Whether you love him or hate him, it’s hard to deny the importance of Mark Madden in Pittsburgh sports media. Madden is a polarizing sports talk show host on 105.9 The X and columnist for TribLive. He is not afraid to voice his opinion, which gets him in his fair share of Twitter spars. Most of the time, it’s with fans or other local personalities. But sometimes, athletes will criticize Madden on social media. While players certainly have the right to their opinions, there’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed. And Zach Banner crossed it recently.
There is something that should be understood about Madden before we get into this conversation. Madden has an extensive background in professional wrestling. He has written for pro wrestling publications and was employed by World Championship Wrestling (WCW) as a color commentator. Many people do not understand that Madden takes a pro wrestling approach to his on-air personality. On the mic, Madden is radio’s greatest heel character.
I find Madden incredibly entertaining, which is no surprise as a pro wrestling fan. While I may not agree with his positions 100 percent of the time, he makes very logical arguments. He also doesn’t back down from his positions, which is admirable even if you oppose him on an issue.
I also do not blame those who disagree with him expressing so on Twitter. While I have an issue with the senseless name-calling Madden receives in these debates (mostly about his weight), it is Twitter, and Madden has shown he can take it. The biggest problem I have, however, is the mob mentality of Madden haters encouraging athletes in Pittsburgh to threaten (meaningfully or not) violence against Madden.
Banner took the bait… hook, line, and sinker. Last week Banner, in a poor attempt at a joke, tweeted in promotion of an upcoming interview with ESPN Pittsburgh, “In less than 5 minutes, I will be on a radio show with a couple unathletic adults… Tap in if you’re not busy…”
Whether Banner meant harm in the tweet or not, it comes off as childish. Madden, in response to the tweet, did what Mark Madden does. He was quick to remind Banner that while he may be in the NFL, he isn’t quite impressed with Banner’s performance. Madden responded, “I’ve seen you play. That makes three of us.”
Madden is the media personality; Banner is the player. Madden, like it or not, is doing his job of critiquing performance. Part of the burden of being a professional athlete, or anyone in the public eye, is handling media criticism. It’s not a courtesy; it’s an expectation. If you want the money, fame, and glory, you have to be able to handle criticism with class. Most athletes, taking far more heat than Banner, have done so and continue to.
However, Banner decided to stoop to a new low, responding, “Mark I’ll lay your a** out don’t play with me.” I don’t really care whether Banner was joking or not. That is unacceptable. But, because “He’s Mark Madden” and “Yeah! 72 is eligible,” many people were quick to commend Banner for threatening violence.
Am I supposed to be impressed that an NFL offensive lineman could beat up a radio personality nearing his 60s? What’s the point of that? Instead of coming back with a reasonable rebuttal, Banner showed the mental fortitude of a toddler and fell back on his physical stature.
You can’t solve all your problems with your fists. This is a civilized society. Haven’t we evolved beyond that? Will Zach Banner actually ever assault Mark Madden? No. He may pull a Jim Everett and get uncomfortably close, but that would just be adding stupidity to stupidity. The moral of the story is, while we may want to punch people and may also have the power to do so, sometimes we have to refrain from resorting to middle school tactics of resolving our issues as adults. This is something normal adults should do, especially professional athletes.
