After each game Marshawn Lynch comes up with a creative way to answer each question from reporters, even though they don’t like the answers.
“I am here so I don’t get fined.”
Those were the only words Marshawn Lynch said to reporters at the Super Bowl Media Day last Monday.
Lynch has made an icon of himself from his lack of talking to the media. Last season he wouldn’t say a word to the media, and now he has a “foolish” response to each question.
As a sports journalist, I think reporters are stupid to continue to ask Lynch questions. If he is not talking, reporters are simply wasting their time trying to squeeze words out of him.
The job of a journalist is to tell a story whether a source is available or not.
The biggest fail for the journalists at the media day was that everyone stayed after Lynch said that he was going to have the same response to each question.
It’s frustrating that some of the reporters continue to poke fun at him. Yes, Lynch is a celebrity, but he is also human and he needs to be treated like that.
The reporters are trying to force responses upon him and it’s not working. If I were one of these reporters at media day, I would have waited until all of the other reporters left to try and talk to Lynch.
The best quotes are the ones that everyone else doesn’t get.
Another problem I see with the whole Lynch situation is the NFL is forcing him to talk after games. I understand that talking to the media is part of the contract, but what good is it to force him to talk if he doesn’t?
What does the NFL get out of Lynch doing shout-outs ahead of, arguably, the biggest game in the world? To solve this problem, there needs to be some adjustment with the player and media interactions to avoid further incidents like this.
I think that Lynch being forced to talk to the media is what is causing this problem. I don’t think he is not talking with the media because he is shy or anything, I think he is frustrated with the reporters and as a result he just disregards their questions.
ESPN made a documentary on Lynch and he had no problem opening up during the interview. The trick was that the interviewer related to Lynch as a player and not an object.
When talking to players in general, we as journalists need to respect the player as not only a player but also a person. Once the reporters come to that realization, I think lack of player communication can be avoided.
Wynston Wilcox is a sophomore studying journalism and a sports writer for The Post. Let him know your thoughts about Marshawn Lynch on Twitter @wynstonw_ or by emailing ww773412@ohio.edu.
