Ashley Singleton
Sep 6, 2018 · 3 min read

Larry Nassar

The past year has been a roller coaster for the sport of gymnastics. The sport of gymnastics combines strength and grace and takes physical and mental discipline and skill. Many men and woman have excelled in this sport and it has been a favorite Olympic sport by many Americans. Growing up as a gymnast I have much respect and admiration for the sport and the athletes. Gymnastics has shifted from an extremely respected sport to a sport that turned dangerous and degrading.

It all began many years ago when USA gymnastics hired Larry Nassar as the Olympic team doctor who also treated athletes outside of the Olympic games. Larry Nassar was a respected man. A trusted man. A man looked up to by many. He was considered successful in his field and admired by athletes and coaches all over the world; Including myself and my teammates. Last year it was proven that Larry Nassar had been abusing female athletes for many years. As of today, over 300 woman and counting have spoken out against Larry Nassar. Larry Nassar’s image completely shifted due to his disgusting choices. As a woman who loves the sport of gymnastics it is devastating to see this man completely corrupt the sport and hurt many women, including teammates of mine.

I have chosen to blog about Larry Nassar because I am interested to see how many communication theories apply to him and the people involved. Larry Nassar is the one to blame for the corruption of other individuals, but I do believe that USA gymnastics is also to blame. Throughout my time blogging on this topic I expect to look at each person that is involved, what they are saying, and how their image may have to be repaired. The image repair theory directly correlates to this since USA gymnastics is currently trying to rebuild this sport. I intend to look at how our culture is responding to these tragedies as well as the message that each person involved is trying to convey.

I believe that through this case there are two things that are culture is reflecting. On one hand when looking into Larry Nassar you are reminded of the evil, manipulative, and lost people in the world. On the other side the survivors are reflecting a culture of bravery, vulnerability, and simply standing up for what is right. I predict that as a culture we will grow to stand up for what we believe and no longer sit back and allow evil to flourish as it did in the case of Larry Nassar. I also predict that I will uncover many different communication theories among the many people involved. I intend to study the court cases and what was said by the survivors as well as what was said from Larry’s perspective. Aly Raismen is one of the most public and vocal survivors. I am interested to study what communication theories are shown by her and how her platform in the media affects us as the American people. I predict that her communication style and platform will continue to encourage many men and woman to step forward and for all of us to stand together for what is right. I also predict that the sport of gymnastics will never be the same. I believe that the image repair theory will take place and I am interested to see how USA gymnastics attempts to rebuild this sport following this horrific incident.

The reason that we know about this case, have heard from survivors, and have the ability to study it is because of communication. This topic has a lot to do with communication because at the end of the day it all began with one individual stepping forward and communicating.

I am eager to dig deeper into each member of this tragedy and study their forms of communication before, during, and after the guilty verdict of Larry Nassar.