Thursday, April 6, 2017
Weekly Post #11: Spanish speaking reporter? (April 9)
You would think this story wouldn't really be a story, but it is. Why is this a story? Why aren't more reporters covering baseball able to speak Spanish or willing to engage in the players' first language? And peruse the comment section. People say the wackiest stuff. What are your thoughts on this non-story being a story and the topic in general? Should MLB do more to help players express themselves?
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Looking through the comments section, it's interesting (to say the least) to see the different opinions regarding learning new languages to fit in and/or communicate. Personally, I think that while learning the language of the country one is immigrating to is incredibly valuable and an essential step for integration, it is equally essential that the tools for such education should be made more readily available to those who need it, and failing that, interpreters or reporters who speak the interviewee's native tongue should take it upon themselves to help them be more heard in such an environment filled with English-speaking voices.
ReplyDeleteReading through the article it is clear that this is a complicated issue, and reading through the comments only confirms that. Baseball is seen as America's sport and yet much of what has made baseball great and what continues to keep it great is globalization and the access to players from other countries. Many of the all time greats and the best players in the MLB today are not US born, and for many English is not their first tongue, if they are fluent at all. And yet while these players do so much to advance baseball, the MLB does little for them. Sure they are paid, just as any American player is. But what the comment section largely fails to realize is that US players are born into a level of privilege that comes with being able to work in their home country with a language and culture familiar to them. For many players from the DR and other Spanish speaking countries, not to mention Japan or any other foreign country for that matter, playing baseball in the US is difficult. In the story, the issue of a player not even knowing if he was eligible for playoffs is a large one. For him baseball is his passion and his work and because of the language barrier he was not able to understand his own conditions. There was another story told in class about a baseball player who could barely eat because he didn't know how to cash his checks due to the language and culture barrier. The MLB needs to do more for players who do so much for it. Whether that be translaters, more Spanish and other foreign language speaking reporters, lessons on the most basic things like cashing checks and who is eligible to play, or something else. What matters is some effort on the part of the MLB and some real progress to be seen
ReplyDeleteThough the MLB should encourage learning of English for players to better assimilate after their careers, there should be no reason why players (while still fumbling with English) should not be able to have the ability to express themselves in the way they want to, no matter if that requires a Hispanic reporter or not. Obviously, players like Salas have far less knowledge of English than Spanish, so interviews in English would be far less productive than Spanish ones simply due to less mastery. I do not believe sports networks should artificially recruit more writers simply due to knowledge of a language, but sports networks should definitely try to accommodate players who can not give great English interviews because, after all, sports stations are looking for the best material and a language barrier may prevent them from achieving this.
ReplyDeleteI think that the lack of Spanish speaking baseball journalists speaks to the issue of "American" superiority, or English-speaking and white superiority and intolerance of cultural and surface-level difference. I agree with George in that there should be more opportunities and easier access for those who do not speak English to learn, but I also think it is the responsibility of the news companies to employ journalists who are fully able to complete their task of accurately representing and reporting on the players. Employers could encourage a more equal and respectful connection between players and journalists by requiring reporters to be bilingual, or at least proficient in Spanish.
ReplyDeleteI think that there are many issues that start due to a lack of knowledge about other people’s languages and cultures. Players are often put in tough situations due to the difference in language and customs, and I feel like this happens a lot with reporters. Having a reporter that speaks the same language as the players is helpful to both sides in making them feel more comfortable and actually understanding what the players mean. I think it establishes a more equal ground for these players and the MLB should continue to try and help the non-english speaking players, because the sport is international and many of the best talent comes from non-english speaking countries.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is a story because it is showing the progression of all industries ie. baseball and reporting. It is important to acknowledge this and then it also gives the players who were not allowed to have a voice because of the language barrier a chance to speak for themselves. But it shouldn't stop at just one reporter because one person shouldn't be the voice for all people of that language. The MLB should try to accommodate those who are under represented in the media by providing translators or more reporters that speak those languages. Overall, baseball is played all around the world and people who are just different because they don't speak the same language should still be able to be equally represented in the news.
ReplyDeleteLanguage barriers represent a considerable issue for professional sports, specifically Major League Baseball. In many European soccer leagues, players are guaranteed to learn the native language due to the fact that the Clubs are more involved with their investments and offer language based classes to their players. I also know that a lot of Japanese baseball players have translators written into their contract, which helps them integrate into US society. I personally think more should be done to help Spanish-speaking players adapt to the American lifestyle. Whether that means establishing language classes or setting Latin players up with better agents to negotiate translators into their contracts, I believe it should be a priority. However, it is a very complicated issue because unlike European cultures reporters aren’t required to know multiple languages. Also it wouldn’t really be possible for reporters to interview players in Spanish on an English based channel.
ReplyDeleteWhat really stuck out to me about this piece was Salas' confusion with his contract due to the language barrier between him and the Atlanta Braves. This example is one of many in which a language barrier has led to a lack of communication and confusion. Wagner does a good job of breaking down this language barrier and using his Spanish speaking abilities to connect with players who have been written off as uncommunicative due to their inability to fully communicate with non spanish-speaking reporters. The MLB should make a conscious effort to introduce more multilingual reporters in order to support Spanish speaking players and improve communication between clubs and their players.
ReplyDeleteI think the issue of latino players not being able to get their voice circling in the media is because of the language barrier. Latino players are a minority, making up only 30% of MLB players, yet majority of reporters don't speak Spanish. I don't think American reporters don't care what these players have to say, as much as it is just easier for them to write articles in English. However, I don't think the language barrier should be an excuse for reporters to only represent players who speak good English. Introducing interpreters in the clubhouse is a step in the right direction, but I think the next step is to make their voices more prominent outside of the clubhouse by providing Spanish speaking reporters as an additional resource.
ReplyDeleteI think they covered this story because it's one of the interesting nuances of the clubhouse. So much of what goes on behind the scenes in baseball games goes uncovered, but it's good to see that reporters have focused on an important issue. I think more should be done to voice the insights and opinions of Latino players, but I understand the dilemma faced by many reporters that just like Spanish speaking players, they don't have the time to learn a new language. Despite this, I still think a lot could be done to voice the opinions of Latino players more clearly.
ReplyDeleteIt is honestly quite sad that it is noteworthy enough to be written up as an article that there is a Spanish-speaking reporter for the MLB, when a significant portion of the players are Latino, and many of those players’ first language is likely Spanish. It puts them at an immediate disadvantage, and this obviously does not have much attention. Reading this was the first time I considered players’ who don’t speak English well, and that’s a sad fact. I think this speaks to a larger phenomenon in America, where native English speakers, usually white people, have a sense of superiority over foreigners, especially immigrants, who don’t speak English well or at all. One of the people who commented on the article is from Mexico and he spoke to this, and added how Americans who visit Mexico don’t speak Spanish and they just find Mexicans who speak English to talk to. It’s so easy for Americans to say “just learn English” when they wouldn’t consider trying to learn Spanish, when it is by far the most spoken language in the US besides English. I think this article and the apparent significance of an American baseball reporter speaking Spanish just highlights this problem.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with what one of the comments said about people working in countries not of their first language. There are plenty of people who move to other countries for work but that doesn't mean that they have to learn the language. The main idea here is baseball, that is why they are here and that is what it is all about, not learning english. I understand the frustration to which these people feel regarding their desire to hear more from Spanish-speaking players, I just don't think it is their responsibility to learn English. The NYT almost glorifies this one reporter who knows Spanish when in reality, there should be a lot more people reporting who can do more than just small talk in order to truly connect with the players in Spanish. It isn't always easy learning the language of a county one is not necessarily always welcome in. I don't think people are taking that into consideration.
ReplyDeleteI thought the article was extremely interesting as it covered a topic that I had never really considered before. I was extremely surprised to hear that the MLB only hired Spanish speaking translators in 2016. The comments generally gravitated towards two base ideologies:, either the translators and Spanish speaking reporters were extremely beneficial to both parties or those that thought these people would disincentivize Spanish speaking players from learning English. I both ways of thinking have some truth to them, but anything that allows more participation is something positive. I think that Spanish speaking is a great skill for a MLB reporter to have, but it's not really a necessary skill (especially with the new translators), but nonetheless is a refreshing sight for the media to engage with the players in their native language.
ReplyDeleteHonestly think its a bummer that there are not more Spanish speaking reporters willing to get into baseball reporting. Whether there is not a demand for them because the players are forced to speak English or the coverage of baseball is dominated by the white male it is something that should be looked at. Latin players would really appreciate the ability to speak in their native language and put together an interview they are more confident in. I know an ESPN reporter Pedro Gomez sometimes does his interviews in Spanish and to be honest I enjoy it more as the players seem to be more heartfelt. Also can't we give these Spanish speaking players who effectively saved baseball another way to feel welcome in the MLB, just a thought.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading the article, but almost enjoyed reading the comments more. The first one that showed up for me was explaining in detail the phonics of the Spanish language and how difficult it is for native English speakers to master. The last sentence is possibly the best: "Even a smart Princeton/Harvard trained politician, Ted Cruz, despite having a father who is a native Spanish speaker, never learned Spanish beyond a few sometimes mangled phrases." By saying that since even Ted Cruz never learned spanish, they imply it is ok for english speakers to not learn spanish because it is not necessary and too hard to learn, something that is comical considering that a huge amount of kids learn spanish from kindergarten, so it can't be that hard. Overall, it would be great to see a lot more spanish-speaking/Latino reporters, especially considering that the game has become 30% Latino. How can one reporter talk to that many players possibly seeking someone to speak with in their native language? (They can't, so there should be more diverse reporters).
ReplyDeleteI think this article is very interesting and is something that should be talked about more in baseball. To really get to know players and publish accurate articles about them and their skill, I would imagine that its important to communicate with them in an authentic and real way, which is what Wagner does with the Spanish speaking Mets players. They are able to open up to him by comfortably speaking their own language, which is important to the Latino culture in the MLB. The MLB should take action to hire more Spanish speaking reporters in order to better represent the growing Latino culture in baseball.
ReplyDeleteFor me, this article was very eye opening. Although I knew that not all MLB players grew up speaking english, I never thought about how english as a second language might affect their publicity. After reading this article it seems silly to me that we wouldn't have more reporters who speak native languages. The evidence in this article showed that the reporter who spoke spanish was able to develop personal relationships and make players who were normally guarded towards the press open up. Being able to communicate in a natural way with reporters allows fans to know more about them. Although this sounds like exploitation, it is not because reporters that speak that same language will ensure that the players message is getting across but also the more news there is on a player the more people read about that player. More publicity means more fans and more sponsorships, leading to more money. I'm not saying that money is the most important part of the game, I am saying that with more reporters that are bilingual, the non-english speaking players will be put in the same playing field as english speaking players, allowing them to have more of the same opportunities.
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