With the increase of media coverage over that last few decades, the responsibilities of professional athletes have become much greater than simply sports related. These men and women have been exposed by the media in good and bad ways, but it seems that their true stories are sometimes being flipped just in order to create a more interesting situation. I find this attention and athlete's behavior work together in multiple ways. Whether the media is showing a good deed by a great person or exposing the flaws in another's personality, professional athletes are constantly being examined under a microscope by the world. Athletes seem to be working as much to be role models as they are to win games, and it sometimes just isn't fair. As Americans find themselves obsessing over professional sports today, the teams and athletes that we seem to love so much aren't always the positive role models that we want our youth to be looking up to.
             All athletes shouldn't be obligated to become role models to the people they perform in front of; they should simply be obligated to be performers. A role model is someone that people can look up to and it is a tremendous responsibility, a responsibility that shouldn't rest on the shoulders of a professional athlete whom is already feeling pressure from every other aspect of daily life. Athletes are expected to be role models much more than the average actor or singer. As an article from The New York Times by Arn Tellem says, "Athletes are nothing more than entertainers. Are other performers – Johnny Depp, Eminem, or Halle Berry – expected to be role models? Quite the opposite." This quote defines the responsibility that athletes are forced to take on while other famous persons can sing extremely harsh lyrics in a rap song, or sexually expose themselves more than once in a blockbuster movie. Most athletes are able to take on the multi tasks of...