I personally see nothing wrong with those titles, but I suppose I can see how some may see wrong in that. I don't they imply at all that MK is not American (which is what I'm sure what the big uproar is all about). Maybe it would comfort these fans if they know that Kwan is much more popular and beloved in the US than either Lipinski or Hughes
Kwan and Slutskaya each without Olympic Gold, does it seem picture is wrong?
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I personally see nothing wrong with those titles, but I suppose I can see how some may see wrong in that. I don't they imply at all that MK is not American (which is what I'm sure what the big uproar is all about). Maybe it would comfort these fans if they know that Kwan is much more popular and beloved in the US than either Lipinski or Hughes
Yeah...in a way it could actually be a back-handed compliment to Kwan (or insult to the American who beat her, however you wish to see it). It's all about interpretation and context.
You've got it. What is so wrong about the headlines is that the Seattle paper ran their headline some years after the msnbc headline caused a furor in the entire Chinese-American community -- and they ran it anyway (it caused yet another furor, and, the editor got disciplined, and had to undergo "sensitivity training". Furthermore, even after the ruckus, there was no "American beats Hughes" headline in 2003 -- as a matter of fact, for all of Michelle's 5 world golds, the headline would never say "American ...."
Kwan
Personally, I admire Kwan's competitive career, but don't really care much for her skating. She has good technique but tended to repeat stuff over and over. So for me, it's just a personal taste, and has nothing to do with her race or anything.
But on the other hand, I do believe there's certain bias towards MK because of her skin color. North American audiences generally love her because NA is a far more open society. I'm not so sure about Europe though. Sorry for my own biased opinion, Europe as a whole is still a far more isolated and reactionary society, especially countries such as Russia. They always consider FS as some sort of elite sport and can't stand the fact that 'inferior' people from Asia can outskate them.
If you go to a certain skating board(can't and won't name it, but you should all know), many European fans, especially Russian fans (or fans of Russian origin), constantly whine about how bad those Chinese pairs are with an overly racial tone. Those poor Russians generally also don't like Mao, Miki, Yu-Na.They also hate N.A. ice dancers since it must be unbearable for them to see their last terriortry of 'royal ice dancing' is now being occupied by barbarians from North America who dare to eat hamburgers while watching our princess Irina's doing ice shows.
I find this is quite hilarious. If these guys keep on being stuck in the past, they will be left in dust just like their own country and society.
Personally, I admire Kwan's competitive career, but don't really care much for her skating. She has good technique but tended to repeat stuff over and over. So for me, it's just a personal taste, and has nothing to do with her race or anything.
But on the other hand, I do believe there's certain bias towards MK because of her skin color. North American audiences generally love her because NA is a far more open society. I'm not so sure about Europe though. Sorry for my own biased opinion, Europe as a whole is still a far more isolated and reactionary society, especially countries such as Russia. They always consider FS as some sort of elite sport and can't stand the fact that 'inferior' people from Asia can outskate them.
If you go to a certain skating board(can't and won't name it, but you should all know), many European fans, especially Russian fans (or fans of Russian origin), constantly whine about how bad those Chinese pairs are with an overly racial tone. Those poor Russians generally also don't like Mao, Miki, Yu-Na.They also hate N.A. ice dancers since it must be unbearable for them to see their last terriortry of 'royal ice dancing' is now being occupied by barbarians from North America who dare to eat hamburgers while watching our princess Irina's doing ice shows.
I find this is quite hilarious. If these guys keep on being stuck in the past, they will be left in dust just like their own country and society.
Have you ever been to Europe? You can't count a whole continent as it is an only country. This continent is made from a lot of countries! Each country has it's on culture, style of living, etc. Comparing Russia to Spain, or Greece to Sweden is like comparing apples with potatoes. They are very very different in thinking, culture, style of living, politics etc.
I can see Russia as reactionary, but certainly not Spain or the United Kingdom!!! And with the exception of Russia and Belarus Europe is made by democratic countries as the USA and Canada, dear!!!
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They feel good towards Am ladies skaters!!!
If you go to the Italian forum www.icewire.it/forum/index.php, you will see that American skaters such as Sasha and now Kimmie are very beloved, more than some Euro skaters. There are also some MK fans too.
Thread abou fav skaters = http://www.icewire.it/forum/viewtopic.php?t=53
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Sorry, maybe I should term it as a far more conservative society. I agree different parts of Europe are different. Yes, I've been to Europe and living in UK for almost a year. I love U.K. though.
I do have the feeling the European fans are very harsh on American dance pair B&A. Not sure why? Maybe because B&A has intruded their last piece of land? It's funny. Some European fans reaction towards B&A is vitriolic.
:thumbsup:
Conservative is a better word. But it depends on the city. Some cities are more conservative other cities are very open minded.
Yes, that's true. B&A aren't very beloved. Some Euro fans see them as overrated.
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It's not in a political sense, more in a cultural sense, I guess. For example, I have this feeling that many Russian fans have this vitriolic reaction towards Chinese pairs, not only because they beat those Russian pairs, but also because they consider the Chinese way of doing pair skating is a deviation from theirs. They are pissed off that the 'inferior' way of doing pairs skating is rewarded.
They have this typical losers' mindset. FS, in a sense, reflects the society as a whole. If you don't evolve, you'll be left in dust.
Hilarious.
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The best thing will be if the nationality of the skaters isn't known. But that is impossible. At the end who cares from which country the skater comes, if the program is outstanding.
I cheer for all the skaters and I hope all skaters do their best. That makes a great FS competition.
Thanks for the link but I don't speak Italian
That could be a point right there...but I think the point was that Kwan was known. Even with the OGM did Sarah have enough name recognition among the general public to be referred to by only her last name? Only MK does.
At the risk of being unpopular (ha!) I think people are overreacting a bit too much here. Unless the actual ARTICLE had a descending or racist tone to it, I really don't see anything wrong with the title. It says what it says: an American beat Kwan at the Oly Games.
And as for the state of skating, looks like the Asians are starting to leave the Europeans and Americans behind. At least that's what it appears from this year's world champs. But no one knows the future.
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Thanks for the link but I don't speak Italian
It's just a 7 pages list of fav skaters. No need to speak Italian!
I read somewhere that, after 1992 Olys, there were people who said (in letters to editors, etc.) that they were glad that "an American won", but that they would have preferred it if the winner had been Tonya or Nancy because they were more "representative" . ( I often wonder what these people thought about being represented by Tonya in '94.)
Also -- Joesitz -- I read somewhere that Tara was given that name because Mother Lipinski is a rabid "Gone With the Wind" fan. I have to admit, I don't think "Katie Scarlett Lipinski" would sound as well.
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- Mar 30, 2006
Michelle Kwan does have a more "American" name and upbringing than both Caroline Zhang and Mirai Nagasu, however. Don't expect either of those young girls to become as popular, even if they display the same amount of consistency and talent.
~Z
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Martha Mitchell also had roots in Ireland, hence the clan in GWTW was O'Hara.
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Michelle did not give a great performance of Lamento D'Arianne at 1999 Worlds, and Maria B. skated the best of her career in both the short and the long.
But I don't think we can dismiss The Red Violin or the Song of the Balck Swan (2001). Here they are on Youtube. Both the choreography and the music are quite similar. These are also the last two times that Michelle hit her triple toe/triple toe at Worlds.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0SpHAqbZZg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_x3Qn1dECWA
These programs marked the culmination of Michelle's collaboration with Lori Nichol. I love them both (I mean, both programs. But for that matter, both Michelle and Lori, too, LOL.)
This was Michelle come into the full measure of artistic maturity and simultaneously shows Nichol's depth of musical interpretation, IMHO.
They split after that season. Maybe Michelle wanted to incorporate a new point of view in her choreography. Certainly when Michelle came out with Aranjuez and Tosca (check out her U.S. Nationals skate for the definitive performance), she was a more powerful skater, perhaps at the expense of some of the nuance that marked her earlier career. This was also evident in her choice of music for those years.
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