All Blog Posts from Public Eye

Has anyone else had it with all these columns condemning Bode Miller and calling him "the biggest bust in Olympic history?" There hasn't been a media feeding frenzy like this since the "summer of the shark." And this one is all too ironic: Bode has gotten a bad rap from the press in large part because he "was very cooperative, open, and candid" with reporters, as Cathy Olian, who produced the "60 Minutes" "wasted" piece that started all the hand wringing, told me in January. The public flogging of Miller is a testament to how the media, against its own best interests, lauds athletes who hide their real personalities behind media savvy and public relations while punishing those willing to offer a legitimate glimpse into who they are. Want proof? Consider Michelle Kwan, the anti-Bode. And that's not meant as a compliment.

Kwan, like Miller, was not an Olympic success story. Despite being the best figure skater in the world, she was unable to win the gold in a sport in which reputation can go along way with the judges. But Kwan was never lambasted as a loser – she has been, in fact, one of the press' all time Olympic darlings. "Michelle Kwan is sports’ ultimate class act," wrote Newsweek. "And when she withdrew from the U.S. Olympic team Sunday, there were plenty of tears to go around." Not from Slate's Seth Stevenson, who noticed a moment that to me represents all things Kwan: "Did you catch that moment during the opening ceremonies when she looked kind of bored … but then noticed the camera trained on her and suddenly flashed a look of awe and thrilled-to-be-here-ness?" Kwan has always seemed acutely aware of her public persona in a way that's made it difficult to get any real sense of the real person beneath the platitudes. And for that – for essentially presenting a portrait of the figure skater as noble, two-dimensional cartoon character – the press, which is ostensibly interested in reality, has lionized her.

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Last week’s “60 Minutes” profile of Olympic skier Bode Miller and the controversy that followed concerning Miller’s comments about his drinking habits (for which he later apologized) doesn’t seem to have put the brakes on his media celebrity. In fact, the flap seems to have had the opposite effect (shockingly enough.) He’s on the cover of both Time and Newsweek this week – both of which highlight Miller’s “rebel” status: “Say hello to skiing’s wild child,” says Time. “On a pair of skis, no one in the world is more dazzling to watch. Once they come off and he opens his mouth? That's when Bode Miller starts to get really interesting,” teases Newsweek -- but not without readily admitting why Miller continues to make reporters drool:

He has a smirking disrespect for the media, a stance he'll repeat until your recorder runs out of tape. As far as he's concerned, the only stupid questions from reporters are the ones that end in question marks. But he'll answer anything—anything—and the moment he opens his mouth, he's an ink-spiller's fantasy.

How Miller’s wild ways will fare on the slopes is anyone’s guess, but in MediaLand, a little controversy never hurt.

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On Sunday, "60 Minutes" ran a profile of skier Bode Miller. The profile showed Miller's childhood home, discussed his unorthodox style, and gave Miller the opportunity to share some of his concerns about the price of success. "The piece was awesome," said Lowell Taub, Miller's agent in New York. "It showed [Miller] is charismatic and intelligent and likeable and something that we as Americans can be proud of."



Less awesome, however, were the revelations featured in the "60 Minutes" press release about the story, at least as far as many in the skiing community are concerned. Last Thursday, the show sent out a press release headlined "60 Minutes: World Cup ski champ admits to being drunk on slopes," which begins like this:

When he competes for Olympic gold medals in Turin next month, count on World Cup champion Bode Miller to be sober because, as he tells Bob Simon, skiing drunk is too hard. He ought to know. He says he's done it before and won't promise not to do it again.

Was the release accurate? It sure looks that way. The piece shows Miller prepping for a race in Switzerland the day after winning the world cup. "He wasn't as much hungover as still drunk," says Simon in voiceover. Miller had been celebrating his world cup win the night before with friends. "Talk about a hard challenge, right there. If you've ever tried to ski wasted, it's not easy," Miller says. (Miller is disputing the drinking-related portion of the story – kind of – here. He acknowleges having been out "partying super late" for the 10:00am start, but writes that he's "never drunk alcohol within hours of racing.")



Accuracy notwithstanding, however, critics like Taub are charging "60" with putting out a press release that was sensationalistic. Sports Illustrated's Tim Layden made his feelings known in a piece headlined "60 Minutes' shameful ratings grab."

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