The media (and the general public) can be your best advocate or your worst enemy, depending on the situation. At the present moment, one of the world’s best-known and I’ll go as far as to say, greatest, athletes, is holed up in his home hiding from the world. And who can blame him? 

In summary: Thanksgiving night, Tiger Woods crashes his car into a fire hydrant and then a tree outside his home in an Orlando suburb at 2:30 AM. A neighbor calls 911 and doesn’t identify him and the call cuts off. Somehow his wife frees him by shattering a window in his SUV, and when the police show up, they don’t test for alcohol because according to the Orlando Sentinel, “troopers said they did not have probable cause of impairment.” 

The details are unclear and suspicious. (Have you ever heard of police NOT testing for alcohol impairment in relation to a crash, even one involving only one vehicle, at 2:30 in the morning?) Rumors are flying from the possibility of a domestic argument prior to the crash to the mention by a friend of his late night workouts. Thus far, Tiger has remained silent other than to say that the situation is his fault (but he has not elaborated as to why). Though dozens of reporters are parked outside of the Woods’ gated community, the man who is so often portrayed as a “model citizen and athlete” by the media has avoided all media interviews. 

The internet chatter is buzzing with rumors and opinions, but only one person knows the truth about the accident, and he’s remaining mum on the subject. Were it anyone else, there would be no cameras, and it would not have gone beyond a simple police report. He has since canceled his tournaments for the remainder of 2009, his very livelihood, claiming injuries sustained from the crash. I cannot help but to think that more than any injuries, the last thing he wants is to be in the public eye. 

I work in PR and thus have a fundamental understanding of how this all works, but I still have to ask why we care so much about the details behind this crash. Does it just give us something to gossip about or do people find amusement in knocking a celebrity and talent like him down a few notches? The man is a human being after all; with a family, a home, and a successful career. At some point, people have to ask themselves if needing to know the truth about someone is worth the expense of causing them harm. 

While I continue to hope that this will all disappear from the news real soon for his and his family’s sake, I cannot help but to wonder who will use his courtside Orlando Magic seats while he hides out; I’m happy to cheer in your place, Tiger!