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| Dr. Richard Lustberg, Ph.D. | ||||||
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Print Media Appearances
Nascar.com
NYDailyNews
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ABC News
The Free Press -
Mankato, MN
The Vail Trail
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seattlepi.com
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STL Today
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BerkshireEagle.com:
Daily Herald:
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Examiner:
PajamasMedia:
ESPN.com:
VC2:
Kane County Chronicle:
Christian Science Monitor:
smh.com.au:
NewsReview.com:
Philadelphia Daily News:
Winston-Salem
Journal:
The Boston
Globe:
USA Today:
Journal Gazette:
The Associated Press:
Newsday.com:
ReviewJournal.com:
PJM News:
Unabated Sports:
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PE
Canoe
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Duquesne Duke Chicago
Tribune Sunday
Herald New
York Daily News
The San Diego Union-Tribune
International Network on Personal Meaning
The Plain Dealer
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On The Couch: Our Need For Sports Stars
The Psychology of Sports
An Analysis of Current Topics and Issues in Sport Sports
By Dr. Richard Lustberg
Astronomers tell us that stars are born at the rate of a nano second.
Newly anointed sports stars are birthed at the same rate; the only
difference between the two is that the terrestrial stars sometimes take
millions of years to form, while sports stars take only seconds.
One case in point (although there are hundreds to choose from) is Eli
Manning, the pubescent quarterback of the New York Giants; star Manning
has played seventeen games to date in his budding NFL career with mixed
individual results. Yet the amount of air time and media coverage he
has gotten is nothing short of extraordinary, and he is treated like
royalty. To Manning’s credit, he clearly has not embraced his
ascendancy, but that has not stopped us from embracing him.
Only a population starved for immediacy and unappreciative of deserved
accomplishment could compare Manning to his older brother Payton. Or is
it that there is only so much we can say or write about established
stars before boredom begins and a “been there done that syndrome sets
in”? There would be nothing left to read, write or watch.
It is interesting to see the comparative ascendancy of movie stars as
well, who suddenly burst upon the silver screen in one film, only to
become the new love of the writers of the many magazines and
televisions programs. No previous film work, no distinguished resume,
but a star is born. And so it is with pubescent sport stars; borne to
the front of sports pages in that nano second.
It has been reported and documented that we are a populace with a short
attention span. Clinical observation has suggested that we need the
next big story or star to deflect us from our own uncomfortable
internal state and the media obliges us. Our escapist needs are
fulfilled, and we scream, cheer, hoot, holler and debate.
I have always felt that sports provides for us a wide range of our
psychological needs. However, most recently it has been disturbing to
see how many more of us know the names of sports stars than our
political leaders in Washington. A most recent television commercial
even touts and encourages this fact.
Whatever happened to experience and, “Let’s wait and see”? I guess we
have to wait and see.