Nine Game-Changers of 2010 So Far

When Woods apologized to the world, he also blurred the line between public and private like never before.

Press conferences have changed in the digital age. Once the key to getting information out to the public through the media, they are now often televised live, cutting out the middleman. Press conferences are no longer for men in funny hats, waving pens, but are often public conferences – a platform to reach directly to fans, foes, supporters, and naysayers.

This has never been more apparent than on Feb. 19, 2010, when the world stopped and listened to Tiger. Woods’s public conference allowed him to chip out of a sand trap – but in the process he had to expose himself on the green, changing the standards for private/public figures.

Press conference apologies are nothing new. In the past decade the most high profile ones include basketball superstar Kobe Bryant’s, President Bill Clinton’s, and Governor Elliot Spitzer’s brief address. But unlike these three men Woods did nothing legally wrong. Bryant, charged with rape, Clinton, charged with perjury, and Spitzer, tied up in a prostitution ring, were all being held accountable by the law to society at large. Their public addresses were expected, even necessary, as they faced serious allegations that not only disappointed fans and voters, but could land them in life’s proverbial water hazard: jail (not impossible to get out of, but exceedingly difficult).

What exactly did Woods do? Multiple women, multiple (consenting) times, in a multiple of fashions and places. Morally questionable for a married man with children? Absolutely. Illegal? No. Bryant, Clinton, and Spitzer needed to state the facts for public record – Woods needed to state them for the public. That's why his press conference was a game changer: it was a public apology for a private life that we demanded to know about. No analysis was necessary, this was a moment of form over content (nothing was revealed: “I will start living a life of integrity” – please be more vague).

We elect officials and so expect them to uphold certain standards. Everyone should abide by the law. Woods’ press conference marked a move in a new direction. He was not legally bound to be accountable to society. He morally owed an apology to his family and the women he lied to (and, for the record, the latter group never got one). Role model status was imposed on him and he failed to live up to it. In short, his public self was not his private person. Woods’ punishment wasn’t jail, financial ruin, or bodily harm, it was much worse for a notoriously private person – public address.

What came of this public conference? A new bar was raised. We have always demanded that stars and athletes also be role models, but an apology for private legal acts is something new. Moving forward, coming out of the woods will undoubtedly become the standard. And what does this mean for Woods? Well, his game may still be off, but for the public, saying sorry has sufficed.