Abbott being ripped and torn to pieces by U.S. Media | Page 8 | Golden Skate

Abbott being ripped and torn to pieces by U.S. Media

wordsworthgirl

Medalist
Joined
Sep 12, 2013
I feel very bad for Jeremy- obviously he has overwhelming competition anxiety. He possibly has ADD. All that he's tried to control with psychological help.. the medications to treat are not allowed in competition. I do believe he has done everything he can to try to control the anxiety- but sometimes it just can't be done. His nervous system was just not cut out for what he wants to do with it.

So it is an amazing accomplishment to get the the 4x Sr National Champ.

The media has never been in his corner.

The US just hasn't had any male skater to come along this Quad and be able to be atop the podium at Worlds. It's not Jeremy's fault no superstar has come along. Sometimes I think Jeremy is attacked not only for his deficits, but for the deficits of the US Men's program in general.

Thank you for your compassionate and insightful post. I'd never heard that about ADD before, but overwhelming performance anxiety absolutely. Have any of you read Susan Cain's QUIET- about introverts and performance anxiety- or Scott Stossel's MY AGE OF ANXIETY? Both of them discuss the many medications available to treat performance anxiety. and it had never occurred to me before that of course Jeremy wouldn't be allowed to take anything. "his nervous system was just not cut out for what he wants to do with it"- that is so astute, and kind.

I don't think the media as a bloc dislikes Jeremy- in fact, it's really Christine Brennan who hates him- as she hates all "chokers" and anyone who doesn't have nerves of steel. Lynn Rutherford of Ice Network has tweeted about how gracious Jeremy is with interviews and behind the scenes reports always describe him as especially thoughtful and kind. Dave Lease of TSL gets frustrated by Jeremy but gives his skating and his character high praise.

I agree also that winning 4 National Titles espec with the nervous system he has is an unbelievable accomplishment. Does anyone have any theories as to why he has been able to compete so well nationally??- 4 titles, a few silvers, a bronze, a pewter- on the podium seven or eight times total, I think.
 

karne

in Emergency Backup Mode
Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 1, 2013
Country
Australia
but they haven't been as successful as Jeremy has at coming through when it counts.

Nationals is not "when it counts". Worlds is when it counts. The Olympics is when it counts. He has failed at every attempt he's ever made.

If he goes to Worlds this year, Max is going to be under a huge amount of pressure to hold the two spots. Three will be out of the question.
 

ice coverage

avatar credit: @miyan5605
Record Breaker
Joined
Feb 27, 2012
golden411 - it's all in the presentation and tone. learned enough of the "tricks" in college since journalism was part of my major. hated every minute of it. very jaded towards "journalism" in general.

Agree to disagree. I am not saying that traditional media are inherently snark-free. (Definitely not.) Saying only that in this particular instance of the Wagner photo, my snark radar did not go off. YMMV.

A general comment -- unrelated to the Wagner photo -- is that I think traditional media in general care way too much about "reporting" on what has gone viral, which is often pure drivel. A lot of selling out to the lowest common denominator.

And I will add that (as you might know) Nightly had aired a full-fledged feature piece about Wagner the previous night, shortly before she was seen in the primetime Sochi coverage competing in the Team SP. To me, Nightly's subtext regarding the viral photo was self-promotional: "Hey, remember that skater we profiled last night? A photo of her has gone viral since then. Aren't you glad that we were ahead of the curve and introduced you to her before she went viral? You're so lucky that we're so clever." Etc., etc.
 

ManyCairns

Medalist
Joined
Mar 12, 2007
Country
United-States
Still, the vast majority of comments on those stories is real vitriol toward Ashley. I definitely agree with Toni's overall point that Jeremy's poor outing has already fallen off the public radar, even for those people watching the Sochi coverage, but Ashley is still getting ripped up. Even though she put in a really solid performance.
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
Agree to disagree. I am not saying that traditional media are inherently snark-free. (Definitely not.) Saying only that in this particular instance of the Wagner photo, my snark radar did not go off. YMMV.

A general comment -- unrelated to the Wagner photo -- is that I think traditional media in general care way too much about "reporting" on what has gone viral, which is often pure drivel. A lot of selling out to the lowest common denominator.

And I will add that (as you might know) Nightly had aired a full-fledged feature piece about Wagner the previous night, shortly before she was seen in the primetime Sochi coverage competing in the Team SP. To me, Nightly's subtext regarding the viral photo was self-promotional: "Hey, remember that skater we profiled last night? A photo of her has gone viral since then. Aren't you glad that we were ahead of the curve and introduced you to her before she went viral? You're so lucky that we're so clever." Etc., etc.

I agree with you on this, golden411.

And yes, it's really sad that there's an obsession with reporting things that go viral. What's worse is when it turns out that the thing that cause it to go viral isn't even true! http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/10/b...h-may-be-taking-a-beating.html?pagewanted=all

Yes, NBC Nightly News did air a great piece on Ashley during NBC primetime... AND it turns out that a friend of mine was the producer for that story. (I love when my worlds and interests intersect): http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/sochi-olympics/ashley-wagner-poised-comeback-n25556
 

NorthernLite

On the Ice
Joined
Aug 27, 2003
The problem re: Ash is that you’ve got the Watch Skating Every Four Years crowd who suddenly have an opinion on everything despite little knowledge/ no context. (Last time around social media/blogs were full of people who thought Johnny Weir Is The Best Thing Ever, and he should win every event.) They don’t even stop to think that Ashley knows what a good score is, and she’s naturally disappointed when she sees a somewhat lower one than she expected. And how much pressure she felt not only for herself but for the TEAM. Combine this with the Net’s instant trends, the GIF/meme of the week, and Instant Snark.

(I’d luv to know if some of the same people criticizing Ashley luv Weir for his forthrightness or Plushenko or Chan despite what strikes me as their good-sized egos. Maybe a little sexism at play too?)

If I were Ashley’s PR advisor, I’d tell her to go with that dumb meme, try to join in on the “joke.” Even if I personally hate it.
 

Mrs. P

Uno, Dos, twizzle!
Record Breaker
Joined
Dec 27, 2009
The problem re: Ash is that you’ve got the Watch Skating Every Four Years crowd who suddenly have an opinion on everything despite little knowledge/ no context. (Last time around social media/blogs were full of people who thought Johnny Weir Is The Best Thing Ever, and he should win every event.) They don’t even stop to think that Ashley knows what a good score is, and she’s naturally disappointed when she sees a somewhat lower one than she expected. And how much pressure she felt not only for herself but for the TEAM. Combine this with the Net’s instant trends, the GIF/meme of the week, and Instant Snark.

(I’d luv to know if some of the same people criticizing Ashley luv Weir for his forthrightness or Plushenko or Chan despite what strikes me as their good-sized egos. Maybe a little sexism at play too?)

If I were Ashley’s PR advisor, I’d tell her to go with that dumb meme, try to join in on the “joke.” Even if I personally hate it.

I think Ashley is going with the joke. She retweeted an article from Yahoo about it and she was good-natured about it when the Today Show brought it up this morning. They said something like "You don't have a poker face." and Ashley smied saying, "No, I definitely wear my heart on my sleeve."
 

CanadianSkaterGuy

Record Breaker
Joined
Jan 25, 2013
Mirai's fans should be lucky... had she turned in a Four Continents-esque SP, that would have placed her 7th in the segment and it would be Mirai being torn to shreds by the media.

Ashley's reaction is totally understandable. Perhaps she didn't realize her 3T was UR'ed. Her PCS was lower than usual, although that was to be expected (along with Mao's being on par with Julia's on Russian ice).
 

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll
Record Breaker
Joined
Jun 27, 2003
yeah I don't think she felt she underrotated... she most likely knew she twofooted.
 
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