Friday, March 09, 2007

This isn't so much related to UConn as it is to college basketball. In light of the alleged behavior of former LSU coach Pokey Chatman, I think we -- fans, media -- forget that there are college-aged kids involved. That's right, kids. They may be 20, 21 years old, but they are still kids.

Our craving to know what goes on in every moment of their lives sometimes crosses the line. We push and push and push to the point where we go beyond decency and let rumor and speculation rule the day. Now I'm not saying what may or may not have happened at LSU. I simply don't know. But in general, we forget these are kids. And sometimes the ones who put the most pressure on them are the people they don't know.

At LSU, is the story why Chatman resigned or is it WHY she resigned? If she had inappropriate relatons with a player, how important is it that we know the identity of the player or players?

Of course, if I am covering this story and it becomes known who the parties involved are, do I include this in my coverage? Yes, that's my job. But I also think its important that as a member of the public, all of us have a responsibility to respect people's privacy.

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