Reading and Writing Task #1:
The article, "It was lightning and thunder" written by Will Grimsley, brings back one of, if not, the most controversial issue in boxing history. Nearly 50 years ago, Muhammad Ali defeated his opponent, Sonny Liston, in only the first round of their heavyweight championship match. As stated before, this match went down as one of the most controversial fights in the world of boxing. It was rumored that when Ali knocked Liston out after a single minute during the match, the referee blew the count. Liston said that he never heard a count, and after he got back up from being knocked out he thought they were still fighting. Joe Walcott (the referee), argued that he was trying to hold back Ali and thought the timekeeper (Francis McDonough) was counting the time.
Grimsley exposes the idea that this match was a huge dispute and many people believed that it was unfair and not properly arbitrated. Throughout the informative and disputatious article, Grimsley uses many news-writing strategies to pull the reader/s in. Along with reporters and boxing fans, Grimsley tends to address people concerned/interested with the controversy, boxing officials, and most importantly, fans of boxing. The author incorporated quotes from fans, referees, and even Sonny Liston. These quotes provided the reader with an idea of what it was like to be at the match and why it was so argumentative. Many rhetorical questions were being asked as a way to make the reader think and truly grasp their attention. It forced the readers to consider who or what was at fault for the massive controversy over this match. As you can see, Will Grimsley used many sports writing strategies such as the use of rhetorical questions, individual statistics for each opponent, and remained (for the most part) unbiased throughout the article. Overall, his strategies allowed him to present the controversy over the Muhammad Ali versus Sonny Liston heavyweight championship boxing match very distinctly. Reading and Writing Task #2:
In the article, "He's a show-stopper", by Mark Farinella of the Sun Chronicle Staff, news of the New England Patriots incoming defensive lineman, Malcom Brown, is introduced. This past Wednesday, on May 27th, Malcom Brown spoke to reporters at Gillette Stadium as he was welcomed to the New England Patriots organization. Throughout the informative and stimulating article, Farinella exposes not only the Patriots excitement for Brown joining their team to Patriots fans and representatives, but Brown's own excitement as well. Malcom Brown, being the Patriots first round pick as a defensive lineman, felt very honored to be welcomed by the Patriots and described how he is determined to work hard and be successful this season. To show this Farinella used many quotes from Brown describing what he hopes his journey will be like in becoming a great player. The author also uses player comparisons, to Brady specifically, to demonstrate Brown's sort of cocky side when saying he will be the best draft pick the Patriots will ever have, just like Brady said. Farinella seems to favor Brown joining the Patriots and his publicity as he provides no reasons as to why fans should not be excited for him to join the team. All things considered, Mark Farinella does a really good job incorporating his background knowledge on Malcom Brown and statistics/quotes concerning him to draw the readers in. His sports writing style remained consistent throughout the article and did not show any signs of commentary.
Ever since the 2014 AFC Championship Game, the deflategate has been a colossal issue in the NFL. After the patriots had defeated the Indianapolis Colts with an outstanding victory of 45-7, a huge controversy/accusation had arisen on the Patriots using deflated footballs as a strategy to win. After this accusation, the NFL began to undergo an investigation on the New England Patriots in order to determine if they were guilty. Many believed that this accusation was true, many didn't. Each side had a good argument, however. For the ones who believed he was guilty, argued that the deflated footballs were much easier to catch and throw than the regular inflated balls. This would then provide a huge advantage to the team using those balls. On the other hand, people who are denying this accusation are saying that weather may have been a factor and that even if the balls were slightly deflated it wouldn't effect their skill as a team. Ultimately, it was the NFL that had to make the decision. After a long investigation of around 5 months, the NFL decided that the Patriots were guilty, and punished them in many ways. As a team, the New England Patriots lost two draft picks; one for the upcoming 2016 season and one for the 2017 season. They were also given a 1 million dollar fine. Tom Brady, the New England Patriots quarterback was suspended for 4 games of the 2015-16 football season.
Tom Brady was a main suspect in the deflategate and due to the suspicions of the NFL, he was given a 4 game suspension. Considering the Wells report that was issued after the investigation on the deflategate, Brady was supposedly lying to the media by saying he was not at all involved in this scandal. He refused to give his cell phone to investigators because it had all of his personal information on it: texts, calls, emails, etc. I am personally conflicted on whether or not Tom Brady is guilty of this scandal. Like any quarterback in the NFL (Aaron Rodgers for example), Brady has a personal preference on his footballs. He likes them a little less inflated then normal. However that does not mean that he was necessarily involved in the situation or that he would deflate the balls to cheat or gain an advantage over his opponent. Not handing over his cell phone was a little risky/mysterious but anyone can understand where he is coming from. Overall, I am leaning towards Brady not being guilty. He is one of, if not the best quarterback in the league who is respected and looked up to by so many people. If he was smart he would never do something like this that could threaten or hurt his career and image. Another reason, is that during the AFC Championship game the bad weather conditions may have been a reason for the deflation of the balls. Lastly, the patriots success as a team over the years and in this year's Super Bowl (without deflated footballs) for that matter has proven their immense skill as an entire team.
Tom Brady should have been punished for such an accusation, but not this harshly or severely. Hands down, he is the best quarterback in the NFL. Brady is respected and loved by all of his fans, and up until now, he has had a clean slate. Not to mention, Tom Brady is innocent and there has been no legitimate proof of him being involved. The deflategate can be compared to the Ray Rice case in many ways. In the case of Ray Rice, he knocked out his fiancee in an elevator and was only suspended for two games. For someone like Brady who did nothing wrong and was suspended for 4 games, and then someone who committed an act of domestic violence to only be suspended for two games is just out of hand. Even if Brady was involved, he shouldn't be the only person on the team/in the organization being punished to such a high degree. The referees and equipment managers should also be at fault for this scandal.
Ultimately, there are many ways this scandal could be resolved and just blow over. The entire NFL organization along with players, coaches, and staff could do something about it. The NFL has many options as to how this problem could be resolved without provoking their image or the media/fans. Reducing the amount of punishments against the Patriots and or the amount of games Brady is suspended for is one option. A 4 game suspension, 1 million dollar fine, and 2 draft picks is way over the top for a deflated football. Understandable if it was for an actual crime, but for a slightly less inflated football, it is out of hand. The NFL could just fine the Patriots 1 million dollars considering Brady has not been proven guilty and taking away draft picks is unjust. Although his privacy would be invaded, Tom Brady could hand over his phone to prove that he is innocent. It would demonstrate Brady's character and he would be respected by many people. Lastly, the NFL should create a future rule to make sure nothing like this will ever happen again.
