Super Bowl Myths

In honor of the Green Bay Packers big Super Bowl win, I thought we would explore a few myths tied to the annual event:

1. Myth: Before Super Bowl XXII between Washington and Denver, a reporter asked Redskins quarterback Doug Williams, "How long have you been a black quarterback?" - There seems a misunderstanding led to this myth. In 1988, Doug Williams was the first black quarterback to play in the Super Bowl and thus, was bombarded with various race related questions. One particular reporter asked Williams this poorly worded question: "Doug, obviously you've been a black quarterback your whole life. When did race began to matter to people?" Williams misunderstood the question and responded, "How long have you been a black quarterback?" Due to the monumental circumstances, this question began popping up in various news articles after Super Bowl XXII.

2. Myth: There's an increase in domestic violence on Super Bowl Sunday. - In 1993, a coalition of women's groups held a press conference in California and used "anecdotal evidence" to suggest Super Bowl Sunday is the "biggest day of the year for violence against women" because football fans are known to be quite brutish. There's no evidence to prove women are abused more on this day than any other day, but in this case, the conjecture keeps people aware of a serious subject.

3. Myth: Super Bowl Sunday is the best day to visit Disney World because everyone is at home watching the game. - This one is false. Business at the theme parks tends to slow down on Super Bowl Sunday than on a typical weekend, but not to the point of a complete "ghost town".

4. Myth: The water mains in your city could collapse to massive amounts of flushing toilets. - In the 1980s, a water main did burst open in Salt Lake City during a Super Bowl broadcast. This was attributed to massive amount of flushing during the game by various news reports. However, there is no evidence to prove these reporting true or that it continues to be a problem every year during this event.

5. Myth: A spike in avocado sales for Super Bowl Sunday. - I'm not a big fan of guacamole but this myth is partially true. Millions of avocados are sold every year in time for Super Bowl Sunday. However, Cinco de Mayo still ranks number one in avocado sales.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Actually, there has been a study that found that there are more reports of domestic abuse after "local National Football team[s] los[e] a game" in which they were expected to win. The study was published in the Quarterly Journal of Economics.

Here's a link to the article I quoted from: http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Study+shows+upsets+linked+domestic+violence/4489135/story.html
6:13 PM
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