Why Child's Play Courts Controversy

Last week’s headline grabbing story about cage fighting children was sensational enough to earn a slot on a certain station’s breakfast show two days in a row.

The general sentiment from the media was:

‘Children forced to cage fight in front of a hostile crowd’

But this wasn’t necessarily the case. If headlines had actually been accurate they would have read:

‘Two young MMA fighters grapple in a controlled competition’

and the story would have hit the cutting room floor. The omission of kicks and punches from the competition indicate that the children’s safety was taken into account. Furthermore, the police are not pressing charges.

So why did this particular story make headlines? Because as a society lot of our decisions regarding what is right and wrong are based upon a feeling. The images of two boys grappling in a ring in front of an excitable crowd would have struck a nerve in most. However, when you step away from your emotions and look at the situation objectively – this was nothing more than a controlled competition between two young athletes.

No different from what happens on football pitches around the world on a Sunday morning. It is part and parcel of the realm we refer to as the sports world.

I don’t actually know who won the fight, but I do know that competing in front of an audience is an important part of an athlete’s development and the level of attention that this fight has attracted has put these fighters miles ahead of their peers in many respects.