goldfarb@ucf-cs.UUCP (Ben Goldfarb) (08/10/84)
[swallow THIS one, Cathy!]
Just when you thought you had seen all of Cathy Rigby you could tolerate,
she turns up doing the color commentary for rhythmic gymnastics! Just an
aside, because Howard, not Cathy, is the focus of this article.
First of all, regardless of what you think of Cosell's announcing, ethnic
slurs are uncalled for. I refer specifically to the "Howard Nosell"
moniker hung on him by a net flamer. Also, distaste for his Bronx accent
should be expressed as such instead of casting random slurs on his
credibility and integrity as a fight announcer. He has been doing fights
for at least 25 years that I can remember; I doubt that those who criticize
him on this net have seen one-tenth as many fights as casual observers in
their lifetimes or have studied boxing and individual boxers to the extent
that Cosell does, let alone putting on a pair of gloves and stepping into
the ring. Those who think they know more than Howard should turn the damn
sound off; just as there is an "n" key on your keyboard, there sure as hell
is a volume control on your TV.
Finally, I have not observed any of the reported bias toward American boxers
in Cosell's commentary. A bit of self-conscious nationalism, yes, but his
assessments of the abilities and capabilities of boxers of other
nationalities have been accurate, by and large. The Tillman decision is
an example of Howard taking an adversary position to a decision that
advanced an American to the finals unjustly; perhaps he was just feeling bad
yesterday or maybe he was upset Wednesday night when he returned to his
hotel room and read net.rec? Furthermore, Cosell doesn't personally choose
which fights will be shown, so why blame him for the bias there?
As a group, I believe our boxers are the best of the field and I enjoy
watching them. Sure, I would like to see talent from other countries but
I don't get that same warm glow watching a Korean win. And if the Russians
and Cubans had been there, I believe our guys still would have shown their
superiority. Perhaps we should throw a few fights to satisfy those bleeding
hearts who feel the third world nations aren't getting their fair share??
Sorry for the long flame and the defense of Howard, but I've enjoyed ABC's
boxing coverage.
Tell it like it is, Howard!
--
Ben Goldfarb
University of Central Florida
uucp: {duke,decvax,princeton}!ucf-cs!goldfarb
ARPA: goldfarb.ucf-cs@csnet.relay
csnet: goldfarb@ucfhaapanen@watdcsu.UUCP (Tom Haapanen [DCS]) (08/14/84)
<.>
...but I *do* get that warm glow from seeing a Korean beat an
American! One country's (whether US or USSR) winning over 80 gold
medals is obscene!
To top it all, did you see this scene?: Howard Cosell is interviewing
a US boxer who lost his match on points (to me, it was fairly
obvious). So, Jim McKay (that's the anchor's name isn't it?) cuts
into the interview to ask *his* only question:
"Do you think there was international politics involved in
this decision?"
To me, that's even worse than Cosell.
Tom Haapanen
{allegra,decvax,ihnp4}!watmath!watdcsu!haapanen2141smh@aluxe.UUCP (henning) (08/15/84)
**** **** From the keys of Steve Henning, AT&T Bell Labs, Reading, PA aluxe!2141smh Speaking of the devil, I mean Howard. I was offended by his constant reference to "those African fighters really hang in there." He used this constantly in fight after fight. I'm sure that those fighters from Africa were people and would like to be referred to as individuals and not lumped. You can lump monkeys, but people are individuals. I am a WASP but still can't stand ethnic generalizations.