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Stop spreading the news Hysterics of N.Y. media hurt the Jets on SundayPosted: Monday January 13, 2003 2:00 PM
Years ago the New York Mets had a left-handed pitcher in their minor league farm system named David West. According to breathless newspaper and television reports from New York, West was supposed to be the second coming of Steve Carlton. Instead, he turned out to be nothing more than a mediocre major league pitcher, never living up to the hype that accompanied his arrival. Like many athletes before him and since, West was largely a creation of the New York media, which, as a single entity, ranks up there with Howard Cosell and Bob Knight among figures that everyone -- at least everyone outside the greater Tri-State area -- has always loved to hate. The power of the New York media is like the Loch Ness monster or the Abominable Snowman; you can't reach out and touch it. In fact, sometimes you're not even sure it's real, but there are people who swear they've seen its evil effects. Add Sunday's AFC playoff game between the Oakland Raiders and the New York Jets to the evidence pile. The Raiders squawked all of last week about how the accomplishments of the Jets, particularly of quarterback Chad Pennington, were inflated by the hot air of the New York media, and then Oakland went out and put a pin in the balloon with a 30-10 victory over New York. It's hard to argue with the Raiders' assessment of things after they made the "Broadway Chad" headlines and the comparisons between Pennington and Joe Montana look downright silly by exposing Pennington for what he is, a promising but inexperienced quarterback. To be fair, it wasn't just New York journalists who pumped up Pennington and the Jets. There were plenty of other columnists and reporters around the country who jumped on the bandwagon. But the New York-area media, if only because of the sheer numbers of its readers, viewers and listeners, always seems to set the tone. The difficulty of performing in New York, where the papers, TV stations and, perhaps most of all, talk radio shows exert the pressure of unending scrutiny, is well-known. Just ask Ed Whitson or Rich Kotite or Chuck Knoblauch or any other New York sports figure who has become a media whipping post. But sometimes it can be just as dangerous for an athlete or team to do well in the Big Apple. The New York press often goes as overboard in its praise as it does in its criticism, and in doing so creates extra motivation for opponents. That's what happened in the case of the Raiders, who took all the attention the Jets received as a personal insult and turned Gang Green into not just an opponent, but a target. This isn't the media's problem, of course -- it's not the job of any sports journalist to help or hurt any team's chances -- but it is a reality. The Jets were heading into Oakland's famed Black Hole against a more talented club, and their best chance was probably to catch the Raiders slightly flat or overconfident. But with the concept of the overhyped Jets to latch onto, the Raiders came in sky-high, with a chip on their shoulders the size of the Bay Bridge. It's not the only reason the Jets got drubbed; it's not even the biggest one. But it certainly didn't help New York's cause. In the case of Pennington, the willingness to make him an instant celebrity was understandable. He had performed remarkably well, especially in the 41-0 playoff dismantling of the Indianapolis Colts. Plus, we had just seen a year ago that a wet-behind-the-ears QB can lead a team to the Super Bowl, thanks to Tom Brady of the Patriots. That didn't quite happen for Pennington this year, and there are sure to be some columnists or talk show hosts who will turn on him in a New York minute. But maybe that's for the best. In New York, sometimes the media can love a player to death. Sports Illustrated senior writer Phil Taylor writes about a Hot Button issue every Monday on CNNSI.com.
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