Something about Erin Andrews really saddens me.
I’m not 100% sure what it is, because we’re not talking about a real journalist here (in other words, she doesn’t report. She works the sidelines, lining up halftime interviews and the like). But she is still a part of the sports media and we—as a group—often look pretty dumb.
This doesn’t help.
Earlier today on SI.com, Jimmt Traina spoke with Andrews, and the result is, well, pathetic. Especially this dandy:
Andrews: I’m just confused because I guess it’s OK for an NFL player and a gold medalist to do the show and be taken seriously, but nobody else is allowed. People say, “How do you expect to be taken seriously?” Well, Evan Lysacek is taking this so seriously. The guy just won a gold medal, has tons of endorsements, celebrities around the world want to meet him. Chad Ochocinco takes this so serious. He and Cheryl Burke are in the studio seven to eight hours a day. So that’s my biggest confusion with the few people who judge me and say this is the wrong thing to do. I don’t know what damage I’m doing. I’m basically killing myself to not embarrass myself. I’ve been in the top three in scoring each week, behind an athlete and a professional dancer and singer. I’m not sure what damage I created for myself. What am I doing to be a bimbo? I don’t understand what I’m doing wrong.
What a sad, sorry, God-awful statement. Chad Ochocinco? Is that who you’re comparing yourself to? Is that your professional bar? We are all faced with choices in life; some easy, some hard. This seemed to be a no-brainer, especially after all she went through with that video: Does Erin Andrews want to be a respected member of the media, or a flash-in-the-pan reality TV star who’ll be serving as Inside Edition’s third-string “gossip” corespondent by her late 30s? Does she want to report, or be recognized in airports?
Sad.
