On Sunday, ABC’s This Week previewed the Super Bowl by discussing the tumultuous year the NFL has gone through, from child abuse charges to Deflategate.
During a panel discussion at the end of the broadcast, Gwen Ifill, anchor of PBS NewsHour, lamented the fact that millions of Americans “may know, the evidence may be in front of them, but it's almost sad that many Americans just don't want to be bothered with it.”
The segment began with liberal CNN contributor LZ Granderson playing up the supposed systemic problems with domestic violence in the NFL:
I mean viewers and fans -- are starting to realize what reporters have been talking about for a long time, which is that the athletes, particular those in NFL, seem to be getting away with a lot of things that hadn't really angered people. Like this isn't the first time they NFL has had issues with domestic violence. This isn't the first time that there has been conversations about cheating. This isn't the first time we've talked about concussions.
The segment then turned to Gwen Ifill. who complained that Americans are still willing to watch the Super Bowl despite what she viewed as systemic problems within the NFL:
I think that we're going to see today at the Super Bowl that there are tens of thousands, millions of people, who are still willing to put aside everything else they've heard, everything else we've learned about professional football and just enjoy the game and basically don't really want to be bothered by it. They may know, the evidence may be in front of them, but it's almost sad that many Americans just don't want to be bothered with it.
Rather than accept Ifill’s premise, National Review editor Rich Lowry resoundingly debunked the myth that the NFL perpetuates a culture of violence:
I think actually if you look statistically the arrest rates are lower than they are for men their age in the general population. But the Super Bowl it's a civic festival now on par with Thanksgiving or July Fourth. It's just unassailable. And any controversy and more conversation no matter what's generating only helps it.
When confronted by Rich Lowry with the truth about the NFL and why it still has millions of fans, Ifil whined “that just depresses me." ABC’s Matthew Dowd concluded the segment by demanding the NFL be held accountable for its actions despite Rich Lowry debunking the myth being peddled by the This Week panel:
The problem to me is we have 31 owners who basically don't seem to care as long as the cash keeps coming in. They don't seem to want to hold Roger Goodell accountable. They don't seem to really want to do anything about any of these big issues. And until the pocketbook, I guess, because they think the ends justify the means in this, until they're affected by that I'm afraid nothing will get done. So it's the fans ultimately are going to have to put their money down and say we're not doing it anymore.
Kudos to Rich Lowry for calling out the liberals on the panel and for bringing them back to reality.
See relevant transcript below.
ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos
February 2, 2015
MARTHA RADDATZ: OK, we're back now with the roundtable. And while we're on football. And LZ, I want to start with you. Look back at the year. Obviously the Super Bowl, a great day, so much enthusiasm. But look back at this last year. You saw that long list that we played earlier of what has happened this year. And we have concussions. And we have child abuse charges. And we have domestic abuse. And we have Deflategate. Reflect on that.
LZ GRANDERSON: Well, it's interesting that everyone else -- and everyone else I mean viewers and fans -- are starting to realize what reporters have been talking about for a long time, which is that the athletes, particular those in NFL, seem to be getting away with a lot of things that hadn't really angered people. Like this isn't the first time they NFL has had issues with domestic violence.
This isn't the first time that there has been conversations about cheating. This isn't the first time we've talked about concussions. This is only the first time, 2014, in which there was a video that was put in the faces of the American people that registered with them emotionally. And now people are paying attention, really paying attention and not just saying, yeah, OK, but I still want to cheer for my team.
RADDATZ: Do you think things change, Gwen?
GWEN IFILL: I don't think so. I think that we're going to see today at the Super Bowl that there are tens of thousands, millions of people, who are still willing to put aside everything else they've heard, everything else we've learned about professional football and just enjoy the game and basically don't really want to be bothered by it. They may know, the evidence may be in front of them, but it's almost sad that many Americans just don't want to be bothered with it.
RADDATZ: Do we expect too much from our football players off the field?
RICH LOWRY: Well, I think actually if you look statistically the arrest rates are lower than they are for men their age in the general population. But the Super Bowl it's a civic festival now on par with Thanksgiving or July Fourth. It's just unassailable. And any controversy and more conversation no matter what's generating only helps it.
GWEN IFILL: That just depresses me.
MATTHEW DOWD: The problem to me -- and you know this, I've said said that I think Roger Goodell should have resigned, because I think the culture that's in place in many different ways is something that he hasn't fixed and has been slow to do. And all those issues you mentioned, he's been incredibly so.
The problem to me is we have 31 owners who basically don't seem to care as long as the cash keeps coming in. They don't seem to want to hold Roger Goodell accountable. They don't seem to really want to do anything about any of these big issues. And until the pocketbook, I guess, because they think the ends justify the means in this, until they're affected by that I'm afraid nothing will get done. So it's the fans ultimately are going to have to put their money down and say we're not doing it anymore.
