I’m one of those who don’t believe athletes should be role models for kids. Charles Barkley said the same thing about 25 years ago saying “Parents should be role models” and he was excoriated for it.
The problem is, our society has a tendency to put people on pedestals. And more often than not, they fall off because of some kind of scandal – be it with a woman, drugs, crime, etc.
In this interview with the Today show Derek Jeter talked about why he had a playing career in the media capital of the world for nearly 20 years without a whiff of trouble or scandal.
Clearly, Derek’s parents were role models in his life. Think about the kind of compliment that is to them, from him.