One of our most popular, regular features here at TSP is the “Citings & Sightings” section in which we track media references to sociology, sociologists, and social science more generally. Though it is fun to create and serves an obvious cheerleading function, the impetus behind the feature is not mere disciplinary hubris. Instead, we see Citings & Sightings as a way to help us and our fellow travelers better understand how sociology and social science are understood by others–what the public looks for and expects when they think about the world around them and our contributions to it. In the iteration of this idea we created for Contexts when we were editors of that fine journal (I can use the past tense, since our final issue ships tomorrow!), we borrowed a phrase from the symbolic interactionists for a title: “Reflected Appraisals”–or, as our tag line put it: “We perceive ourselves as we believe others perceive us.”

Of course, in order for us to have Citings & Sightings material, social scientists will have to keep talking to reporters and commenting on timely, public issues. Working with the media like this can be enlightening, but it is not always the easiest or most comfortable exercise. As a sociologist often interviewed on issues related to sports and popular culture, I’ve found this week unusually busy… and nerve-wracking.

It started, innocently enough, with a piece that appeared in one of the major local papers (yes, we have two, one on each side of the river) about the cultural and social effects of having so many unsuccessful sports teams and franchises in the Twin Cities market. (Even Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak’s been known to get in on the Twins-bashing.) Anyhow, I gave my standard responses, tailored as much as I could to the immediate context. I talked about how following a losing team can and often does negatively impact sports fans–and, moreover, how those who have this reaction are often celebrated (or celebrate themselves) as “true fans,” while others are denigrated as fair-weather or band wagon fans. Then I went on to try to defend the latter group a bit, suggesting that their response might actually reflect the fact that they have a pretty good perspective on sports–that while they are happy to celebrate victories, they simply refuse to let the losses bring them down. The finished product focused on these later comments, especially one quote in which I formulated this point specifically with respect to Minnesota fans. The reporter (or, more likely, his editors) even created a sort of side bar to call attention to this portion of our conversation.

The interview itself actually didn’t seem like that big of a deal at the time (I actually took the call between sessions at the national Sociology of Sport meetings that were here in town last weekend), and I even missed the piece when it appeared in the paper on Wednesday morning. But others didn’t. I was asked about it in the coffee shop I use as my satellite office and writing station, and then again when I went to my church choir rehearsal that evening. I don’t know exactly what folks thought about my comments or how they were portrayed (there were several jokes, including one about my apparent ignorance of the recent and decisive Minnesota Lynx WNBA championship), but they definitely saw the piece and at least a few of them were thinking and talking about the topic.

I often try to use such opportunities not only to answer questions, but make bigger points and offer more critical insights about sport and society. And once in a while, there are sports stories and issues that really demand and require it. I certainly felt that way when the rest of my media calls started coming in last week. These ones were about the whole ugly saga unfolding at Penn State.

Thursday morning, I appeared on Kerri Miller’s talk show Midmorning on Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) to comment on Joe Paterno’s firing in the wake of sexual abuse revelations at Penn State. Miller’s producer wanted me to specifically comment on the student response: I said the rioting was uninterested and uniformed, denial at best (and that’s being charitable). And I tried to use the opportunity also to talk about the paradoxical, contradictory place of sport in American culture: how, on the one hand, sports enthusiasts often justify their passions and obsessions on the grounds that sport occupies a higher place; and then, how quickly these same folks can set aside or dismiss social issues that come up in the world of sport on the grounds that it’s “just a game” and shouldn’t be taken so seriously. If ever there was a great example of this, it is Penn State and Paterno. I mean, the whole institutional reputation and legacy was built not only on the fact that Penn State football had a winning tradition, but also on the claims that Paterno led a program that did all this the “right way.” That is, Paterno and his team recruited athletes of high character and integrity, pushed them to become better on and off the field, graduated them at unparalleled rates, etc. All of this, along with the personal ties Penn State fans feel to “JoePa” and to the football program, means that a lot of people are feeling overwhelmed and unable to even talk about this awful situation.

Obviously I didn’t get to say all of that or take any of the tangents that might be sociologically productive in a mere 15 minutes that included several call-ins and a promo or two for next week’s shows. Nerve-wracking to be sure–and rushed as well. But hopefully I was able to contribute some perspective on an episode that so many are struggling to make sense of and live with.  I’m not sure if I should follow this up, or how. Certainly, I’ll continue to follow the case, and I let Miller’s producers know I’d be willing to participate in an extended, followup (though obviously that is not my decision). Perhaps I should write something of my own or undertake a study of what is going on. (Maybe I should just keep my head down and focus on the book project that has been the focus of so much of my time and energy this fall.) But even if I don’t take the initiative myself, I will continue to make myself available to speak when called upon. This, after all, is what public engagement is all about. I mean, how can we complain about the lack of social scientific information and perspective in the public sphere if we don’t at least answer when called upon. Of course, I also have to give Citings & Sightings some material!