FanHouse AlSharpton

Steve Serby is a writer for the New York Post, which means that lots of people read the things he writes on a regular basis. He recently used "Good for [Tom] Coughlin for tightening the noose around Plaxico Burress" as a sentence in the opening graf on a piece re: why Plax deserves to get punished by the Giants.

The problem with that sentence is, of course, that Burress is an African-American and the use of the word "noose" tends to have some pretty negative historical connotations. And, unsurprisingly, Reverend Al Sharpton is not exactly excited about Serby's work.

"To make such a blatant racist statement about an African-American football player with a neck injury is completely unacceptable," Sharpton said. "Clearly, the racial connotation is very disturbing. ... This is the verbal reflection of a hanging noose."

Sharpton said that if the Post did not acknowledge that the column was offensive, he would further highlight the issue but he did not specify what steps he would take. "They have to act swiftly," Sharpton said. "If we don't see action, I will lay out exactly what that is ... we would like to talk to someone there about whether it was the writer or editor who let this in."

Now, personally, I have no real business deciding whether or not the use of the word "noose" is offensive, at least in terms of my own genealogical background. However, I'm a little torn on this issue.

The whole Don Imus/Adam "Pacman" Jones uproar didn't last very long, did it? It was like one minute everyone was getting upset, and the next minute everyone was asking, "Why should we care what this guy says?" Even Al Sharpton seems to have moved on.

But Jason Whitlock has a column at FoxSports.com in which he argues that while we shouldn't care about Imus, it actually is worth addressing the point that Imus claimed he was trying to make in asking "What color" Jones is.

This morning Don Imus responded to a report on his radio show about Dallas Cowboys cornerback Adam Jones' legal troubles by asking, "What color is he."

Within hours, Al Sharpton had issued this statement:

"I find the inference of his remark disturbing because it plays into stereotypes. Any use of stereotypes is always counterproductive. We will determine in the next day or so whether or not his remark warrants direct action on our part as we did in April of last year."

The action in April of last year that Sharpton refers to was his group's organized boycott of Imus and his sponsors, which eventually resulted in the cancellation of Imus in the Morning. He was off the air for several months before ABC Radio Networks brought him back late last year.

UPDATE: Don Imus says, "I meant he was being picked on because he's black".
UPDATE 2: Don Imus claims he was defending Adam "Pacman" Jones against racist cops.

More on the Tiger-Tilghman flap, courtesy of Golf Week's Jeff Rude:

Tongue slips are the dark side of on-air banter. But when searching for truth, it's usually prudent to examine intent. Tilghman and Tiger Woods are friends. They call each other. They text each other. She likes and respects him.

"Tiger and Kelly are friends and Tiger has a great deal of respect for Kelly," Mark Steinberg, the agent, said in a statement Jan. 8. "Regardless of the choice of words used we know unequivocally that there was no ill intent in her comments. This story is a non-issue in our eyes. Case closed."

Again, this doesn't absolve Kelly Tilghman of wrongdoing, or make what she said any less offensive. But it does give some context to the situation. (It's probably worth reading Rude's entire column.)

I wrote earlier that if Tiger Woods thinks it's a non-issue, maybe fans and the media should follow suit. Not in an effort to sweep the incident under the rug, which is certainly what The Golf Channel is hoping for, but because I'm not sure what good comes of firing, suspending or otherwise castigating Tilghman.

Were her words insensitive? Without a doubt. Should we have been offended? Unquestionably. But who benefits from her going on a three-month forced vacation? As far as I can tell, only those people who weren't crazy about Tilghman's on-air persona before last weekend. Since, you know, she doesn't have a history of making thoughtless, racially charged remarks.
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