Our Daily Dread: Taking issue with ESPN's "Body Issue" exposes your insecurities
Serena Williams, on the cover of the new ESPN "Body" issue, rose to No. 1 in the women's tennis rankings and was upset Thursday in China by Nadia Petrova of Russia ... cover jinx?
This ESPN The Magazine issue (linked here) that focuses on the athlete's body is .... wait, one of those paper inserts fell out, asking if I want to subscribe to the magazine -- 26 issues for $19.97, and I get a free fleece jacket.
Rather than get fleeced -- I already have a subscription -- it's ironic that this fleece jacket is about the only piece of clothing in the magazine. And it just fell out when I opened it.
Prehype over this issue is how it takes the traditional Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue and gives it more news value. This is about the athletic body in all its glory. If the Greeks thought it was worth competing nude the original Olympics, why can't we go old school with some shots of athletes in their athletic prime and pass it off as a legit examination of the human body.
Is that humanly possible these days?
There's an attempt at trying to analyze how much sex appeal sells sports. "For Sale By Owner: How Much of Themselves Should Female Athletes Reveal in the Name of Self-Promotion? For Many, There Is No Debate," is the story by Alyssa Roenigk on page 108.
Good idea. Now show us more photos. There are shots of Crocs ads with beach volleyball women in them, of the Stetson ads with Tom Brady, or of David Beckham promoting some underwear. I'm buying it.
Does the WNBA undersell its sex appeal? Did Anna Kournikova sell herself short? All worthy things to examine. And we're still reading.... and not so much looking. That's a good sign.
And then we come upon a story called "Skin Games: Our Modest Plan? Find A Few World Class Athletes (And Really Good Sports) To Help Us Show a Different Side of their Game. Mission Accomplished."
There's six guys from DC United setting up a wall against an direct kick. The soccer ball sails over six naked men, covering their jewels. Nice synchronization. Good ball movement.
There's three LPGA players on a golf cart. None are those you'd expect. Although Sandra Gal is quite a gal. Four poker players with their aces exposed -- Scotty Nguyen, Jennifer Harman, Phil Hellmuth Jr., and Daniel Negreanu. No bluffing. Bet Jennifer is glad she has a large stack of chips in front of her other stack of flesh.
Pages 126-127 is sure to cause a distraction. Four members of the Team USA softball squad are there -- Cat Osterman, on an ice chest, with her glove covering her chest. And our Jessica Mendoza, the former Camarillo High standout, very pregnant -- and naked, covering her bases. The pregnant part -- not so much a flashback to Demi Moore. Or another former ESPN Mag cover of Candace Parker.
"We sing the body athletic," says the story's opening line.
We humm along until we find the right words.
Here it is: We get it. And, yes, we appreciate the effort. Nicely played.
Mendoza said on her blog (linked here):
"I am excited about this issue because it is unique and shows the beauty of the athlete's most powerful tool: their body. Rather than having the stereotypical bodies that we are used to seeing through the media every day, the bodies in this issue vary from super buff, to lean, to stocky ... all exemplifying beauty in their own way. I was proud to be in this issue at a unique time of my life. I felt that by showing athletes in every shape and form, including those of us who have children and continue to play, ESPN the Magazine is trying to break those stereotypes. I hope those who see this issue see it as a refreshing and celebratory view of the athletic body in all its beauty and forms, influencing women and girls in a positive way to appreciate their own unique, athletic bodies."
A Huffington Post "story" asks (linked here): Which body conscious athlete make you want to buy an issue?
The cover we have of Serena Williams is sure to draw more eyes. She has a killer body, and she's not ashamed to show it. Good for her.
I'll relay a story that may relate to this: Getting on the elevator at Dodger Stadium before Wednesday's Game 1 of the NLDS. I'm there so early to avoid traffic, members of the St. Louis Cardinals are also on the same ride going from the top to the bottom level of the stadium. Among those who steps onto the elevator: Albert Pujols.
I can't stop staring at him. I try not to, but he's not only so large -- top to bottom -- but wide. And bursting with muscular aptitude. We're not in a staring contest, but he must realize that people half his size -- most of the human race -- can't help but size him up. He is the most impressive human specimine I've stood next to in years. NBA players are incredible looking athletes for other reasons -- their height is one thing, but they're built like greyhounds. Football players are incredible for their massivness, or lackthereof, because of what their uniforms make them appear to be when they're really quite normal in most regards.
Now I'm starting to sound like Rick Reilly, in what he wrote to go with the magazine (linked here). Sorry.
Checking out someone's physical sculptedness is natural. So is this magazine. It's not explotive. Not trying to bait and switch the reader. Definitely far more substance than an SI attempt at being a long-term magazine rack seller.
Check out that sales rack, by the way.
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