Gossip Sites, Magazines Leading Charge Around Tiger's Accident

TMZ Following Woods Story Closely, Leading Mainstream Outlets To Cite Gossip Site

In order to get "anything of substance over the past few days in this increasingly salacious saga" revolving around Tiger Woods' accident Friday, "you must consider the sources," according to Tom Hoffarth of the L.A. DAILY NEWS. The mainstream sports media has "tried to stick with verifying facts before posting stories on their Web sites and in their publications" since the story broke. However, that is "not such a simple process when the competitive urge is to satisfy a dog-paddling audience that dives into the contaminated pool of Internet, sports-talk shows, National Enquirer and a Twitter/Facebook nation of innuendo." The public "can be confused by the fact that when sources for The Associated Press and ESPN got stuck for information" yesterday, it was TMZ.com "to the rescue." The gossip site provided photos of Woods' damaged Cadillac Escalade "as it sat parked next to a neighbor's tree," and ESPN "used those photos during its 'SportsCenter' coverage." ESPN's Tom Rinaldi also cited TMZ in his report. Golf Channel host Rich Lerner said of Woods' accident, "There has been a great deal of speculation around this story. It's difficult at times to separate fact from rumor." Hoffarth: "Expect that to be the norm as long as the sports media continues to bang into every tree and fire hydrant along the way looking for possible leads" (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 12/1).

LEADING THE CHARGE: In Manchester, Lawrence Donegan writes TMZ has been "leading the charge over the last few days" regarding Woods. The Web site has become the "go-to destination for the prurient and now, increasingly, the mainstream media, which has regurgitated almost in its entirety TMZ's version of what took place" (Manchester GUARDIAN, 12/1). In DC, Howard Kurtz notes "all three network morning shows and two evening newscasts joined the crowd Monday in repeating tabloid reports of an alleged affair" between Woods and N.Y. nightclub hostess Rachel Uchitel. This "schizophrenic media approach has produced opposite accounts of what happened." There is Woods' initial account, "that he accidentally hit a tree and his wife, Elin Nordegren, rescued him by smashing the windows with a golf club," and there is the "tabloid-driven version, that a jealous Nordegren inflicted the injuries with that very golf club" (WASHINGTON POST, 12/1). The GLOBE & MAIL's Michael Grange writes the "largely uncorroborated Internet reports over the past few days have elevated an odd traffic accident ... into a full-fledged celebrity scandal the likes of which the comfy world of golf has never seen" (GLOBE & MAIL, 12/1). TIME's James Poniewozik wrote, "Whenever a story like this breaks, the first thing that gets exposed is the gap between media outlets, like TMZ, that unashamedly love this kind of story and cover it well, and more-traditional media outlets, who are either uncomfortable with or unsuited to the story, yet finally can't ignore it." TMZ "can gleefully go with the gossip," but a newspaper is "caught in between." Poniewozik: "Fail to satisfy the newfangled group, and they'll quickly click elsewhere; fail to satisfy the old-fashioned group, and the cancel their subscriptions" (TIME.com, 11/30).

HOLE CREATED BY SILENCE WILL BE FILLED: GOLFCHANNEL.com's Randall Mell wrote with Woods withdrawing from this week's Chevron World Challenge and canceling his tournament news conference, the question is, "When will Woods next speak publicly and what will he say?" Woods "likely won't play a tournament until" the January 28-31 PGA Tour San Diego Open. Mell: "That's 60 hellish days if Woods doesn't address the mysterious circumstances surrounding his crash. You know who will relish those two months if Woods remains silent about the events that night of the crash? TMZ, National Enquirer, Star Magazine, People and other celebrity news and tabloid journalism outlets" (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 11/30). MGP & Associates "counted 3,200 news stories on Woods' crash the first day, 5,100 by the second day, and more than 8,700 as of midday Monday." MGP Founder Mike Paul said that he "expects more until Woods shares his side of the story" (ST. PETERSBURG TIMES, 12/1). Attorney L. Lin Wood said, "These media frenzies always seem to follow the same track. Nowadays, you're dealing not just with the mainstream media. You're talking about 24/7 talking heads. Moving down the food chain, you're talking about the Internet, celebrity Web sites, private bloggers who sit at home under the cloak of anonymity and speculate and accuse" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 12/1).

Woods' Story Appears As Second Item On ABC's "World News"

MEDIA MONITOR: Woods' situation was again one of the tops stories on both last night's network news programs and today's morning shows. The story was the second item on ABC's "World News," with a live report outside Woods' community in Windermere, Florida, followed by an in-studio discussion between anchor Charles Gibson and reporter Terry Moran. Both NBC's "Nightly News" and CBS' "Evening News" had Woods as the third news story, and both nets also included reports filed on location in Windermere. The three morning shows today included live reports from Windermere, with CBS’ “The Early Show” and ABC’s “GMA” including the reports among the news stories covered in the opening segment. NBC’s “Today” first mentioned Woods more than 30 minutes into the opening hour (THE DAILY). Meanwhile, in Orlando, Hal Boedeker reported Woods was "still a major story for local newscasts" last night. Woods was the lead report on the 6:00 news all four local stations. WOFL-Fox anchor Sonni Abatta reported, "We just heard minutes ago that Isleworth residents are so frustrated with the media [around Woods' home], they have now asked the police to tell all the media present to move" (ORLANDOSENTINEL.com, 11/30).