Lots of outlets have carried the news that Indiana University basketball coach Tom Crean was "incensed" over IU fans chanting vulgarities during the game with Maryland, especially the ones aimed at Maryland senior guard Greivis Vasquez. But they were so coy about what was actually said that I couldn't determine whether I should agree with him or not. This report is typically unhelpful:
Crean was plenty upset about the chant "Still a (expletive)," that was directed at Vasquez as he shot free throws late in the game.
Given that he has a Hispanic name, my first guess was the "s" word. I kept looking around, and, of course, it was the IU student newspaper that did the full reporting job. And it turns out to have been the "p" word (WARNING; ROUGH LANGUAGE AHEAD):
But Crean also said he was disappointed in the fans' profanity. At times they shouted “asshole,” as well as “go back to Cuba” for senior guard Greivis Vasquez and “USA” chants for Jin Soo Choi, the South Korean forward for the Terps. There were also chants of “still a pussy” for Vasquez.
So, based on the knowledge of what was really said, I'd say Crean was more right that wrong to be incensed. The "p" word and the "a" word are pretty tame -- I think I've uttered them myself at times of frustration; so have lots of people. But chanting them in unison with a crowd in public shows a lack of sense and not much taste. And the "Cuba" and "USA" chants are just xenophobic vulgarities unworthy of college students.
That's what happens when the media try to protect (and we do it here, too) our delicate sensibilities. We are left with too little information to judge the worth of what's being reported.
