Floyd Mayweather is an arguably great boxer who is about to be part of a ludicrously lucrative brawl. He is also a terrible person and known domestic abuser. He was recently interviewed by Katie Couric, who asked a half-hearted question about the accusations against him, she sits patiently by as he smears at least one of his victims. Deadspin published a comprehensive article about that which ends:
Couric’s failure to question Mayweather is worse. Mayweather’s track record of violence is both significantly longer and better documented than that of Rice, and Mayweather was allowed to smear his victim to a national audience without any cross-examination as Couric’s smiles, nods, and compliments—even a hug—tacitly communicated to a national audience that Mayweather was at worst redeemed, and quite possibly the real victim.
Maybe that’s what it takes to land an interview with Mayweather these days.
When Rachel Nichols pressed Mayweather on his history of domestic violence, he was so flustered that hewalked out of the interview and cancelled all his remaining press appearances. No one was going to risk that happening before the Biggest Event in Boxing History™. It was inevitable that Mayweather was going to find someone to play the sympathetic ear, but it shouldn’t have been someone like Couric, a ground-breaking journalist who damn well knows better.
(Emphasis mine.)
Maybe someone like Katie Couric shouldn’t interview him then. Maybe people shouldn’t spend hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars to watch him punch and get punched. It’s not a great event if no one watches. Mayweather told Couric “Hopefully the world watches.” Let’s crush that hope.
Thoughts?