was an important moment in the history of American journalism. After reading the explosive steroids-scandal book "Game of Shadows," written by two San Francisco Chronicle reporters, baseball commissioner Bud Selig finally emerged from his cocoon of denial to announce an investigation into the performance-enhancing drugs that have cast a cloud over the sport and particularly over San Francisco Giant Barry Bonds, who is 47 home runs away from catching all-time leader Hank Aaron. As the scandal has gradually grown from a whisper to a public preoccupation, the media’s role in keeping steroid abuse out of the spotlight for so many years has come under increased scrutiny. Sure, the players, Major League Baseball, and the union all share a huge bulk of the culpability. But there were also reporters who got long hard looks (often literally, via clubhouse access) at the many manifestations of steroid use — quick and massive muscle growth, pimple-strewn backs — without being willing or able to blow the whistle. ..."Clearly, we can find many issues in sports that can be called front-page and metro related,” ventures Bob Steele, an ethics expert at the Poynter Institute media think tank. “There’s a great deal of business and economic conditions. Sports are often about race and race relations.... Sports may be as central in our society as politics and religion."More of this article...Search Google News for more quotes by Bob Steele...
