Rights in sport are nothing new. We see it every day, especially in the age of social media. Whether it’s the participating athletes, the organizations or the fans, everyone feels they have a right to something. Wednesday morning in San Francisco, a sensitive topic was covered on the morning show on 95.7 The Game, asking if Warriors striker Andrew Wiggins owes fans an explanation as to why he long absence or not.
The station’s morning program, called morning barbecueposted this chat in a now deleted page tweet and light up social media Onefire. This, of course, sparked debate that raged on the show, with fans calling for their opinions to be expressed. Most fans want what they want and can only see what works for them.
We won’t generalize as some fans understand that this could be a very serious time for Wiggins to be going through. But too many people worry about betting gains or how this affects the team’s championship aspirations. Go through the comments on the Twitter post above and you’ll see exactly how empathetic some people can be.
Another aspect of this situation is radio, 95.7 Games, and whether this is worth discussing. The team talked about Wiggins and did not provide much information regarding their teammates. Should morning barbecue have even been allowed to participate in this thread, know where something like this could lead, especially via social media?
combatant General Manager Bob Myers arrived that afternoon and offered his thoughts on Wiggins’ absence.
“I haven’t heard anything about him not coming back. There’s speculation about that, but I haven’t been told, ‘hey, look, I’m not going back. No one told me that.”
“Nothing is different from before. Same answer… We have to respect him, his life and his privacy.”
That should be enough for people to wonder what’s going on with Wiggins. But of course, it won’t be for some people. Not only the fans but also members of the media feel like the players owe an explanation for every little thing that happens in their lives. Sure, we all have a job to do, but sometimes, certain things need to be left alone. Everything need not be for public consumption. Yes, that’s what the social media environment dictates, but you don’t always have to.
Privacy has become very sacred because we all have lost some of our privacy with the advent of so many social networking platforms over the past decade or so. So many players in every sport, even up to the high school level, live every moment openly. It is not always a conscious choice to do so. Go back to Antonio Brown live on Facebook as a Pittsburgh Steeler. The other players did not choose to film immediately after the game in the locker room, whether they agreed to that or not.
Not everything needs to be consumed by the masses. We all want to know what’s going on behind the scenes with Andrew Wiggins. Some people are genuinely concerned about his well-being, but if Wiggins sees fit to keep it private, it should be respected. End the discussion.
