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Essay on The Paid Professional Athletes

Regardless of age, sex, ethnicity, or personal interest, everyone at one point in their life had somebody that they looked up to, or modeled their life around. It could have been a parent, teacher, priest, or perhaps someone famous. Many young kids today look up to celebrities, which include actors, musicians, and most notably professional athletes. Most kids see celebrities as "heroes" and often look up to them because they envy that person's position in life and in most cases would like to grow up to be like that person. One reason why kids look up to celebrities is because they're very well known and can regularly be seen on television, thus having their personal and private lives be easily accessible for the public's viewing. When in the eye of the public 24/7, these celebrities are faced with constant media and public scrutiny, having everything they do watched closely under a microscope. Even when an athlete does something remotely wrong, it's completely blown out of proportion. I don't believe that athletes should be held responsible for the actions of others due to that particular athlete's behavior.

I know that many people probably disagree with my standing on this issue, but I will attempt to explain myself. One would think that growing up as someone who emulated professional athletes, I would take the opposing viewpoint. But the fact is, I realize a majority of the professional athletes either don't want the responsibility as a role model or don't have the particular image or personality that is regularly classified with a typical role model. As a youngster, my role models were indeed professional athletes as noted by the posters on my bedroom wall still to this day. But my role models were the "good guys" of sports. I idolized such players as Cal Ripken Jr., Michael Jordan and Joe Montana, whose determination and hard-work on and off the field taught me a great deal about sports and life in general. As a kid, I knew what players not to model myself after. I knew not to follow such athletes as Deion Sanders, Michael Irvin and Darryl Strawberry, whose frequent run-ins with the law and substance abuse not only tainted their images, organizations, and sports but the minds of many kids who had indeed looked towards them as role models.

Many professional athletes claim they don't want to be role models towards young kids and they shouldn't be forced to be something they're not. In a controversial Nike shoe commercial in 1993, NBA star Charles Barkley stated that he wasn't a role model and he didn't want to be one. This commercial sti

Quotes talked about in this paper

  • Robinson paused and answered, "Frank Robinson." ...
  • "Players are paid to play, teachers are paid to teach, and parents who have children ought to parent," says writer Mark Johnson, ...
  • Julian Morrow says, "What makes a player successful on the field - anger, risk-taking, limited impulse control - may not make him someone you want living next door." Some facts to back this statement up are evident in a recent book, "Pros and Cons: The Criminals Who Play in the NFL,"

Terminology referenced in this research paper
McGwire,

Sports talked about in this essay
baseball, football, basketball, boxing, hockey,

Names mentioned in this term paper
Mark McGwire, Ty Cobb, Wilt Chamberlain, Mickey Mantle, Charles Barkley, Darryl Strawberry, Brooks Robinson, Charles, Barkley, Joe Montana, Mark Johnson, Andro, Deion Sanders, Cal Ripken Jr., that, Julian Morrow, let, he, O.J. Simpson, them, Michael Irvin, Michael Jordan, Dennis Rodman, Mike Tyson, Frank Robinson., Jeff Benedict, Don Yaeger,

Organizations referenced in this research material
NBA, NFL,

Drug talked about in this research paper
Androstenedione,

Companies mentioned in this term paper
Nike,

Keywords referenced in this term paper
role model, professional athletes, sports, sports world, Wilt Chamberlain, Ty Cobb, McGwire, professional sports, Mickey Mantle, Mark McGwire, Sports Illustrated, Cal Ripken Jr, celebrities, drugs, one point, Charles Barkley, baseball, this day, public scrutiny, Deion Sanders, Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, Darryl Strawberry, drug addicts, private lives, Julian Morrow, substance abuse, Michael Irvin, Joe Montana, Dennis Rodman, Michael Jordan, Mike Tyson, hard sell, baseball player, Mark Johnson, Jeff Benedict, impulse control, human body, high school, basketball player, criminal records, standard, myself, worry, enhancement, criminal, long term, moral, parent, images,

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The Paid Professional Athletes. (1969, December 31). In DirectEssays.com. Retrieved 06:39, June 20, 2013, from http://www.directessays.com/viewpaper/76854.html
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