For the most part, if you’re talking about sports right now, you’re basically talking about one of two things. First, the plans and feasibility and ethics of sports coming back, be it amateur or professional. That seems to dominate the lion’s share of the conversation, especially as place like the NBA and Major League Baseball negotiate their models. Second, if you’re not talking about that, you’re probably talking about the small number of actual sporting events that are happening across the globe in some altered form. Like German soccer, which I watched this past weekend being played in a largely empty stadium. A bunch of folks watched a highly publicized charity golf foursome this weekend, featuring golfers Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson along with NFL quarterbacks Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. And NASCAR’s racing, so you can watch that. But it’s still pretty much slim pickings.
Which likely made the 10-part docuseries on Michael Jordan that much more prominent. The Last Dance, which focused on the final 1997-98 championship season of the Chicago Bulls but really became about Jordan’s life up to that moment, has already been seen by tens of millions of viewers. Granted, it’s far short of Tiger King, but what isn’t. But make no mistake, Americans are riveted by the story of Michael Jordan.
Or at least this version of the story. Perhaps the biggest critique of the series was that Jordan himself had editorial control. So if he wanted something out of the story, then it was largely cut. If he wanted something emphasized, let it be so. Which means any particular counter narrative – either about his character or accomplishment – was largely absent. Of course, that shouldn’t be surprising, despite the steady refrain from critics. The extensive access to Jordan and NBA footage would come at a considerable cost. In this case, perhaps objectivity.
The newly released, albeit slightly shorter ESPN series on Lance Armstrong may be a bit more authentic, or perhaps balanced. Through the first 90-minute episode, the story chronicles the cyclists’ short fallings that came with his success. It’s up the viewer to decide whether it’s fair, if that even matters. I suppose it depends on your perspective on doping in sport and perhaps your view on crime and penance. Either way, Lance’s story is probably more palatable to those who prefer less fandom, even if Armstrong will certainly regain some public understanding in the process.
It’s not surprising that these two series have taken on a slightly different tone, stories about two of the greatest and most accomplished athletes in American history – and some could argue the top two. Jordan retired a hero and is remembered as the ultimate winner. Armstrong was kicked out in disgrace and banned from pretty much anything that required a stopwatch. And his accomplishments will forever carry the overbearing varnish of performance enhancing drugs. So Jordan has the power to write his own movie. Lance, not as much.
I won’t get into whether that’s acceptable, or even if it’s accurate. In the end, I don’t think anyone should expect a Jordan documentary with Jordan’s tacit approval to be anything other than what it is. And it begs a far more significant conversation about the differences between and unions of journalism, documentary, and entertainment. Regardless, I will admit to thoroughly enjoying the Jordan series, even if I found it a bit effusive in its praise. And I love the Lance story so far, if only because I started doing triathlons in Texas at the same time and age as Lance. So it’s also nostalgic.
And perhaps that’s the story here. A lot of us miss watching sports a whole lot, not simply because we like sports, but also because of the normalcy it infers. And even when you watch the sports that are on and the wave that’s set to come, it won’t really feel normal. Not with empty stands and a pre-game report of who can’t play because of a positive Covid test. But watching old footage of Jordan and even Lance, those are reminders of the glory of sport, packed arenas, roadsides, and all. Watching Jordan win the 1998 NBA Title didn’t simply remind you how good he was. It reminded us how good it all was. That, for me, is part of the appeal. And part of the reason I’d rather watch this than a live game today played in an empty arena.
Keith Strudler is the director of the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University. You can follow him on twitter at @KeithStrudler
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