Pubdate: Fri, 6 Feb 2009 Source: USA Today (US) Page: 8A Copyright: 2009 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc Contact: http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/index.htm Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/466 Author: Richard Laermer Note: Richard Laermer runs a public relations firm in New York and is author of 2011: Trendspotting for the Next Decade. Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Michael+Phelps Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/opinion.htm (Opinion) ONE TOKE TOO MANY If Facts Are Concrete and Evidence Clear, Prosecute Phelps to the Max. I'm not Michael Phelps (I can't even swim), but I do have experience working with the notorious who often make fools of themselves at our expense, often with impunity. But Phelps has learned -- the hard way - -- that being famous means being memorable. If you are idolized, then your character is admired. If your character goes bad, then you are simply fodder for late-night comics. It's bad timing for the swimming Olympian. Today, more than anytime I can remember, we need heroes to make ourselves feel good. Maybe what Phelps did last fall was comical to some, pulling on a bong while wearing a backwards baseball cap, but I doubt parents thought so. Kids have few role models, and this one, with tens of millions of adoring fans, should have known better than to waltz into anyone's house and start recreating that way. Sports figures in YouTube America act like they're impenetrable, as if they can do what they want and after the "mea culpa" all will be forgiven. Like rock stars have always done. But being a real champion means that people regard you as superhuman. How does the nation come down from this lasting impression? And, more important, what about a kid who now thinks that drugs are cool after all? I have spent years in PR telling self-important types in the public eye to remember what that eye means: You are always being watched. It's the price of fame. I'm really surprised Phelps' handlers didn't do a "Scared Straight" tour for him of the famous through the years caught with their proverbial pants down. Enough already. If sports celebrities can't take their statuses seriously, then they should be treated like any offender. If the facts are concrete and evidence is clear, young Michael Phelps should, just like Mike Tyson and Michael Vick and O.J. Simpson (yes, O.J.), be prosecuted to the fullest. I am not some fuddy-duddy acting prudish. I am a professional who is shaking his head, thinking about Americans struggling to make ends meet and what they must think of a young multimillionaire like Phelps, who can throw it all away with one toke. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake