Fox News’ Executive Vice President John Moody, who is also its executive editor, does not seem to think that our 2018 Olympics team can be both diverse and top-notch. Without making any apparent effort to investigate the abilities of Team USA or why any members were chosen, Moody wrote an op-ed accusing the U.S. Olympic Committee of choosing second-rate (or worse) athletes merely because of their demographics. UPDATED Fox has deleted the column.
In his op-ed Moody wrote (my emphases added):
Unless it’s changed overnight, the motto of the Olympics, since 1894, has been “Faster, Higher, Stronger.” It appears the U.S. Olympic Committee would like to change that to “Darker, Gayer, Different.” If your goal is to win medals, that won’t work.
A USOC official was quoted this week expressing pride (what else?) about taking the most diverse U.S. squad ever to the Winter Olympics. That was followed by a, frankly, embarrassing laundry list of how many African-Americans, Asians and openly gay athletes are on this year’s U.S. team. No sport that we are aware of awards points – or medals – for skin color or sexual orientation.
For the current USOC, a dream team should look more like the general population. So, while uncomfortable, the question probably needs to be asked: were our Olympians selected because they’re the best at what they do, or because they’re the best publicity for our current obsession with having one each from Column A, B and C?
Evidently, Moody thinks someone else should do the asking about the criteria for team selection. Because instead of inquiring himself, or even reviewing the records of any members of the team, he went on to praise previous competitors who excelled for reasons other than their ethnicity.
What makes Moody think Team USA is any less able or that any of the “Darker, Gayer, Different” members are any lesser athletes than before? He never cited one reason, one example, one statistic. From a big cheese at the network that never tired of accusing President Barack Obama of not believing in American exceptionalism!
Then again, Moody couldn’t have made his beliefs any clearer.
You know that saying about a fish rotting from its head? The same is true about a Fox.
2/9/18 UPDATE: Fox News has deleted the column, claiming that a post by its executive editor and executive vice president "does not reflect the views or values" of Fox News.
(John Moody image via screen grab.)