A Superbowl Story You Won't Read About in the MSM

Not surprisingly, Google News lists nearly 1,000 stories today about Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy being "the first African American coach" to win the Superbowl. (He and rival Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith were in fact the first two African American coaches to get to the Superbowl.) It's yet another milestone that must have MLK, Jr. smiling. February is Black History Month, after all. It makes a decent story, even if everyone is telling the same one.

But how does Tony Dungy think about himself? Is he simply a member of a racial group? Or does he, like Tiger Woods, have a say in how he is labeled? What is primary in his self image? What is his main allegiance? Is being an African American the main thing he thinks about in deciding how to conduct his life? And what about Coach Smith?

Coach Dungy went out of his way to answer those questions (for both of them) in a post-game interview but you won't find his answer in the MSM--unless you happen to live in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Albany, Oregon, Beloit, Wisconsin or Louisville, Kentucky. Here's what Tony Dungy said:

"I'm proud to be the first African-American coach to win this," Dungy said during the trophy ceremony. "But again, more than anything, Lovie Smith and I are not only African-American but also Christian coaches, showing you can do it the Lord's way. We're more proud of that." [emphasis added]

Seven sources on Google News. Seven. And three of those are religious publications. Nine hundred and twenty five went with the African American angle instead. And note that Dungy said "again". If he hadn't, we might not even have the seven we do. When the subject is a sports darling of the moment, his explicit and insistent profession of faith is almost completely ignored. When it's George Bush and he keeps relatively quiet about it, it's a central issue for the MSM.