Never let facts ruin a juicy online story

Tiger Woods’ off-course antics was the biggest global sports story of the year online – like it or not

IN REVIEWING online sports coverage in 2009, there can only be one place to start – a celebrity-hounding, paparazzi style website, of course.

Tiger Woods is the biggest global sports story of the year, like it or not. It is news when the career and the highly lucrative endorsement contracts of the world’s greatest ever golfer, the first billion dollar sportsman, come under threat after he is caught playing away from home.

The lamentable part of the coverage comes from the relentless scramble to add to the story that has been the hallmark of websites and newspapers worldwide since Woods crashed his SUV outside his house late last month.

So rife has the speculation been, in fact, the word “alleged” has probably appeared in copy as much as “Woods” or “Elin”, the latter being his wife and mother of their two children.

Leading the charge has been TMZ.com, whose subsequent coverage of Woods’ tribulations was gratuitously intrusive and highly speculative, at best. The fact that much of it was regurgitated as fact by more trusted news sources should be the major concern for those who look to maintain the integrity of journalism on an ever-changing terrain.

TMZ were first to broadcast the alleged (there’s that word again) phonecall from Woods to one of his 10, 12, 15 (you decide) alleged (ahem) mistresses, Rachel Uchitel, whom he apparently asked to remove all evidence of contact with him from her phone. Within hours, radio stations worldwide, including in Ireland, were carrying it for fear of being left behind.

Digging up the past, TMZ provided a photo of Woods and a mysterious girl at a U2 concert.

Who was this woman?

A poll conducted concluded it was another conquest.

TMZ later confirmed the grainy image was found to be of Elin in her husband’s company, before providing another of him texting someone that same night and suggesting his thoughts were elsewhere.

Oh well, every cloud . . .

TMZ are also fans of “doorstepping”, not in itself a bad thing, but generally only worthwhile if the subject does not want to talk. If he or she does want to engage, it is self-promotion, as was the case when the website approached alleged (we know) old flame and porn star Holly Sampson, who gleefully revealed her upcoming project involved a golfer and his balls.

Speculation over Woods’ fidelity, or lack of it, did not begin online, however. It first came to light on the pages of that bastion of print journalism, the National Enquirer. It is unfortunate for those of us who think the internet is a good thing, that the biggest story of the year is notable for the most regrettable coverage. In it’s defence, TMZ does not claim to be anything other than what it is: Celebrity Gossip/Entertainment.

Woods, of course, used his own website to admit “transgressions” and then to announce he is taking a “hiatus” from the game.

“After much soul searching, I have decided to take an indefinite break from professional golf. I need to focus my attention on being a better husband, father, and person.”

In August, Lance Armstrong (pictured below), himself no stranger to internet rumour and accusations, embraced online culture and chose Twitter to invite Irish cyclists out for a jaunt round Phoenix Park.

Good morning Dublin. Who wants to ride this afternoon? I do. 5:30pm @ the roundabout of Fountain Rd and Chesterfield Ave. See you there.

And see them there he did – all 1,200 of them, bedecked in spandex and ready to ride with the seven-time Tour de France winner. He admitted afterwards he did not expect his Tweet to cause such a stir and it wouldn’t have had other websites and the national broadcaster not picked up on it, but the fact remains that in 10 hours he rounded up a sizeable posse from all corners of the island for a 36km bike ride.

Twitter also proved a useful tool for Darren Bent. In July, the then Tottenham striker Tweeted his dissatisfaction with his protracted transfer to Sunderland.

Do I wanna go Hull City NO. Do I wanna go Stoke NO do I wanna go Sunderland YES so stop f****** around, Levy. Sunderland are not the problem in the slightest . . . seriously getting p****d off now.

The outburst later required an apology from Bent to Spurs chairman Daniel Levy – who had upped the price in light of interest from Hull and Stoke – and earned him a hefty fine.

More importantly, though, it achieved the desired result of securing a move to the Stadium of Light within a week.

The story closest to the nation’s heart unfolded in Paris on most people’s television screens. Again and again and again. But the online reaction to Thierry Henry’s now infamous double handball was almost as outrageous as thinking Fifa’s Fair Play mantra actually means something.

From an Irish Times perspective the following day’s online readership eclipsed everything since Saipan reared its ugly heads in 2002. Ten per cent of the site traffic came from France compared to the usual 1.5 per cent.

The Letters editor, football correspondent and this writer – having tried in vain to do the incident justice in online commentary – were inundated with emails from apologetic Frenchmen and women, begging forgiveness for the behaviour of Henry and others in the name of their nation.

A smaller proportion urged us to stop feeling sorry for ourselves but they were moved to write all the same. Indeed, the game and Henry moved many people to do, say and request many strange things.

The Facebook “petition to have Ireland vs France replayed” has over 500,000 members. There were numerous other petitions, all with similar themes, from seeking a public apology from Henry to urging his expulsion from the World Cup.

There have been over half a million viewings of unique versions of William Gallas’s goal and Henry’s post-match reaction on Youtube, each prompting the inevitable jingoistic, and at times racist, bickering.

One of the most breathtaking Irish stories of the year had a much shorter shelf life than most but Richard Donovan’s near impromptu feat of running seven marathons on seven continents in under seven days was truly inspirational and documented on worldmarathonchallenge.com.

Donovan ran his first 26.2 miles to the Russian base at Novolazarevskaya in the Antarctic in the early hours of January 31st, before completing marathons in Cape Town, Dubai, London, Toronto, Santiago and Sydney by Thursday, February 5th.

In total he took just five days 10 hours and eight minutes to beat a target set by Ranulph Fiennes. Through his website, which contains a route map, phenomenal statistics and glowing testimony from those he ran with along the way, the 42-year-old raised over €50,000 for Goal’s work in Darfur.