Well written article

[MRI]

EVERYBODY IS WRONG ABOUT SERENA WILLIAMS. HERE'S WHY.

The dust has settled, and you've read a bunch of rushed thinkpieces, so here are my thoughts on Serena after a couple of days of deliberation. I'm also particularly keen to discuss the psychological mechanics of how THE HIVEMIND comes to a conclusion.

Having followed tennis very closely for a long time, I appreciate the ins and outs, and ups and downs of Serena's career.

I first watched her and Venus play together on the final Sunday at Wimbledon, where they won the women's doubles. It was about 20 years ago, tickets were £5, and I remember being scared to eat my packet of crisps because there was total silence and I thought the players might be able to hear the CRUNCH.

My dad modelled himself a little on Richard Williams. He watched a documentary about how Serena and Venus' dad would coach them, and he'd inspire me to reach their sporting heights (SPOILER ALERT: I didn't).

***

Serena is that rare breed - she transcends sport.

There were a lot of appalling thinkpieces and talking heads talking rubbish in the immediate aftermath. Why? It's great to be a woke millennial in 2018, or at least to pretend. I've previously written about the cycle of #OUTRAGE, and this is a classic case.

We must understand that the first few tweets, articles and weighty voices always influence and shape discussion - to go against the grain thereafter sets you up for abuse and derision (I look forward to the comments here...!).

This is a particularly curious case, because in this culture of public shaming, if journalism is your livelihood, your perceived incorrect opinion about a female POC could end up being the headline faux pas in a Twitter Moment.

"TWITTER USERS START HASHTAG #IMWITHSERENA AFTER JOURNALIST OFFERS GENTLE CRITICISM AND LOSES JOB"

Social media and 400-word articles cannot allow for the nuance that a story of this gravity and complexity deserves.

It's far too easy to blindly criticize any negative opinions about Serena: you're racist, and you're sexist. It's tough for anyone, let alone a journalist, to reply to those comments and say "Umm, here's why I'm not..."

There is little incentive as a journalist these days to go against the grain in a situation like this. There is a lot of downside, and politics within journalism makes life difficult. Keep in mind, we need your piece ready-to-publish within an hour of the event. Don't say anything you can't take back...

***

Serena will go down as a GOAT athlete. But her behaviour is not that of a victim, as she would love to have you believe.

She has done some brilliant things on and off the tennis court, but likewise there is a concerning pattern of behaviour that paints a clear picture. She's overcome an unreal amount of trauma and pain in her life, and to be competing at the highest level while being a mother is truly exceptional, not to mention her health issues over the past years.

***

2004 US Open: "I felt cheated [by line calls]" (female umpire).

2009 US Open: "I'll shove a *** ball down your *** throat." That was from Serena to a female lineswoman after being called for a foot fault, two points away from losing the match. The umpire was female. Serena was effectively disqualified.

2011 US Open: "You ever see me walking down the hall, look the other way. Because you're out of control--totally out of control. You're a hater and you're unattractive inside. Who would do such a thing? And I never complain. Wow. What a loser. You give a code violation because I expressed who I am? We're in America last I checked...don't look at me, I promise you don't look at me cause I am not the one. Don't look my way."

Again, female umpire, and it happened while Serena was losing.

So on three previous occasions at the SAME TOURNAMENT, Serena has had meltdowns and there have been female umpires on the receiving end each time. This time, it was a male umpire on the receiving end, and Serena mentions "sexism."

Objectively, is there *any* evidence for this? BBC report that in this US Open, there were 12 code violations against men, and 5 against women. Of course, men's matches are longer, but there would seem no obvious discrepancy here (I'd be interested to learn about broader male vs female penalties if anyone has them).

Serena complains that women are being singled out, so how about we search for a fair comparison? If only we had a control to compare this with--- oh wait, just google her sister.

As far as I can see, "Venus Williams controversy" only returns entries for Serena's infractions.

***

"I'm here fighting for women's rights and for women's equality and for all kinds of stuff."

Against Osaka (ggwp, btw), Serena's coach made signals to her. The umpire saw it, and acted accordingly. He then escalated appropriately as per the laws when Serena was mouthing off.

Serena is a champion.

She has previous form for meltdowns at this particular tournament, each time when she's been losing a high profile match.

Each time, she's accused an umpire of cheating/lying/thieving. She's been penalized by both male and female umpires.

Each time, she's been proven objectively wrong.

"I have a daughter, why would I lie?"

Serena, take a look at yourself. You're too good to be behaving like this. Instead of pressuring and intimidating umpires, perhaps in the first instance you should be reflecting.

***

What makes me angry about this is that Serena has doubled down:

"This is just an example for the next person that has emotions, that wants to express themselves and wants to be a strong woman."

She actually BELIEVES her own hype.

You're not a "strong woman" just because you ranted and raved. You wouldn't tell your daughter it's ok to "express herself" by shouting.

"They're going to be allowed to do that because of today. Maybe it didn't work out for me, but it's going to work out for the next person."

No, it won't Serena. History will see through your lies. And instead of holding you up as an example of how you fought The Man, facts will prevail, and there will be an inevitable countercurrent that serves to undermine the next person who has a genuine reason to suspect discrimination, but can't quite pin it down.

And to the plethora of woke journalists who have justified Serena's behaviour by assuring us that she's been oppressed her whole life, and this is just an expression of her fighting back against The Man......I just beg you to ask Ms Kim ("I'll shove a *** ball down your *** throat") and Ms Asderaki ("You're unattractive inside") about their thoughts on a lady who proclaims to be a feminist ambassador.

Groupthink is not journalism - it's sheer cowardice, even if @newtennisfan1999 retweets your article because he thinks you're #woke.

***

While we're on the subject, why yes we can spare a thought for Naomi Osaka, although she is $2m richer and now is set for superstardom, so I'm as sad for her as I can feel for anybody else who receives $2m in a day.

Instead we should be thinking about umpires like Carlos Ramos, who are effectively gagged. He endured Serena's abuse and subsequent accusations. He has no right of reply, and I think that's unfair. Serena owes him a serious apology.

***

The conclusion may not be crystal clear, but I am certain that Serena is diminishing her legacy with these repeated actions, and repeated lack of contrition.

The most infuriating thing for me is that from a wider cultural perspective, this incident tends to serve as a learning point for bigots. They tend to use these events as a silent alarm, and adjust their language and behaviours so that their subtle racism and subtle sexism are that much more difficult to uncover.

For most people, these incidents might be minor blemishes on a glittering career, but for me they are starting to amount to something deeply unpleasant.

[uttermost]

Serena, along with Djokovic, and to an extent Nadal pretend to be humble, and righteous to take advantage of their stardom and influence the officials, to gain some mental advantage over their competitors. Djokovic especially had it mastered to the T, until people started calling him on it.

Its deeply disgusting. Serena is an entitled asshole. Always has been so.

[Luke]

27 minutes ago, MRI said:

EVERYBODY IS WRONG ABOUT SERENA WILLIAMS. HERE'S WHY.

The dust has settled, and you've read a bunch of rushed thinkpieces, so here are my thoughts on Serena after a couple of days of deliberation. I'm also particularly keen to discuss the psychological mechanics of how THE HIVEMIND comes to a conclusion.

Having followed tennis very closely for a long time, I appreciate the ins and outs, and ups and downs of Serena's career.

I first watched her and Venus play together on the final Sunday at Wimbledon, where they won the women's doubles. It was about 20 years ago, tickets were £5, and I remember being scared to eat my packet of crisps because there was total silence and I thought the players might be able to hear the CRUNCH.

My dad modelled himself a little on Richard Williams. He watched a documentary about how Serena and Venus' dad would coach them, and he'd inspire me to reach their sporting heights (SPOILER ALERT: I didn't).

***

Serena is that rare breed - she transcends sport.

There were a lot of appalling thinkpieces and talking heads talking rubbish in the immediate aftermath. Why? It's great to be a woke millennial in 2018, or at least to pretend. I've previously written about the cycle of #OUTRAGE, and this is a classic case.

We must understand that the first few tweets, articles and weighty voices always influence and shape discussion - to go against the grain thereafter sets you up for abuse and derision (I look forward to the comments here...!).

This is a particularly curious case, because in this culture of public shaming, if journalism is your livelihood, your perceived incorrect opinion about a female POC could end up being the headline faux pas in a Twitter Moment.

"TWITTER USERS START HASHTAG #IMWITHSERENA AFTER JOURNALIST OFFERS GENTLE CRITICISM AND LOSES JOB"

Social media and 400-word articles cannot allow for the nuance that a story of this gravity and complexity deserves.

It's far too easy to blindly criticize any negative opinions about Serena: you're racist, and you're sexist. It's tough for anyone, let alone a journalist, to reply to those comments and say "Umm, here's why I'm not..."

There is little incentive as a journalist these days to go against the grain in a situation like this. There is a lot of downside, and politics within journalism makes life difficult. Keep in mind, we need your piece ready-to-publish within an hour of the event. Don't say anything you can't take back...

***

Serena will go down as a GOAT athlete. But her behaviour is not that of a victim, as she would love to have you believe.

She has done some brilliant things on and off the tennis court, but likewise there is a concerning pattern of behaviour that paints a clear picture. She's overcome an unreal amount of trauma and pain in her life, and to be competing at the highest level while being a mother is truly exceptional, not to mention her health issues over the past years.

***

2004 US Open: "I felt cheated [by line calls]" (female umpire).

2009 US Open: "I'll shove a *** ball down your *** throat." That was from Serena to a female lineswoman after being called for a foot fault, two points away from losing the match. The umpire was female. Serena was effectively disqualified.

2011 US Open: "You ever see me walking down the hall, look the other way. Because you're out of control--totally out of control. You're a hater and you're unattractive inside. Who would do such a thing? And I never complain. Wow. What a loser. You give a code violation because I expressed who I am? We're in America last I checked...don't look at me, I promise you don't look at me cause I am not the one. Don't look my way."

Again, female umpire, and it happened while Serena was losing.

So on three previous occasions at the SAME TOURNAMENT, Serena has had meltdowns and there have been female umpires on the receiving end each time. This time, it was a male umpire on the receiving end, and Serena mentions "sexism."

Objectively, is there *any* evidence for this? BBC report that in this US Open, there were 12 code violations against men, and 5 against women. Of course, men's matches are longer, but there would seem no obvious discrepancy here (I'd be interested to learn about broader male vs female penalties if anyone has them).

Serena complains that women are being singled out, so how about we search for a fair comparison? If only we had a control to compare this with--- oh wait, just google her sister.

As far as I can see, "Venus Williams controversy" only returns entries for Serena's infractions.

***

"I'm here fighting for women's rights and for women's equality and for all kinds of stuff."

Against Osaka (ggwp, btw), Serena's coach made signals to her. The umpire saw it, and acted accordingly. He then escalated appropriately as per the laws when Serena was mouthing off.

Serena is a champion.

She has previous form for meltdowns at this particular tournament, each time when she's been losing a high profile match.

Each time, she's accused an umpire of cheating/lying/thieving. She's been penalized by both male and female umpires.

Each time, she's been proven objectively wrong.

"I have a daughter, why would I lie?"

Serena, take a look at yourself. You're too good to be behaving like this. Instead of pressuring and intimidating umpires, perhaps in the first instance you should be reflecting.

***

What makes me angry about this is that Serena has doubled down:

"This is just an example for the next person that has emotions, that wants to express themselves and wants to be a strong woman."

She actually BELIEVES her own hype.

You're not a "strong woman" just because you ranted and raved. You wouldn't tell your daughter it's ok to "express herself" by shouting.

"They're going to be allowed to do that because of today. Maybe it didn't work out for me, but it's going to work out for the next person."

No, it won't Serena. History will see through your lies. And instead of holding you up as an example of how you fought The Man, facts will prevail, and there will be an inevitable countercurrent that serves to undermine the next person who has a genuine reason to suspect discrimination, but can't quite pin it down.

And to the plethora of woke journalists who have justified Serena's behaviour by assuring us that she's been oppressed her whole life, and this is just an expression of her fighting back against The Man......I just beg you to ask Ms Kim ("I'll shove a *** ball down your *** throat") and Ms Asderaki ("You're unattractive inside") about their thoughts on a lady who proclaims to be a feminist ambassador.

Groupthink is not journalism - it's sheer cowardice, even if @newtennisfan1999 retweets your article because he thinks you're #woke.

***

While we're on the subject, why yes we can spare a thought for Naomi Osaka, although she is $2m richer and now is set for superstardom, so I'm as sad for her as I can feel for anybody else who receives $2m in a day.

Instead we should be thinking about umpires like Carlos Ramos, who are effectively gagged. He endured Serena's abuse and subsequent accusations. He has no right of reply, and I think that's unfair. Serena owes him a serious apology.

***

The conclusion may not be crystal clear, but I am certain that Serena is diminishing her legacy with these repeated actions, and repeated lack of contrition.

The most infuriating thing for me is that from a wider cultural perspective, this incident tends to serve as a learning point for bigots. They tend to use these events as a silent alarm, and adjust their language and behaviours so that their subtle racism and subtle sexism are that much more difficult to uncover.

For most people, these incidents might be minor blemishes on a glittering career, but for me they are starting to amount to something deeply unpleasant.

k