Summary: As an African-American columnist sportswriter Jason Whitlock has the luxury of commenting on racial issues or any issues he desires, whether it involves sports or not. His column (03-24-2008) discussed Barack Obama and his controversial minister and he was even able to note that he is a friend of Oprah Winfrey. Derek Donovan, the Readers' Representative at the Kansas City Star, was forced (below) to try and justify Whitlock's column.
Jason Whitlock's column choice Derek Donovan Mark Hoover writes: "What was with the political commentary on the sports page this morning? Does that not belong on the editorial page??" Generally, columnists run in the same section of the desk they work for. Their topic choice is up to them and their editors -- who in this case chose a political topic, no doubt because Jason's known for his other commentaries on race, especially as it applies to sports. Readers' thoughts about whether it's a good fit for Sports Daily or not are, of course, fair.