The work of ruining sports continues apace. The Atlantic last week announced the hiring of Jemele Hill, a “wonderfully talented journalist who is famous for her acute commentary, fearless writing and encyclopedic knowledge of sports,” the magazine’s editor, Jeffrey Goldberg, said in a press release. “There are a million stories to be uncovered at the intersection where sports, race, money and politics meet,” Goldberg went on, “and Jemele is the exact right person to do this uncovering.”
Oh, no—one of those “inter-sections.” Hill emphasized the point. “You can’t talk about sports without talking about race, class, gender and politics,” she said. “I want to explore the complications and discomforts with a publication that has a long history of supporting this kind of work.” In fact, you can talk about sports without talking about race, class, gender, and politics. The guys and gals at the Atlantic should try it some time!
We wish Jemele Hill well in her new post, but we regret the triumph of her outlook. It becomes harder and harder to find respite from political questions. Indeed, we used to enjoy watching college and professional sports with our friends. Now we spend our time sullenly reading the Atlantic and regretting all those complications and discomforts.
