Identifying Jenn Sterger

ESPN mentioned it briefly on SportsCenter on 10/7.

 

She's the third one from the left...

 

We are journalists, and as journalists we report NEWS. An athlete being a creep is not news. An athlete possibly committing an act of sexual harassment against a coworker IS news, and that is why referencing Sterger as a "former Jets employee" is important, while any other job she has ever held is not important, in the context of the NEWS story.

I'm not saying it shouldn't be included in the story, something like "Sterger, who now works for Versus in a similar capacity, has not commented on the issue publicly," is fine. But where she works now, or where she worked before the Jets, is not relevant at all to the issues that make this a NEWS story any more than it would be relevant to mention that she first gained mainstream attention for dressing like a stripper at Florida State football games. That is an irrelevant fact when we, as journalists, are dealing with what makes this a NEWS story.

 

OK, you're shouting at me but not really telling me why the fact that she's also a public figure isn't relevant. (Note: I do agree that the Jets aspect is important.)

Would this not be a different story if the Jets employee in question were someone who wasn't otherwise in the public eye? Not saying it would be no story at all, but wouldn't it be different?

 

Sexual harassment in employment doesn't take into account public figure status. You're thinking libel and slander, where it does matter.

 

Bingo.

 

The fact that she's a public figure is relevant from a newsworthiness point of view, which is why anyone covering this would be smart to point it out. Imagine you're covering this story; imagine if she took five minutes to address the Favre issue on her show and you had to report on that aspect of it. Wouldn't you feel like a dumbass for not having mentioned it in prior stories?

 

Exactly.

To the prior posts -- again, we're not judges. And whether or not the victim (alleged victim, to be precise) is a public figure absolutely makes a difference in how we cover it. If I'm mugged in New York, it's not a story. If Anna Kournikova is mugged, it is. If Donald Trump mugs Anna Kournikova, the story has another layer to it.

 

It appears that "actress" is the way she'll be identified from here on out.

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2010/10/14/jenn-sterger-gets-role-mischa-barton-movie-report-says/?test=faces

 

Let's say an athlete --- let's call him Ren Boethlisberger --- has an appointment at a kid's Make-a-Wish function.

Boethlisberger stands the kid up. Overslept because he was out till 6 a.m. the night before.

Not guilty of anything but being a creep. But it's news.

 

I always identify her as "Former Sports Illustrated columnist Jenn Sterger."

;D

 

I call her the Fla St chick that use to have the big wackers.