The lead up to the Rio Olympics has been an unmitigated disaster from a public relations standpoint and really from a human well-being angle as well. USA Olympic rower Megan Kalmoe has had enough of the negativity.
Mosquitos carrying the Zika virus, government instability, terror threats, and the quality of water have been under the microscope for months now.
The athlete response to these stories has universally been trepidation towards attending the Games at all and, for those who are going, criticism of the conditions in Rio. Well, it’s almost universal.
U.S. Olympic rower Megan Kalmoe is well aware of the incredible health and safety risks facing athletes and spectators at next month’s Games, but she is undeterred. In fact, she is upset with the media’s coverage of the numerous issues facing the Olympics — especially the coverage of the “shit in the water.”
In a post on her personal blog, Kalmoe rails against what she perceives as negative and “ignorant” coverage of the problems facing the Rio Olympics. She starts by noting the need to report the issues in the first place, but said she cannot see the point of continually revisiting the subject after it has been first reported.
I can’t be sure when the first headlines about the water quality in Rio appeared and the conversation really started. But ever since then, it seems like it’s all people want to talk about. And I can’t really understand why. At this point, it is known that there are issues with the water quality. It is known that athletes are going to be at risk for illness. It is known that we are going to have to be smart, hygienic and take precautions. Great. Let’s move on.
Kalmoe goes on decry how the negative coverage shames Brazil and its people and makes the rest of the Western world look like “jerks.” She also admits to reading the comment sections on these articles. Never read the comments, Megan, never.
At a very basic level, the tactics selected by many of the major western media outlets covering the Games are just flat out embarrassing. Everywhere I look, I read negative stories and op eds –and the resulting comment threads…yikes– that express outrage and disgust, disappointment and disapproval of the conditions that short-term visitors like athletes and spectators will be forced to endure for all of two weeks this summer while they participate in the Olympics.
As one of those media outlets that has devoted some of its coverage to the water quality in Rio, we are probably part of what Kalmoe sees as the problem. However, informing the public about the dangerous negatives is a necessary part of journalism — unwarranted celebration of a dire situation is not, no matter how upset it may make the Brazilian people.
They do not mention the countless Brazilian citizens who live their whole lives in Rio and don’t complain; they offer no solutions for their readership to pitch in and help to make things better for the visiting delegations they so pity (let alone long term solutions for the population of Brazil!); all from the comfort of their figurative armchairs, the majority of these great thinkers and contributors having never been a part of the Olympic Movement, or themselves been to Rio. As a culture, could we possibly be more entitled, ignorant, and embarrassingly egocentric?
Kalmoe goes on to chide Americans for their perceived lack of support because of the focus on the negatives of Rio, and proudly declares she will “row through shit” for America. You can read the rest of the post here.
There is no indication Kalmoe has arrived at Rio yet, at which point she may change her tune based on the early experiences of the Australian Olympic team.
