While idiots from Andrea Peyser to Clinton Portis to John Riggins weighed in on Tuesday, Inés Sainz — the Mexican sports reporter currently on an American publicity tour following alleged harassment by the New York Jets at a practice over the weekend — penned a column for El Universal explaining her side of the story.
While there’s nothing here we haven’t heard in the last two days, the piece amounts to Sainz’ most complete statement on the matter. And it gave me an opportunity to dust off my high school Spanish.
¡Vamos!
Immersed in a Controversial Media Swirl in NY
It gives me special pleasure to share directly with you what has happened here in New York, as I already told you I was in the Big Apple with the special assignment of interviewing Mark Sanchez, an interview I managed successfully, but during which I saw myself involved in a controversy of massive proportions.
The facts have come out in a thousand ways and I want to share my experience on the subject: Yes it's true that I experienced an uncomfortable moment in the Jets locker room. From the moment I walked in they began to comment and fuss about me, but in my profession I have learned to ignore circumstances that may distract me from performing my job; my attitude towards them was serious, I tried not to see or hear anything. I felt it was the best I could do while waiting for Mark Sanchez to finish training.
As I waited with my eyes fixed on Mark’s locker, another journalist who saw the events approached me and politely disagreed with what was happening. He said: "I am very sorry indeed, this is something that should not happen, I feel very bad for you." To which I replied (trying to calm him a bit), not to worry, that I was capable of handling the situation and would rather pretend that nothing was happening.
However, that was just the beginning of what today I can qualify as a whirlwind of news about the incident. The NFL and the actual owner of the Jets have expressed their concern to me about what happened, and in particular, the latter apologized on behalf of the entire team.
What surprised me was the promptness and efficiency with which relevant [NFL] authorities have taken up the matter, and after seeing how they have carried out the research, I decided to leave everything in their hands and not go further with this issue. I gave them copies of the material recorded and, based on their analysis and statements of witnesses, they will exercise their judgment and determine whether or not there will be consequences for someone.
For my part, I feel a responsibility to support the Association of Women Journalists on this point, since in every moment they take care of the integrity of the women in this profession.
I think after this is over, there will be redemption in the fact that, in the future, more women will be respected in this difficult but magnificent profession.
I appreciate the concern and the outpouring of support, affection and solidarity that I have received from all of you and other media, and although today it will be crazy in order to comply with media interviews (requests) coming in from all over the U.S., I expect to return with all of you to time for celebrate our Bicentennial, and to leave this episode behind.
[Translated with the help of Señor Marshall and SpanishDict.com]
