Joel Nathan Rosen - Do Athletes Make Good Role Models? May 16, 2008

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Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2008/03/25/Athletes_as_Role_Models_in_the_Steroids_Era

Author Joel Nathan Rosen questions the pop cultural practice of casting professional athletes as role models.

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Athletes as Role Models in the Steroids Era

The Mitchell report revelations of baseball's "steroids era" led to outrage and dismay. Now the government is involved, with Roger Clemens testifying before Congress. But that's not all - 2007 turned out to be a year of scandal in sports: Michael Vick's dogfighting, Bill Belichick's "spy-gate" and Isiah Thomas' sexual harassment trial, to name a few. In light of all this, many have criticized professional athletes for unacceptable behavior. But are athletes held to a higher standard? Should they be judged as role models? At a time when the sports pages seem to contain more social commentary than game breakdowns, the NY Salon has assembled a panel of experts to discuss what this all means for both the sports world and our society at large - NY Salon

Joel Nathan Rosen is Assistant Professor in Sociology at Moravian College and author of The Erosion of the American Sporting Ethos (2007).