Rush Saga Puts Ross' Sideshow in Perspective
(Still, though: Fergie?!?! Seriously?)
By JANIE CAMPBELL
Updated 12:28 PM EDT, Wed, Oct 14, 2009
It's only natural to have been or continue to be cynical about Stephen Ross' salsa-studded limited partnership group, which will reportedly shortly include pop abomination Fergie. And her humps.
Even as Marc Anthony insists "We're not tokens," Ross' celebrity spree sports a lot of targeted marketing fanfare for little transaction, all sorts of "embracing the diverse community" talk that has gone notably without the inclusion of qualified local minorities (or otherwise) who don't happen to bring an army of publicists and TMZ -- or even a remix -- to the table.
Trust Rush Limbaugh to make our lil' publicity gremlin downright heroic.
The controversial political commentator's bid to buy the Rams puts the annoyance factor of piped-in Margaritaville in perspective: the Dolphins' limited partners, inexperienced with sports ownership though they may be, are limited, and minority ownership is a positive thing. The possibility of increasing the fan base helps with the long-term stability of the franchise, which helps the on-field product, which is all fans truly care about.
And dealing with the hoopla (and sports bar needling) could be so, so much worse: imagine the owner of the Dolphins opining, as the Rams' potential new owner did, that "the NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons. There, I said it."
Or going on ESPN and saying of Donovan McNabb, "Sorry to say this, I don't think he's been that good from the get-go. I think what we've had here is a little social concern in the NFL. The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well...he got a lot of credit for the performance of this team that he didn't deserve."
Yikes. Even "I'm Fergie Ferg and me love you long time" looks acceptable.
Further imagine that your owner is one of the most polarizing and annoying figures in radio, and all of a sudden suffering through a potential Jennifer Lopez national anthem or your fantasy league laughing at "Fins" sounds awesome. Bring on Bongo's Cuban Café!
Of course, this is America, and as WaPo's Josh Zerkle pointed out, Limbaugh owning the Rams isn't that different from 20 other fat, white, obnoxious owners already in the NFL. But then, Zerkle doesn't have to read the St. Louis papers every day or have Limbaugh brought up every single time someone mentions the Redskins, or sport that smug slab of a man as the face of his franchise of choice.
That's a specter that makes us thankful for Fergie.
(But just her face.)
Janie Campbell suggests "Hey, at least we aren't racist!" for the Dolphins' next marketing campaign. Her work has appeared in irreverent sports sites around the Internet.
Copyright NBC Local Media
First Published: Oct 14, 2009 9:50 AM EDT
You Might Like
You have 2000 characters left
