Deadspin
How you react to E:60's "Gotcha!" report on Miguel Tejada's age, we've found, depends a lot on whether or not you're a journalist.
Most journalists we've talked to dream of moments like this; you have a guy you know is lying to you, lies to you to your face and then you NAIL him as he scurries away. Everyone else, you know, regular people, think reporter Tom Farrey trapped Tejada and purposely embarrassed him on camera. (In uniform, no less!)
Frankly, we tend to veer toward the latter camp, despite, you know, being ostensibly (theoretically?) a journalist. As Shakedownsports puts it:
E:60's ambush of Miguel Tejada was flat out wrong. It was television at its lowest point. Pure exploitation in order to get ratings. What did Tejada do to deserve being lured into a studio and left bare in front of a camera on live tape-delayed TV? This isn't "To Catch a Predator." Nobody can think to themselves that the guy on camera deserved what he got. Nobody can think ESPN was helping out it's viewers by calling attention to Tejada's real age. It was simply entrapment. Tom Ferry tricked Tejada into lying and then he had the brazeness to keep yelling questions as Tejada left the room.
It is telling that Tejada took tougher questioning about his age than he ever has about steroids.
Comments
"Are you 34?"
"No ... why?"
tom ferry is the bravest new yorker since bernie getz
Age ain't nothin' but a number
/Aaliyah'd
Wasn't E:60 supposed to be a show about real journalism? What we got was Bill Simmons doing long-shot contests and Gotcha! moments on players.
And what were you doing with that 6 pack of Mike's Hard Lemonade Miguel?
I'm only a journalism student, but I fall into the latter camp as well. There are ways to handle that story, saying "GOTCHA!" during a taped interview isn't one of them.
@BigRicks: Try telling a judge that.
Meet 34 year old Miguel Tejada, who goes by the screen name GettingMiggyWithIt421.
As a journalism student also (and yes, my J-school can outdrink your J-school), I agree with the latter assessment, mostly because the Tejada's age thing was a non-issue. Surprising this person to their face is just foolish, nonethical and a pure quest for ratings, similar to "Animals Close-Up with a Wide-Angle Lens".
@Len Bias Cocaine Surplus: Did you bring the condoms and lube like you said you would in the chat room? I have a copy of the chat transcript right here. This is what you said.
Tom Ferry, ESPN's Carl Monday.
How can it even be a real "gotcha" story when the fact that Latin players lie about their ages is like, the most well-known thing in baseball?
I am more shocked that Tejada wasn't all "Yeah, I am 35. I thought you knew that already".
Ah, ambush journalism. What inspired me to stop writing for mass media in the first place.
Now if he had caught Tejada masturbating, that would have been ambush-worthy!
"Mr. Tejada, are you not lying? In fact, aren't you...A LIAR!?!"
/Kids in the Hall
Julio Franco wants to borrow some of Miguel's Oil Of Olay.
@Turd Ferguson: Is your j-school ASU? Cuz if not, I disagree.
If so, Go Devils.
The Astros received even worse news later on in the day: Carlos Lee had eaten Hunter Pence.
I call plagarism on Shakesdownsports
[www.bugsandcranks.com]
In the follow-up interview, Rachel Nichols will ask Tejada how he feels about it.
@BigRicks: ESPN's journalistic credibility is going down in flames.
/Aaliyah'd
Feeling knobs, touching keys, having fun with a full-grown man.
@ltwinslow: not Berkowitz?
The real "To Catch a Predator" is also overly concerned with age, for some reason.
Tejada: I was bluffing.
Ferry: And what is bluffing? Is it not another word for lying?
This is what I got stuck watching repeatedly last night while waiting for Avs highlights - you know, actual fucking RESULTS from SPORTING EVENTS (PLAYOFFS, even).
Multiple teasers of "Coming up! Look! Look at the way we just busted this guy! Watch how he storms out!" just made me want to kick people.
And this is why I rarely watch SportsCenter anymore.
I think this qualifies Julio Franco for a lifetime achievement award of some kind.
As an Oriole fan, my only response is a simple ha.
HAHA
hahahaha
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaahahaha
Barbara Walters would have got him to confess...and cry.
Tejada's totally outlived Jesus.
@mbprice: Nope. Missouri.
@Turd Ferguson: @mbprice: My j-school was CU. So I think I'm in the running.
I concur with Will. The only person tWWL cares about with a tie to steriods is Big Head Barry. Otherwise, Emperor Bud will cut them off from slurping on the Yanks and Sawx.
Complete waste of tape.
@SlickBomb: It's on ESPN. What did you expect?
@Jen P: @Turd Ferguson: All fine drinking journalism schools, to be sure.
@OchentaYcinco:
exonerated dateline predator. the whole thing was one big misunderstanding... like the giuliani campaign
So I guess this means that, when it comes to creating stories, even ESPN thinks that the "Terrell Owens says something outrageous" well is officially dry?
What WERE you planning on doing with the double-sided dildo, large tub of astroglide, and billy goat, then?
Next up on E:60--while they were both on the Red Sox, Curt Schilling gave Pedro Martinez a sweater for Christmas. Pedro said he liked the sweater. Yet, when we visited Pedro's home in the Dominican Republic, we did not see the sweater in any of his closets.
Let's see him try and wriggle out of that one!
That condescending Ferry sounded like a father talking to his school skipping kid when he said, "I want you to explain this to me." It was cheap. Tejada probably grew up eating mud cakes and shitting in a hole behind the hut. I'm not condoning latin players lying about their ages but it's very common. The ambush was cowardly. Watching Tejada squirm made ME uncomfortable. Ferry must be 40, he's a man.
@Gourmet Spud: Get away from me, Tom Ferry!
@Hit Bull Win Steak: that would be large TUBE of Astroglide. AG doesnt come in tubs, but a guy can dream, can't he?
Can't he?!?!?
@Hit Bull Win Steak: Mom....I told you to wait in the truck!
prior inconsistent statements...RIGHTNOW!!!
What pisses me off is that Tom Ferry is wasting his time with the Tejadas of the world and not going after the real enemy: Dikembe Mutombo.
needs more Simmons in a motion-capture suit.
and yet... i don't see anybody ambushing tom ferry for pretending to be a journalist
Carl Monday is crying tears of joy right now.
@Hit Bull Win Steak: Whoa. Bathtub full of Astroglide ... you'd never be able to get out!
@mbprice: Yea, verily. Sadly those idiots at N*rthw*st*rn (apologies to any Wildcats here) are too busy being rich to drink like (and what) we do.
I'm really indifferent to that.
If Tejada was given the impression that the interview was probably going to include suspicion of his actual age... then yeah, nail that fucker down with a birth certificate and leave him bleeding on the floor after you remove vital organs and place them in a Coleman Ice Chest.
If you misled him into that topic though, or - gasp- told him you would ask him about his age, then it's wrong.
So, what I got out of this story was that Tejada has been playing in the Majors for 11 years instead of 11 years. Thank you ESPN. I'm glad you didn't ask about steroids.