All-Star Espn Article About All-star Cheer Anyone? :)

[canz]

Can you quote the part you're talking about? i reeeeally don't want to read this whole article again looking for this girl's name (I read it all the way once--but I didn't actually memorize it). But I was interested in your comment and wanted to see what you were referring to. I tried to skim over it and I couldn't find it.

Hang on I will find it for you. I know its just the writer's opinion but I think when someone is writing about a young child this is not appropriate.

 

[canz]

"Cailyn Jackson, the coach's 8-year-old daughter, competes on the Glitter Stars and other, more advanced teams, and she has the sass down cold."

It's basically taking the mickey out of an 8 year old... it's possibly not as bad as the flat chested and other inappropriate comments but given how talented that child is for her age I just found it straight out rude.

 

[Just-a-Mom]

"Cailyn Jackson, the coach's 8-year-old daughter, competes on the Glitter Stars and other, more advanced teams, and she has the sass down cold."

It's basically taking the mickey out of an 8 year old... it's possibly not as bad as the flat chested and other inappropriate comments but given how talented that child is for her age I just found it straight out rude.

Thanks--it was just so long!!! And yes, I totally agree. "Sass"??? That's all she gets from an 8-year-old that competes on "other, more advanced teams"? I get: driven, talented, skilled, committed, hard-working...and I've never even seen the girl! I get both points of view on this article--that this woman doesn't know anything about allstar, and can only write what she sees. But she really didn't even try to "see" anything other than what her preconceived notions of allstar were. She could've written the same article without even going to the gym. I really wish she wouldn't have chosen a mini team to follow--and I reeeeally wish CEA wouldn't have allowed it!

 

[cheer8]

I wish people would stop saying we have short skirts and blaming sexuality on that... Runner in the olympics and tennis players have just as little or smaller uniforms... ESPN if you talk about cheer like that tell the runners and tennis players the same.
Thanks

 

[cheer4cea]

I am Lymarie Jackson and Cailyn is my daughter. When CEA was approached about the article it was proposed as a look into the youngest athletes in a sport growing in popularity and legitimacy. Because the publication was ESPN the Magazine rather than say, Good Houskeeping or Glamour, we thought it would be a great opportunity to dispense with the tired uneducated sterotypes of all star cheer to focus on the athletisism and dedication these athletes show day in day out and the positive life lessons they learn by participating in the sport. We were convinced that this team would be a good focal point because it includes first year athletes with seasoned vetereans (Cailyn is only 8 but this is her second year competing with a level 5 team. Last year she was on Youth Elite out of Kernersville and this year she is on Raleigh's Small Jr 5. Because of her talent she is generally placed on teams with athletes that are far older than she is. I wanted for her to compete with athletes her own age and younger, where she could be in a position to be team leader and where she would learn to base rather than her traditional position as a flyer). When Ms. Shapiro came to the gym over the course of a number of days, we worked hard to educate her on the sport. She had no absolutely no background knowledge and we worked with her so that she would be equipt to show the world why all star cheer deserves a spot among other youth sports in the country. It was clear when I read the article that Ms. Shapiro came in with stereotypes in mind and just plugged people's names into the ideas she had in her head about what cheerleading is. The situations and conversations were taken out of context and edited to pieces in order to paint the picture she wanted to describe, rather than taking the opportunity to focus on the real story of the athletisism and talent with which these kids have been gifted. She omitted information and descriptions which would have contradicted her world view. The majority of the piece was sensationalized rather than factual. I could go down the line, sentence by sentence and tear the piece to shreds. For example, her descriptions of a team that was falling all over the floor only to miraculously hit a "passable" routine is dishonest. This team is consistent. Our training as coaches would not allow us to place anything on the competition floor that was wasn't. Moreover, to describe me as having "mascara painted lids" is laughable. I wear very little makeup... and I have very little time to "shriek" during routines, especially a glitter stars routine, because I am busy shouting out reminders, counts and encouragement to the athletes. The caricature she chose to portray me with is so unlike my actual values and personality that I can only hope that it creates suspision about the entire article for those that know me. It was not a true picture of our gym and the values we teach through this sport. She was looking to paint the industry as "Toddlers and Tiarras" regardless of what she saw in front of her. Did you notice that with the one male coach she chose to mention she also included his sexual preferrence and his hairstylist boyfriend? Just like the mention of the naked doll and flat-chested girl, it was unnessesary but to perpetuate sterotypes and to color the sport with the crayons that she had already picked out.

I am sorry for the rant, but to say that I am extremely unhappy with the piece is an understatement.

 

[cheer4cea]

I wish people would stop saying we have short skirts and blaming sexuality on that... Runner in the olympics and tennis players have just as little or smaller uniforms... ESPN if you talk about cheer like that tell the runners and tennis players the same.
Thanks

Exactly. Yes, our athletes wear make-up, but so do any actors on a live stage. If we came across an actor about to set foot on stage for a performance we would see that his/her make-up, though over the top for day to day wear, was intended, not to exude sexuality, but instead to make facial features recognizable over distance and under harsh lights. Yes, our uniforms are form-fitting, but they show no more leg than a gymnasts' leotard or a swimmers' suit. Had Ms. Shapiro asked, we could have told her that the design of a skirt and top is a nod to traditional cheerleading, but that the styles must be form-fitting for a variety of reasons. Just as dancers wear leotards so that instructors can see body lines and correct formbreaks, as coaches we too have to see our athletes body's to correct their technique when necessary. Moreover, can you imagine how difficult and dangerous it would be to catch a spinning, flipping body with the excessive fabric from a skirt that was"mid-thigh" flapping around?

 

[Just-a-Mom]

Lymarie--thank you for posting that. I think that most of us already saw through all of that, and it upsets me tremendously that unfortunately most of the people who read this will just have their own preconceived notions reinforced. I do hope you will contact the magazine and the woman with your opinions. I already knew it was a complete hatchet job of what she was presented by CEA and now after your post I even understand why CEA chose the mini team for her to follow. So I take back my comment that I wish CEA hadn't allowed it--I genuinely think you were misled and I'm sorry for that. I also would have thought that someone from ESPN would "get it" once they saw the sport actually in action--especially since they are the ones who TELEVISE our events!!!

 

[cheer4cea]

Thanks--it was just so long!!! And yes, I totally agree. "Sass"??? That's all she gets from an 8-year-old that competes on "other, more advanced teams"? I get: driven, talented, skilled, committed, hard-working...and I've never even seen the girl! I get both points of view on this article--that this woman doesn't know anything about allstar, and can only write what she sees. But she really didn't even try to "see" anything other than what her preconceived notions of allstar were. She could've written the same article without even going to the gym. I really wish she wouldn't have chosen a mini team to follow--and I reeeeally wish CEA wouldn't have allowed it!

Thank you so much! You are right on in your observations. I described in my post above why we agreed to being followed. The direction of the article was not what was proposed and not even hinted at by the writer during her interviews. Before Ms. Shapiro came to Raleigh, Kelly and I talked about a the possibility that the article would be negative, but we were confident in the quality of our program and the values that we focus on within it. Believe me, we talked with Ms. Shapiro at length about our advanced teams, invited her to practices, etc. She had a perfect gateway into following level 5 teams with Cailyn competing with Small Jr. 5 and JoHanna competing with Youth Elite. She chose to ignore that. As you said, the article could have been written without coming to our gym... she just crammed real names into what she had already imagined in her mind, whether or not the descriptions really fit.

 

[Deleted member 1556]

thank you so much for telling what actually happened. You and your daughter seem like great people, who really know/love the sport. I'm sorry that it didn't turn out the way it should have :/

 

[Just-a-Mom]

Thank you so much! You are right on in your observations. I described in my post above why we agreed to being followed. The direction of the article was not what was proposed and not even hinted at by the writer during her interviews. Before Ms. Shapiro came to Raleigh, Kelly and I talked about a the possibility that the article would be negative, but we were confident in the quality of our program and the values that we focus on within it. Believe me, we talked with Ms. Shapiro at length about our advanced teams, invited her to practices, etc. She had a perfect gateway into following level 5 teams with Cailyn competing with Small Jr. 5 and JoHanna competing with Youth Elite. She chose to ignore that. As you said, the article could have been written without coming to our gym... she just crammed real names into what she had already imagined in her mind, whether or not the descriptions really fit.

I was actually surprised by the slant of the article myself--and I was even WARNED because I read this thread first!

So I can only imagine your reaction when you first saw it! And how completely unfair and devastating to your poor daughter to think she was going to be in an article in such a big magazine only to have them essentially slander her. I think we all know that CEA offers one of the highest quality programs available, and I only wish Ms. Shapiro would have had more of an open mind when she came in. Even I have had my mind changed on some things related to cheer by interacting with the people on this board--and I thought I already knew everything!

I don't suppose there is any way you could get either her or another reporter to come back and really actually pay attention???

 

[cheer4cea]

Lymarie--thank you for posting that. I think that most of us already saw through all of that, and it upsets me tremendously that unfortunately most of the people who read this will just have their own preconceived notions reinforced. I do hope you will contact the magazine and the woman with your opinions. I already knew it was a complete hatchet job of what she was presented by CEA and now after your post I even understand why CEA chose the mini team for her to follow. So I take back my comment that I wish CEA hadn't allowed it--I genuinely think you were misled and I'm sorry for that. I also would have thought that someone from ESPN would "get it" once they saw the sport actually in action--especially since they are the ones who TELEVISE our events!!!

Thank you! I appreciate your kind words. I am definitely composing an email to Ms. Shapiro and to the editor that contacted me for information. You should know that Ms. Shapiro chose the team she wanted to follow, another indication that she already knew the direction she wanted the article to take before she set foot in North Carolina. We just agreed to it thinking that the focus would be great athletic accomplishments by little people, not to paint a caricature of irresponsible coaches and mothers who live to objectify and endanger their children. Like you said, this is ESPN, an institution that is supposed to be about ATHLETES and the sports that they play.... My assumption, like yours, would have been that anyone writing for such a publication would at the very least be well-versed in competitive sports, even if not all star cheer, and that would "get it" when they saw the athletes in action. But you know what they say about what happens when we assume....

 

[cheer4cea]

I was actually surprised by the slant of the article myself--and I was even WARNED because I read this thread first! :oops: So I can only imagine your reaction when you first saw it! And how completely unfair and devastating to your poor daughter to think she was going to be in an article in such a big magazine only to have them essentially slander her. I think we all know that CEA offers one of the highest quality programs available, and I only wish Ms. Shapiro would have had more of an open mind when she came in. Even I have had my mind changed on some things related to cheer by interacting with the people on this board--and I thought I already knew everything! :p I don't suppose there is any way you could get either her or another reporter to come back and really actually pay attention???

It is funny you say that, because in my letter I was going to suggest to the editor that if the magazine was interested in a story that was actually about the SPORT rather than a sensationalism of the fluff surrounding it, I have experience in journalism and a degree in communications from UNC-Chapel Hill and would gladly write a piece. There is no way I would trust Ms. Shapiro for objectivity. She was given ample information to have written a balanced article.

I don't argue that some of the practices in the sport can seem over the top to an outsider. As I mentioned in a post above, the make-up on a 6-year-old CAN seem heavy when looked at "face to face" and the uniforms ARE glittery and small. I don't blame anyone for asking questions and looking for honest answers. And I can certainly agree to disagree on the legitimacy of those answers. But I resent the lack of balance in her writing. I resent that she never asked the questions which would clarify our point of view and as a result she misinformed a public that is already largely uneducated about our sport.

 

[canz]

I am Lymarie Jackson and Cailyn is my daughter. When CEA was approached about the article it was proposed as a look into the youngest athletes in a sport growing in popularity and legitimacy. Because the publication was ESPN the Magazine rather than say, Good Houskeeping or Glamour, we thought it would be a great opportunity to dispense with the tired uneducated sterotypes of all star cheer to focus on the athletisism and dedication these athletes show day in day out and the positive life lessons they learn by participating in the sport. We were convinced that this team would be a good focal point because it includes first year athletes with seasoned vetereans (Cailyn is only 8 but this is her second year competing with a level 5 team. Last year she was on Youth Elite out of Kernersville and this year she is on Raleigh's Small Jr 5. Because of her talent she is generally placed on teams with athletes that are far older than she is. I wanted for her to compete with athletes her own age and younger, where she could be in a position to be team leader and where she would learn to base rather than her traditional position as a flyer). When Ms. Shapiro came to the gym over the course of a number of days, we worked hard to educate her on the sport. She had no absolutely no background knowledge and we worked with her so that she would be equipt to show the world why all star cheer deserves a spot among other youth sports in the country. It was clear when I read the article that Ms. Shapiro came in with stereotypes in mind and just plugged people's names into the ideas she had in her head about what cheerleading is. The situations and conversations were taken out of context and edited to pieces in order to paint the picture she wanted to describe, rather than taking the opportunity to focus on the real story of the athletisism and talent with which these kids have been gifted. She omitted information and descriptions which would have contradicted her world view. The majority of the piece was sensationalized rather than factual. I could go down the line, sentence by sentence and tear the piece to shreds. For example, her descriptions of a team that was falling all over the floor only to miraculously hit a "passable" routine is dishonest. This team is consistent. Our training as coaches would not allow us to place anything on the competition floor that was wasn't. Moreover, to describe me as having "mascara painted lids" is laughable. I wear very little makeup... and I have very little time to "shriek" during routines, especially a glitter stars routine, because I am busy shouting out reminders, counts and encouragement to the athletes. The caricature she chose to portray me with is so unlike my actual values and personality that I can only hope that it creates suspision about the entire article for those that know me. It was not a true picture of our gym and the values we teach through this sport. She was looking to paint the industry as "Toddlers and Tiarras" regardless of what she saw in front of her. Did you notice that with the one male coach she chose to mention she also included his sexual preferrence and his hairstylist boyfriend? Just like the mention of the naked doll and flat-chested girl, it was unnessesary but to perpetuate sterotypes and to color the sport with the crayons that she had already picked out.

I am sorry for the rant, but to say that I am extremely unhappy with the piece is an understatement.

Hi Lymarie
That is exactly what I was so unhappy with about the piece. The reason I pulled out the bit about your daughter was specifically because she is a talented athlete who competes on level five teams and I found it incredible that, having encountered a child that is regarded as highly skilled for her age, the only thing she could report about her was her "sass"? You should not in anyway feel responsible for what this writer has chosen to say. I think it is really sad that Ms Shapiro chose to abuse the goodwill you extended to her in allowing her to come into your gym and to follow this group of girls. It is not ok for someone to write about young children like this ever.

 

[xtremeteal4life]

It was clear when I read the article that Ms. Shapiro came in with stereotypes in mind and just plugged people's names into the ideas she had in her head about what cheerleading is. The situations and conversations were taken out of context and edited to pieces in order to paint the picture she wanted to describe, rather than taking the opportunity to focus on the real story of the athletisism and talent with which these kids have been gifted. She omitted information and descriptions which would have contradicted her world view. The majority of the piece was sensationalized rather than factual. I could go down the line, sentence by She was looking to paint the industry as "Toddlers and Tiarras" regardless of what she saw in front of her. Did you notice that with the one male coach she chose to mention she also included his sexual preferrence and his hairstylist boyfriend? Just like the mention of the naked doll and flat-chested girl, it was unnessesary but to perpetuate sterotypes and to color the sport with the crayons that she had already picked out.

I am sorry for the rant, but to say that I am extremely unhappy with the piece is an understatement.

I just knew that this was the case. Her slant was obvious from the beginning. You could tell by her overly "descriptive" narration. It was passed the "painting a visual picture for the audience" point. That much was obvious. I'm so sorry you and your daughter were portrayed with such journalistic dishonesty. The level of journalistic dishonesty in this day and age (from the newspaper to television news) is astonishing to me. I've checked verifiable facts in numerous articles throughout the years that have been relayed or portrayed inaccurate. It is completely irresponsible and shows a lack of integrity in the profession. I mean, if I can find it within a 30 second google check, how can a journalist not be able to verify it [it being facts]?

....and YES I did notice that too and I'm glad you brought it up because I forgot. It was obvious the "gay cheerleader" stereotype she was trying to portray. Have you written a letter to the editor? I think I'm about peeved off enough at this point to take an hour or two and do it myself. I'd love nothing more than to see her have to write a retraction at the very least.

 

[yougottabelieve]

Thank you! I appreciate your kind words. I am definitely composing an email to Ms. Shapiro and to the editor that contacted me for information. You should know that Ms. Shapiro chose the team she wanted to follow, another indication that she already knew the direction she wanted the article to take before she set foot in North Carolina. We just agreed to it thinking that the focus would be great athletic accomplishments by little people, not to paint a caricature of irresponsible coaches and mothers who live to objectify and endanger their children. Like you said, this is ESPN, an institution that is supposed to be about ATHLETES and the sports that they play.... My assumption, like yours, would have been that anyone writing for such a publication would at the very least be well-versed in competitive sports, even if not all star cheer, and that would "get it" when they saw the athletes in action. But you know what they say about what happens when we assume....

tell her shes got a boatload of unhappy people....