Athletes Sex Lives: Who Cares

Athletes in this day and age aren’t just athletes, they are regular people with families and baggage like the rest of us. They possess social media accounts, journals, blogs, you name it; just about nothing can be kept in privacy anymore. The issue with this is the media can take this to their own advantage. Being an athlete is not just playing a sport anymore, it is being a celebrity. The media reports on more non-sport related events in athletes lives than how many shots they took in the second period. One specific issue in the life of a young adult who is also an athlete, is that their sex-life is constantly under fire. Sex ‘scandals’ are always being reported on, but is this fair? No, not all. Why should an athlete have their personal love and life exposed while the rest of us are doing the same exact thing? Sure some athletes do some more damage than other people but every athlete should not be expecting a report on various tabloid websites after having a fun night out and ending up doing the deed. It’s the culture we have these days and although many people do not agree with how the courting and love procedures have evolved things have changed and lots of people, including young adult athletes, have accepted this. Some reports on athletes sex ‘scandals’ are completely unwarranted and should be kept in private because they are normal encounters, they do not impact their ability to play the sport, and they deserve privacy like any human is entitled to.

One report written by Complex journalists Sean Evans and Gus Turner, tells the story of Brandon Davies, a student athlete at Brigham Young University, who was “suspended from the team just before the 2011 NCAA Tournament. And why was he suspended? Oh, ya know, for having pre-marital sex with his girlfriend”(Evans). This is a normal encounter for any college student but BYU is a mormon university and all athletes are made to sign a contract promising they will abstain from premarital sex. But this is not a written contract for other students. Why is it such a big deal for only athletes? This gifted basketball player lead his team to a number 3 national ranking but was still suspended and reported on. This is a little overboard even with the university’s religious precautions, Davies was just practicing a normal encounter that any other college student partakes in: consensual sex with his girlfriend. This act was not a rape or a sexual assault. No violent actions took place and no secular laws were broken but still this athlete had been suspended. It is unfair and ridiculous that this should be a news story. The man was a phenomenal athlete and I am almost positive that the act of consensual sex did not impact his ability to play. Athletes reserve the right to privacy just like the rest of us so maybe reporters should stick to what the athlete is famous for in the first place, athletics, not his sex life.

Another report written by The Sportster journalist Jack Choros, informs the public some very personal information about a Cleveland Indians pitcher Kazuhito Tadano. The report explains “It was soon discovered that the pitcher had taken part in a gay porn film while struggling for money in college back in Japan...The American media was about as forgiving and progressive as you would expect with a scene like this and the Indians immediately sent the pitcher down to double-A ball while they tried to put out the fire. The revelation ruined any chance Tadano had of making it in the majors and he was sent home to Japan in quick order”(Choros). This report absolutely ruined this athlete's chance of furthering his career. This sexual encounter, although not exactly the most normal, is understandable. College students are broke, some great people do porn, and it was in his past. This sex act had nothing to do with Tadano’s ability to pitch and the fact that it was actually reported on really begs the question: are athletes even given the option of privacy? This was not a crime or a violent act that would have gotten this talented pitcher in any type of understandable release from the MLB, but it did.  Not only was Tadano a Japanese man getting a chance to play in America for his amazing talents but he was also gay and outed by American media. This is in no way fair or morally sound because this American media industry’s reports very well ruined his athletic career. Another example of how the media exposes athletes for doing normal things that do not impact their athletic abilities and break any moral consciousness by removing an athlete's right to privacy.

Athletes are human. The media may need a wake up call or maybe an educational course (like alcohol edu but the moral and human rights version?), to help them understand that what they say can ruin an athlete's career. That some things are not meant to be known to the public. That maybe someone's life shouldn’t be thrown out all over the internet for people to see. The media releasing stories about sexual encounter that are normal, do not impact the abilities of the athlete and without any respect of privacy is not ethical or morally sound. Something needs to change so athletes can sleep in peace knowing tabloids and news websites aren’t looking through their bedroom window or their past.

Works Cited

Choros, Jack. "10 Athletes Caught In Sex Scandals." TheSportster. 25 Apr. 2015. Web. 14 Oct. 2015.

Evans, Sean, and Gus Turner. "The 50 Craziest Sex Scandals in Sports History." Complex. 3 July 2013. Web. 14 Oct. 2015.