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CNN Sunday Morning

Interview With Jack Edwards

Aired October 05, 2003 - 08:18   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: By now, just about everybody knows about Rush Limbaugh and the comments that led to his resignation from ESPN's pro football pre-game show. But his comments on race and football are not necessarily new or surprising.
Joining us to talk about the issue of race and sports is former ESPN anchor and reporter Jack Edwards. Good morning to you.

JACK EDWARDS, PLAY BY PLAY ANNOUNCER, HDTV: Good morning, Marty. Nice to be here.

SAVIDGE: Thank you very much. Race and the issue of sports, they have been united for quite a long time. There have been many milestones and many breakthroughs that have taken place. But race has always been in the background there. Sort of explain that to us, how it has been both public and sort of in the back tables.

EDWARDS: Well, you know, the dynamics of our society are such that, you know, race is a factor, unfortunately. Instead of being people who are measured purely by our merits and our accomplishments, we're often measured by other things. And every once in a while an issue like this comes to the fore.

However, in the case of the National Football League, I think that, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) speaking, in terms of what race you are and if that enables you to play a certain position, that's long gone, and it's been gone for more than a generation. And, you know, I think that head coaches in the National Football League will put the best player that they can in the quarterback position because head coaches in the National Football League are only slightly less disposable than bathroom tissue.

You know they're going to do what helps them win. So whether a quarterback is white or black doesn't matter at all to a head coach. You know, whether other people choose to make it an issue is their business.

SAVIDGE: But let's talk about sportscasters. And maybe, is there a lexicon, a language out there that is still used to indicate race, if not directly?

EDWARDS: You know, it's a strange thing, but I think that if you watch an awful lot of televised sports -- and I don't even know if this is intentional; I'm pretty sure it is not. But I think there is a reference to a more athletic player or a smarter player, and there isn't any hard and fast rule to this. But the vast majority of references to more athletic players are references to players who are African-American.

And I would say that the majority of references to smart players are references to Caucasian players. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean that those who definitions are exclusive, but considering that when you describe someone as athletic you tend to describe physical traits, and when you describe someone as smart, you tend to describe mental traits. I think that we're seeing some of the subtle prejudices that are deeply ingrained in our society maybe inadvertently or even unintentionally coming to the fore of it. But I think that's a symptom of a much larger picture.

SAVIDGE: It is, and it's a picture in which Rush Limbaugh has stepped either rightly or wrongly. Thank you very much. We appreciate you coming in. It's a subject everyone is talking about. Jack Edwards, former sportscaster of ESPN, thanks for being with us on a Sunday morning.

EDWARDS: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired October 5, 2003 - 08:18   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: By now, just about everybody knows about Rush Limbaugh and the comments that led to his resignation from ESPN's pro football pre-game show. But his comments on race and football are not necessarily new or surprising.
Joining us to talk about the issue of race and sports is former ESPN anchor and reporter Jack Edwards. Good morning to you.

JACK EDWARDS, PLAY BY PLAY ANNOUNCER, HDTV: Good morning, Marty. Nice to be here.

SAVIDGE: Thank you very much. Race and the issue of sports, they have been united for quite a long time. There have been many milestones and many breakthroughs that have taken place. But race has always been in the background there. Sort of explain that to us, how it has been both public and sort of in the back tables.

EDWARDS: Well, you know, the dynamics of our society are such that, you know, race is a factor, unfortunately. Instead of being people who are measured purely by our merits and our accomplishments, we're often measured by other things. And every once in a while an issue like this comes to the fore.

However, in the case of the National Football League, I think that, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) speaking, in terms of what race you are and if that enables you to play a certain position, that's long gone, and it's been gone for more than a generation. And, you know, I think that head coaches in the National Football League will put the best player that they can in the quarterback position because head coaches in the National Football League are only slightly less disposable than bathroom tissue.

You know they're going to do what helps them win. So whether a quarterback is white or black doesn't matter at all to a head coach. You know, whether other people choose to make it an issue is their business.

SAVIDGE: But let's talk about sportscasters. And maybe, is there a lexicon, a language out there that is still used to indicate race, if not directly?

EDWARDS: You know, it's a strange thing, but I think that if you watch an awful lot of televised sports -- and I don't even know if this is intentional; I'm pretty sure it is not. But I think there is a reference to a more athletic player or a smarter player, and there isn't any hard and fast rule to this. But the vast majority of references to more athletic players are references to players who are African-American.

And I would say that the majority of references to smart players are references to Caucasian players. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean that those who definitions are exclusive, but considering that when you describe someone as athletic you tend to describe physical traits, and when you describe someone as smart, you tend to describe mental traits. I think that we're seeing some of the subtle prejudices that are deeply ingrained in our society maybe inadvertently or even unintentionally coming to the fore of it. But I think that's a symptom of a much larger picture.

SAVIDGE: It is, and it's a picture in which Rush Limbaugh has stepped either rightly or wrongly. Thank you very much. We appreciate you coming in. It's a subject everyone is talking about. Jack Edwards, former sportscaster of ESPN, thanks for being with us on a Sunday morning.

EDWARDS: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com