By guest host Anthony Brooks:
It’s too soon to know if the Duke University lacrosse players accused of gang-raping an exotic dancer are innocent or guilty.
It has been known for years, though, that police have charged many on that team with rowdy behavior, including underage drinking and urinating in public. It’s also known that after the alleged rape, one of the lacrosse players sent an e-mail to teammates proposing to hire more strippers whom he could kill and skin.
But beyond Duke’s gothic walls, it’s likely that more than a few college coaches are thinking: “that could have been my team.” Duke is just the latest name on a growing list of similar scandals sparking new concern that college sports are too often enclaves of privilege, where pampered jocks are allowed — even encouraged — to play by their own rules.
Are college athletics out of control?
Guests:
Jessica Jones, who’s been covering the rape controversy as a reporter for WUNC.
Robert Malekoff, director of the Sport Management Program at Guilford College. He is former director of athletics at the College of Wooster and Connecticut College, and former Associate Director of Athletics at Harvard University.
David Steele, sports columnist for the Baltimore Sun. He has been covering the rape controversy at Duke University for the paper.
Nancy Hogshead-Makar, professor of law at Florida Coastal School of Law. She has been a strong advocate for gender equity in sports and is director of a legal advocacy center for women in sports. She is an Olympic Triple Gold Medalist and former swimmer at Duke University.
