Why Are Athletes Treated Differently Than Other Celebrities?

By Jeré Longman
NYT blog

Once again, a baseball player has tested positive for a banned substance, and people are shocked, shocked at the revelation. How anyone can be startled by Manny Ramirez’s suspension is the only thing that is truly shocking.

Baseball’s entire existence is built on a glorified culture of cheating, from amphetamines to spitballs, from pine-tar bats to stealing signs. Five of the top 12 all-time home run leaders have been linked to performance-enhancing drugs in some form. Those who have been talking lately about the “post-steroid era” are being naïve or willfully ignorant. History has shown that attempts to gain an advantage will never end.

Yet again, we are reminded that performance-enhancing drugs are pervasive in elite sport. The question is, what do we do about it? So far, the most forceful attempts to punish drug users -– done by track and field and cycling -– have backfired miserably. Instead of being applauded for determinedly catching those who dope, these sports have nearly been ruined because they are viewed not as vigilant but as infested.

(More here.)