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Michael Jordan Panders for Relevance
Wednesday - October 26, 2005
Michael Jordan, back away
from the spotlight! You're not needed here anymore! We have
Lebron! We have McNabb and Owens! We have Paris and plenty of
other celebrity distractions! You don't have to go home, but
you can't stay here!
It must be obvious to everyone, by now,
that Michael Jordan has difficulty letting go of his past
glory. He retired from basketball at the top, failed to make it
in major league baseball, and returned. He won a few more
championships, and walked away on top, only to return to the
sport; to the fledgling Washington Wizards.
A few years older
and a step slower, he was unable to do much other than tarnish
our memories of him in his prime.
Now, finally retired and unable to make
a return without looking really bad out on the court; finally
out of most of the public's consciousness; he's returned with a
new book, a new clothing line for women and appearances on 60
minutes and Oprah to announce to the world that he wants his
privacy. He wants to spend more time with his family, away from
the harsh glare of the public spotlight that has somehow
managed to get by fine without him for the past few years. If
only MJ could see how transparent he is when he says he longs
for the privacy he deserves at this point in his
life.
On 60 minutes, Jordan mentions that his
book discusses his gambling problems in the past and his
unceremonious release from the front office of the Wizards.
First off, I personally don't find those two "explosive"
revelations worthy of reading a, mostly ghost written,
autobiography of a professional athlete. (For the record, I
found Lance Armstrong's autobiographical, and mostly ghost
written, account of overcoming cancer more
compelling.)
I find it a bit sad that Jordan is
willing to tarnish his own legacy by making revelations that
the public isn't seeking in order to sell a book and rekindle
interest in his "Air-ness". In doing so, he is hardly creating
cover for his privacy or, for that matter, the privacy of his
family. In fact, wasn't that footage on Oprah of his teenaged
son slam dunking? What about his right to privacy? Unless, of
course, MJ is also looking to introduce and eventually sell
Junior to the curious public.
On 60 Minutes, Ed Bradley stood with
Jordan in his office overlooking Chicago and asked him if,
twenty years ago, he'd have imagined himself running a $1
billion company. Of course he said he didn't. I wonder if he
believes he is running one now. Bradley mentioned moments later
that Jordan only spends two days a week in the office. The
remaining weekdays are spent playing as many as 54 holes of
golf a day, teaching basketball to those who can afford $15,000
a week lessons, and racing motorcycles. Obviously, Jordan's
people run the machinery that operate the business, schedule
the TV appearances, publish the books, and polish (or
intentionally tarnish) the image of the man.
Obviously, Jordan has every right to
spend his time the way he wishes. He has every right to
maintain the Jordan brand and Jordan legacy as he sees fit. But
as a public figure he opens himself up to criticism - such as
that of his privacy which I've chosen to point out. One thing
he cannot expect is for us to believe, or buy, what he's
selling.
Posted at 01:24 AM < Just Another Brick in the Blog
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