Drawing A Line In The Sand

Last night I saw on Twitter people bitching about the television crews filming the Erikkson incident live. A post by @tarazkp hit the nail on the head as everyone had the choice of switching off or watching. Most people will watch in fascination whilst telling you how terrible this is. Most people have double standards that don't apply to them so is this right or wrong?

This is not the first time I believe the television and media have crossed the line as this has happened before. No wonder the players formed a circle around the player as everyone knows how bad the media are. Rules don't apply to them as they are just like everyone else curious to see what is happening.

I have experienced similar circumstances on the sporting field first hand during my playing days. No defibrillators thankfully were required, but on two occasions the players tongue was removed from his throat and rolled on his side. This I believe every sportsmen should know as the basics for first aid. If you were watching only one player realised this and what would of happened if he wasn't on the pitch? The referees and officials should also be fully up to date with the basics of assisting with medical emergencies and not just doctors who are a good 30 second sprint away.

Remember that fateful weekend when Roland Ratzenberger and Ayrton Senna died on the same race track within 24 hours of each other? There was no excuse for how poorly this television coverage was done as zooming in on a dead mans body is not exactly prime viewing. Afterwards the media did agree to pan away from a serious accident, but lately that hasn't been the case.

Romains kids were watching this at home and that for me is just not right.

Last season Romain Grosjean got lucky after nearly being spit roasted yet the cameras didn't pan away. What if he hadn't stepped out of the fireball and had been killed as not everything is a Hollywood movie as this is real stuff? I do believe these are questions that should be clarified by each sports governing body and not left up to the discretion of the media.

I used to watch the start of the Grand Prix as there was always accidents not in the hope of seeing someone injured, but it just made the race more interesting. I know I wasn't alone in this as many of my friends thought the same thing. Why do we laugh when a batsmen playing cricket gets hit in the box or a player gets tackled heavily in rugby. These are not that funny if you are on the receiving end yet they are as they are not life threatening. No one really wants to see someone get hurt or in distress and that should be the line in the sand as far as I am concerned.

I do believe the sporting bodies have to come to some sort of agreement to highlight what is acceptable viewing or not.