Justin Gimelstob was interviewed over at On The Baseline about a bunch of different topics, one of which, not surprisingly, was the fallout after his Anna Kournikova comments.
“It was a very painful time of my life. To see people who don’t know you or don’t understand all the information publicly malign you is a very hurtful process. Those sound bites [from the radio talk show] aren’t representative of the person that I am, and the people who know me, know that. Players that rushed to my defense (Andy Roddick and Lindsay Davenport among others) weren’t given the opportunity or the voice to be heard,” said Justin. “It was a better story to tell it the other way.”
“What hurt me the most are the people in the media who I generally have such a good relationship with because I give so much. But the second I took it too far, those same people who would call me for the sound bite, destroyed me.”
Here's my question. Nowhere in any interview or statement I've seen from Justin has he ever adequately explained the comments he made. How were they taken out of context? How were they misinterpreted? What exactly was unfair about the public's reaction to what he said?
To be honest, I don't think Justin is a bad guy. I'm sure he was just trying to say something offensive to get some laughs. We've all been there. What he didn't realize is that he WAS ON A RADIO SHOW. He wasn't in a locker room with his buddies, he wasn't in the car with Andy Roddick, heck, he wasn't even at a public restaurant just getting wasted and saying stupid shit and someone overheard him and called TMZ.
He was on a radio show speaking not just as a player, but as a tennis commentator and a tennis insider. The fact that he didn't realize that the stuff that comes out of his mouth matters is a testament to his short sightedness, idiocy, and naivete. As a tennis commentator you trade on the stuff you say being heard and taken to heart.
And did he really think that media would somehow protect him because he was "one of them"? Dude, you went to Stanford. Please tell me you took a political science or communications class wherein you learned what the role of the media is in society. It ain't a frat.
I'm sorry your feelings were hurt, Justin. Imagine how the girls you railed on felt when they heard your comments. You can't have it both ways. If you can dish it, you better be able to take it.
