I'm African American and watched and I do not believe this was intentional or meant anythiing. However, again, the MEDIA is putting it out there to start the arguments. Why didn't YOU use this space to praise Gabbi

I totally agree with you. They have media junkies that like to do nothing but stir up trouble. If they noticed their misstake they should have done something about it. They went on ahead and ignored it, then want to bring it to the attention of the public. Praise our young athletics instead of trying to use them as a contraversies.

I so totally agree with ladyday and marshar! OMG! Bob Costas has been a great guy for decades and because of some stupid planning by NBC, the MEDIA is making Bob out to be some kind of raceist!!!! To all of you IDIOTS, I say... GET A LIFE!

I'm African American and I noticed it but was not phased by it. She did a good job representig her country. All of us are not just waiting to play the race card. I would imagine that had the Russian or Romanian won that same commecial would have aired. But if the network would had the right sensitive people in place it probably would have said lets push this one back a slot. Still I had no problem with it other than say they should pay more attention to their sequences.

Yeah, I'm American-American and it didn't phase me either. I mean, why should anybody be offended by a cute commercial with a monkey doing gymnastics just because it followed the piece on Douglas winning gold. The people offended reflect their own insecurities. As has been noted, that particular ad was going to run in that time slot no matter who won. It's only offensive if for some reason you actually associate African Americans with monkeys, in which case you have your own set of issues that you need to deal with.

Very nicely put.

Your are truly a role model for all of us. So many people do play the race card and it is just so irrepsonsible. People who are guilty of discrimination should be called out and perhaps punished. But we don't need to fight this battle every time something is said or done innocently...thank you for your leadership.

Besides. Bob Costas has notihing to do with that TV spot or when or where it is shown -- Advertising is produced, sold and placed by ad agencies and the TV stations sell the time/space. Mr. Costas' job is a on-screen sports talent.. You can no more blame him for this ill--placed TV ad than you can for getting a bad french fry @ your local McDonald's. A major sponsor -- He did not have anything to do with it!

I have the utmost respect for Bob Costas. If anything he was trying to encourage more African-American young girls to get involved in the sport of gymnastics! If that is his crime then something is defiitely wrong with your outlook on this subject! Maybe some overlook the American part of African-American, we all on the same team, TEAM AMERICA!!!

Yeah, but we can 'go after' Brian Ross, NBC's so-called "Investigative Reporter"--after his bloody faux pas in the Aurora shooting. What was done to him???? Absolutely NOTHING!!!!

Seems that the organization has been after Bob ever since he wanted to do a tribute to the kidnapped Olympians of the past. I think they just want to brow beat him!

The 72 Israeli Olympias weren't just kidnapped they were slaughtered like animals.
While I generally do not care for Costas, nobody is accusing Costas of being racist. However, the 'monkey thing' is inherently racist -- specially in the sequence that it was played! There is something inherently wrong and dehumanizing in likeing human beings to animals.
I am the 'white' father of a mixed son who just a couple of weeks ago started to built his professional athletic career in Europe. Being a concerned father, I went on the local fan forums to familiarize myself more with the club and their fans. Needles to say, I did not appreciate some of the "Jimbo" references that were made about my son.
I will be in Europe for his first game on 8/12. I am an old frail man, but god forbid that I hear any racial slur directed toward him -- i will not hesitate to use my caneto beat humanity into the biggot.

the interesting thing about truly not being a racist is you would not spend your live making sure you didn't accidently offend. lets make sure that after mens volleyball there are no pics of dogs on the beach because that would appear that someone implies men are dogs. People don't start problems when there is no issue. Oh by the way."Gabbi, great job by a great American"

The real problem here? GREED! NBC threw a butt load of money at the IOC for exclusive rights to air the games, but instead of actually showing events, they have boring interviews, bios of the athletes, their families, friends, coaches…etc. And since NBC wants a good return on their investment, the minutes of commercials airing is more than the amount of time dedicated to what they should be doing in the first place – covering the events! The Olympics is about the spirit of international competition, not Ryan Seacrest interviewing Michael Phelps mother & sisters. Shame on you NBC – Your “coverage” is an epic fail akin to the cheating badminton players.

I agree about the coverage -- but NBC is a business and wants to get rating which means money. They get those rating by porviding coverage that might interest a wide range of people -- and some of those people may want to learn more about Michael Phelps mother (it is called human interest, back story, whatever) NBC makes their money by selling and showing commercilas (not the programming) -- That ad was sold, bought and paid for to run @ that time --so they ran it -- being an ad for one of their own TV show--yes they could have moved it -- but they did not foreseen the impact of it, since it would have run no matter who had won. The ad sales department was just doing their job and the engineer just did his job. It just was unfortunate that some took exception to it.

RT1 you sound like an NBC plant, put in place to mop up what could be a helluva mess. The fact remains, business or no, there's a longstanding precedent against associating "monkeys" with certain athletes (i.e. Howard Cosell - MNF September 1973). Why wasn't the promo aired during one of the "human interest, back story..." segments where the opportunity for offense could've been GREATLY minimized? The timing was at best - insensitive and idiotically shortsighted - at its worst it was outright offensive, and subliminally implies they couldn't even conceive that Gabby Douglas would achieve such success, and thus would not be associated with this offense. Either way, I'm INCREDIBLY disappointed in not only the production team, but in NBC, as its ABSOLUTELY their jobs to "foresee the impact" of ALL of their content! Or are there monkeys doing THEIR jobs??? I find no fault in Bob Costas however, as I'm aware he has no control over the staging of advertising content. It seems he was TRYING to do a good thing...

The MEDIA isn't making up the fact that this segue raised a few eyebrows and is, as you see plainly, was a very poorly paired commentary and comercial. But if you'll read the text and not kneejerk with emotional responses, you'll see that the above story plainly states: " We're not going to cry racism. There's almost no chance this was purposely done." The point of the piece is that NBC should have paid more attention. If the media ignored this and simply talked about Gabbi's accomplishments as you suggest, you'ds then start screaming racism and accuse NBC of doing it on purpose. And to answer your closing question, this is a story about NBC's mistake. Do you think this story uses up so much space that it bumps out praise for Gabbi? I'm sure you can find plenty of such praise elsewhere.

Then why mention it at all if the reason your mentioning it is "just in case" someone thinks its racist. As I said in my previous comment I think you have to be racist to even think it might be racist.

It's a PR move, Gaillynn. You don't have to be racist to think it's racist. Everyone has agreed that they can see the issue right away but most civil people know it was not done on purpose. They have to do this because if they ignore it, there will just be a bigger issue raised about it. It's just being pro-active.

Totally agree. I've seen this commercial numerous times and have had only one thought when it's aired. The show it is promoting will be lucky if it lasts more than 3 episodes. There are just too many people looking for things like this to rabble rouse. And at the core they are racists. I just dismiss them and refuse to give them any space in my head.

I agree; I don't think it was intentional. But talk about poor timing of historically bad prportions; this was it. The numbskull at the desk knew what commercial was coming (I used to work in TV); was this jerk asleep at the switch or just brain dead; da! All this aside, Gabby is a darling, and America is super proud of her as well as of her team. She deserved the gold and will be forever remembered in the annals of Olympic history.

So you tell me, if Ally or one of the Russians had one, would it have been okay to run the commercial?

@tucker 123, You hit the nail on the head. The true racisim is to say that the commercial was offensive after a mention of African American girls. I was watching last night and it never occurred to me that there was any correlation between the two. This is a horrendous take on what should be a non-issue.

Absoluteely agree. It never occurred to me either and is another example of the media attempting to make something out of nothing. The only people who think this was racism may be the racists themselves.

@tucker 123, You hit the nail on the head. The true racism is to say that the commercial was offensive after a mention of African American girls. I was watching last night and it never occurred to me that there was any correlation between the two. This is a horrendous take on what should be a non-issue.

Sorry guys can't agree with you at all, the issue is not the intend, but comparing human being to animals is inherently dehumanizing and hence racist. The sequence in which it appeared further hammered home the inherently racist nature of the monkey spot.

Dehumanizing was the Nazi's first step towards extermination!

if the russians had "one" what ???

and, no, it is never OK to run the commercial as it was done ...

Absolutely not, it is inherently racist!

Exactly. The commercial is simply the commercial (a cute monkey doing gymnastics), and would have passed by unremarkably if a white girl had won the event. If there is a perception of racism, it is in the mind of the perceiver, and the only way that it could be regarded that way is if the person watching the ad either draws similarities between people of African descent and monkeys, or is overly concerned that other people do. That's the ONLY way that they could regard it as racist.

No. That commercial should not be shown at all. The creator of it has a sick mind and knows it!

Yes, we live in a perfect world! Lets all point fingers because we feel inferior. Gabbi is a sweet AMERICAN little girl. Obviously not a monkey, so why all of the fuss? I am a caucasion AMERICAN, and if you showed a cracker commercial after a discussion about me, I would laugh my head off! I love crackers, and I love that little Gabbi.

so u r saying the guy at the control should have said to himself- well black ppl look and act like monkeys so i shouldnt play any commercial with a monkey haha bc unless thats what he thought and all the rest of u think too we wouldnt be having this blog and noone would have noticed at all

ha i bet if mark spitz was in olympics now right after he won they have an aids commercial

Praise Gabbi but even more the Russian girl, who was FLAWLESS and deserved the gold. Perfect example of reverse racism. Shame.

Wow.... I don't know what Olympics you were watching... But there are multiple events that the Russian failed to land... Yes, she was great on floor, but it's an accumulative score not an event score.. So, GABBI wins gold... Wow, I hope you don't live in the United States and if you do,,,, Well, you might wanna move...

Yes, that Russian girl was flawless on her floor program-- and i too thought it might help her win the gold too --but the scores are based not on one performance ==but the combination of scores on the various "stations' -- over all, Gabbie was best and won the gold as she deserved to.

I agree, TLHawthorne. FF1212 states that the Russian girl not getting the gold she deserved is a racist act. That comment alone is racist. So now you are going to accuse people of being racist against Russians? Seriously what the fraq! Don't cry racism and then turn around and make a racist statement. It was skill, not race that determined the overall accumulative score and the right person won. Sorry if you don't feel that way but the judges (whose opinions do matter) felt differently. and I agree CCanna, there is no such thing as reverse racism. Racism is being prejudiced towards someone of a different race. So since ff1212 indicated the Russian should have won, means the judges would have been Racist towards the Russian and therefore awarded the gold medal to Gabbi based on that. Bullcrap!

There's no such thing as reverse racism. It's just racism.

Really what olympics were you watching?

Perhaps you didn't see the entire competition, That FLAWLESS Russian girl not only stepped out of bounds but stepped off the mat on her vault. Gabby had no major mistakes and deserved the gold.

Obviously you were watching something else......Gabby was the best ...makes me wonder if you would have said the same thing had it been any of the other girls.....talk about not seeing beyond color.....shame on you

If you actually take the 5 seconds it demands, you will see that "the Russian Girl" did not win a single exercise. Yes she outscored Gabby in the floor, but essentally was beat after the vault, because she choose an easier vault with less points available.
So lets be clear your comment is the only racist thing related to this. Reverse or Direct.

Ummm...it was "all around" womens event. The highest score for multiple events won! Sheesh!

Really Gabbi kick ass no if ands or buts. Ally is the one who got robbed.she should have gotten Bronze !!!

"FLAWLESS"? Which one? The one who fell off the balance beam (Aliya Mustafina), or the one who missed her vault landing and even completely walked off the mat (Viktoria Komova)? Seems more like a case of "reverse" reality at work here. Especially since Gabbi led throughout each stage of the All-Around Event. Not asking for special consideration here, but acceptance of the truth should be fundamental.

I so totally agree with you as well. The media loves to take a story and make it into something that it's not just to pin people against each other and start something that shouldn't have begun in the first place. I don't believe that NBC did this intentionally ... it's the fact that someone decided to through this "bone" out for people to chew on and get things started. It's ridiculous.

I will say; however, the commentators do talk too much during events and it's hard just to watch an event without them yacking it up the whole time.

I am so glad to hear someone else complaining of the commentators. I love watching the Olympics and am really tired of hearing their constant chatter!

Why not just take the Olympics off of the TV and put the results in the paper? My God, how was Costa supposed to know they were going to run that ad? People, you are being stupid as hell,if it bothers you that much, just stop watching.

Thats just it the commentator has no idea what is running next and doesn't have a choice in what he comments on so Costas had nothing to do with any of it. It was a bunch of suits behind him that are the problem (if there is one)

Thank you ladyday61 you put it as I saw it. I am not African American and I saw the spot as it ran. I thought nothing of the sort when the advertisement ran. I think you have to be a little racist to even think of these things. I think the MEDIA is always trying to start fires where there is NO SMOKE!!

FOX News runs this site? hmmmm. shifty as their name implies. They speak down to the public. This site posts an article that is all about pointing at NBC as racists and includes a few sentences, as SlayerGrim suggests, " We're not going to cry racism. There's ALMOST no chance this was purposely done." and we are to believe they are writing a balanced article. Again why write it? Hey Fox boys you won't be reeling in the exclusive rights to air the Olympics in this century but imagine what THAT coverage would look like... Now that is a great "What if" for movie..

The issue is more than racism, which seems curiously orchestrated into the medias presentations. The issue is one of abject IGNORANCE because the media can do it and get away with it every time. It is ignorance becasue the truth is that everyone watching the Olympics view those participating as Americans, not Black or White or other - ONLY the media.
The media is not in the business of reporting news and information but are securely in the business of CREATING news. Everything, and I mean everything, is an editorial or opinion with little to no facts. The media creates division. The media feeds racism. The media makes it's living by creating psychological doubt about nearly everything.
Why? Because they can. There is no watch dog group with the authority to penalize NBC or any part of the media. Look at FOX. 100% editorial with NO facts - ever. Yet, we continue to tune in and sanction the mess they spew.
The programming people knew that it was tasteless to run such a commercial. It is even more tasteless to create such a divisive commercial. Does anyone know what product or service it was meant to represent? No, just that it was a monkey on the gymnastic rings.
We are a nation divided due in large part to the media and their distructive and divisive decision making and presentations. Ignorance! Ignorance! and Reckless Ignorance!

well said

Bravo! Very eloquently stated! Kudos. That's it in a proverbial nutshell. Thank you for sharing, Integritydev.

First of all, congratuations to Gabby. Wonderful performance and well earned gold metal. You make All Ameriicans proud!This is not a matter of color or race -- but talent and achivement. I too don't beleuve that ad in anyway meant anything bad. Actually i had seen the spot a few time before during the coverage the last few days -It is kind of cute -- but Yes, it was just unfortunate timing. -To be honest both NBC and those in chartge of putting on the London Olypics have done a preety good job over all but have also made some silly mistakese --(showing wrong flags, talking over coerage, bad editing, odd rules, etc). Maybe the Media is trying to make a something out of nothing -- but the really point is tThese folks should know their own business betters -- Let's not lallow this lapse of "foresihgt" get in the way of the great achelives of our lady gymnists and the rest of our wonderful young men and women in these games! USA!

I agree with you .....

Agreed. It was obviously not an ideal situation, but just as obviously an act of circumstance. As the son of a newspaper publisher, I've found the media's goal is to drive advertising. Content is a distant second. Page hits, circulation, viewers, and demographics are how they pay their bills. Thus, this article driving controversy where there really isn't much. The Howard Stern Principle.

I totally agree with you. However, his comment "But there's some young African-American girls out there who tonight are saying to themselves, 'I’d like to try that too,'" should not have singled out African-American girls and it wouldn't have been such an issue and it wouldn't have stood out so much. Race classifications need to be eliminated from the media, and be used only in legal forms/medical forms/census stuff like that where it's important yet not the first thing people think about. It's 2012 it's time to move on from this crap and the media needs to stop trying to stir stuff up.

I guess I didn't pay attention to the commercial so no comment. However, didn't think the comment about "some young African-American girl' even needed to be made. Isn't everyone able to do the same thing regardless of their skin color. We are all Amercans and it doesn't matter what the persons skin color is. If you work hard and practice you will succeed. He should have said, "There are some young girls out there......." Let the individual decide for themself if they want to persue this dream. Great job Gabby on the Gold and congratulations to the Fab Five!!

Well said, tmann4!

First let me say that I am no Bob Costa's fan, but in saying young African Americn young girls out there, I really think he was trying to be encouraging. I am an old woman now but I can remember growing up in the deep South and was told you can never do this because and you can never do that because. We were not told that we could do anything we want to IF we put our our minds to it and work hard enough. Now I know a lot of people have changed and are not taught that there are certain things that you can never do but lets be realistic there are still families Black and White who are still saying to their children you can never do this or that. You may not like that statement but it is true. When raising my children one thing I always remembered is that a CHILD will either live up to or down to your expections. Good job Gabby!! Good job to the "Fab Five" you made us proud as Americans!!!

my thing is why would u want to air a monkey in red white and blue to Represent your country. why not show a new born child that would be much better.to show that from birth he or she has been perparing for the Olympic's

I couldn't agree more! Most people did not see any correlation because they do not have that mindset of linking African Americans to monkeys for pete sakes. I don't look at a black person and see a "black person." I see a person...a living breathing human being. If we all more closely studied the "out of Africa" theory, we would learn that we all were black at one time until migration, time, and climate change forced our skin color to evolve. If no one would have said anything about the timing of the commercial, we would not even be talking about it. But all it took was one person to say something. I'm thirlled for Gabby, and proud that she has represented the USA! Congratulations, Gabby! We love you!

I agree with you totally, Ladyday61. Our whole nation should be proud of this wonderful young lady who gave up so much for her sport - and has contributed to a lot of young ladies wanting to succeed in whatever they choose to do, be it athletics, or scholastics. The media should indeed embrace her and each of our other Olympians instead of being so quick to start controversy and spread it.

I also totally agree with you and I am also black.

This sort of media response seems more desperate than anything.

GO GABBY!!! GO BOB COSTAS!!!

It was intentional. When people do bad things toward us, it is sometimes done in a way to have a little wiggle room so that is "not intentional" - wink-wink- but then it happened anyway (funny how that seems to happen often, which further demonstrates how it was calculated!). Whoever was responsible for the sequence of the commercials at NBC was fully aware of the Gabby segment and purposefully used that commercial!!!!. Nothing airs on television by accident unless it is live television. Regardless, I agree with you that Gabby should be praised for her accomplishment instead of politicizing and "racializing" circumstances surrounding her accomplishment (did it ever occur that maybe some Americans are resentful that a little black girl won the gold for the United States to the point that would have preferred to see a little girl from Russia win instead?). And even though the segment was offensive for the meaning - the attempt to dehumanize black folks - I am not offended because I have the ability and have decided not to be.

I have given up the Today show because of NBCs firing of Ann Curry. Journalism today is about celebrities and whatever you can find to use as an expose. Think about what keeps Matt Lauer at the helm, he has a tweet relationship with Justin Beiber. Obviously that seems to satisfy the watching public. Ann Curry's professionalism and compassion just are not enough since that would not fit into NBCs agenda.

agree

Here, here. Shame on people for even thinking along those lines. How could you NOT just embrace that young lady and be happy for her. I would hope as a nation and as a people we would have grown past this sort of thing, i.e. making it an issue.

I have to agree with ladyday61 entirely...media fluffery, although, to be fair, they are just echoing internet reaction - "The Internet was quick to catch on, with YouTube posts, tweets and collective gasps sent out worldwide within minutes after the transition." But the bottom line here is the point many have made here already...it wasn't an issue until someone MADE it an issue. Rasicm won't go away until people stop looking for it.

I believe that the vast majority of viewers would not have jumped to that conclusion. This waste of a story needs to be ignored. If the goal is for racism to abate, this kind of "journalism" needs to stop.

Morgan Freeman was asked one time how to stop racism in America. His answer was "Quit talking about it"

EXACTLY!!!!! Media folks: STOP TALKING ABOUT IT, especially when there really was no big problem...good going, people, way to steal the spotlight from Gabby! :(

Looks like the political correct monster has come full circle and bit NBC in the Butt.

Racism can be seen in a glass of water if a victim wants to see it there.
Let's try simply being American!
liberals get in the way of this !

It's to bad that in 2012 America we can not all celebrate Gabby winning the all-around gold medal. You ask why can't we? She is just like the other girls on the team, young, great smile, hardworking, driven, talented and willing to sacifice for her sport. So I ask all Americans what's the issue? Why can't we all enjoy the victory?

Could it be because she's black? And for some Americans this may be why she can never be America's Sweetheart. If so that's to bad because she is a positive role model for All Americans. An athlete all current and future olympians can lookup too. Those same Americans can't understand why some Americans feel an sense of pride in her accomplishment. All of America needs to remember that the first is always important, a child's first step, the first president, women in congress, man on the moon, quarterback to win the superbowl, first doctor to perform open heart surgery the list goes on and on. The first is woven into the fabric of America.

It was very unfortunate that NBC ran an advertisement that had the potential to upset so many Americans. We will never know what was in the hearts of those who made the decision to run the ad at that time. It was very insensitive based on timing. NBC and all Americans must realize that America's history and in some cases it's present has left other Americans with open wounds. Try walking in their shoes. Maybe then you won't rub salt into those wounds. Let's all work for a brighter future!

It comes down to this Can't We All Just Get Along. Can't we find it in our hearts to try to understand how our fellow Americans may feel pride in Gabby's victory. After all she is a first and all of America should be proud of this American kid. Gabby Douglas - Two Time Olympic Gold Medal Winner, America's Sweetheart and 16 year old kid.

Gabby, thanks for a representing all of America so well.

Totally agree we all reconize that Gabby is not only a gifted athlete but an amazing young lady with a good head on her shoulders. Lets keep the focus on her amazin accomplishments!

In order for NBC to make the move, someone would have had to say, "We probably should not play that commercial because because many people link African Americans to monkeys," or something to that effect. The fact that no one at NBC came to that conclusion may point to the fact that America is not such a racist place as a vocal minority would like us to believe it is. Much "racism" in the media is only a perceived insult of a few. The media would have to be thinking racially in order to edit out overt or subtle racism. The fact that it is missed should be seen as a testament of great social change in our great society. Let's move on with race to celebrate the individual. Great job Gabbi! Great job Team USA!

The problem with this, is it is not the first time NBC has done this, and it is not the first time NBC has been accused of using wrong commercials at the wrong time. The definately need to keep an eye out for this sort of thing. Since African Americans have in the past been called monkeys, and really in some states still are called monkeys, this would make the commercial in-appropriate for that slot. And if NBC would have been monitoring things, they would have known that the commercial aired was not an appropriate slot time, and they could have easily with a click of a button or two, aired that commercial on the next go around, or 30 minutes later or even an hour later outside of that aired segment. I don't think they did anything wrong, it is just an error in judgement and commercial broadcasting for moral sake of NBC and their past with this issue over the years.

Bob Costas please take 50% blame here for saying African-American girls , just say American girls you idiot, ppl like this are the ones who start things rolling for the racist that wait for crap like this and they can take the other 50% blame. I'm 50 years old grew up in Los Angeles and its time to move on, its been time to move on, its past time to move on, she's an American, thats it, end of story. The states might be united but alot of the ppl here still aren't.

I agree 100%. If anything, NBC made a monkey out of Bob Costas.
It's the media's spin that trys to keep racism alive and well.

Wow what a great and honest comment...complete with a constructive suggestion but, then we are on FOX.

I love watching Gabby. I am cauc. and I have never thought of Gabby as African-American. Gabby is an American athlete!

Here, here!! When a reporter reminded her she was the first African-American to ever win an all around gold, Gabby' response, "Oh, I forgot about that!" I sure wish we could ALL forget about any kind of racial qualifier in front of the word American. Congratulations to Gabby for being the first US Women's gymnast ever to win both a Team and Individual All-Around Gold medal!!

I agree and I loved Gabbys response. Is it supposed to make the media have greatness or compassion because they label an American? Get over the tags. she is an American, not African.

Tottally agree. I guess there are still those left over from a past time and mind-set who need to point out achievements by race or gender , or wahtever-- but I am looking forward to the day when we can just say,"our AMERCAN:" won -- and we are all proud of his/her performance. Ms.Gabby Douglass' reaction to the question shows that she (and hopefully other in her generation)arei thankfully already geting to into that more enlightened state-of mind. Not black, white, jew or christian -- but AMERICAN. USA! USA!!!

Gabby represents the United States with grace, dignity, and excellence. She is only 16 and was able to recognize her dream from an early age. How many 14 years old are brave enough to venture away from home, her family, to live with strangers? This makes her extraordinary. I watched and wished that NBC had not chosen that particular segue. But I also have trouble with her nickname the " little squirrel".Tthe reference feels like it's difficult for some to acknowledge her true power and intelligence. It was very important to Gabby that she be the first African American to achieve the gold. She said so in an interveiw with Dominique Dawes. She knew that it would be a historical momnet and she said she'd hope to inspire other girls like herself to follow their dreams. There is nothing wrong with racial pride so long as it is not acquired by annihilating someone else's. When she said she forgot about that, I think she meant that it was not on her mind at the time which speaks to her true ability to focus and execute.

I believe the nickname is "The Flying Squirrel" with reference to the way she flies between the parallel bars. Yay Gabby!

Absolutely, right on the mark. The commentary Bob Costas had going into the commercial did more to fuel the race issue than the commercial, saying what a large influence Miss Gabby would have on young African-American girls. Until big media and headline enthusians get over tagging our citizens with labels other than Americans, groups will be formed and will have points to argue. Until there are no more Native-Americans, Jewish-Americans, Italian-Americans, African-American, Mexican-Americans, Muslim-Americans, Cuban-Americans....., this country will continue to have group(s) with perceived issues to "discuss." Just label us as Americans. Let us be proud of whatever heritage we may have, but quit putting everyone into their own seperate box. We're supposed to be the Great Melting Pot; just label the melting pot America, United States of America, USA and nothing more.

My sentiments exactly!!

awww.

Agreed! An African-American is one who is born in Africa and later becomes an American citizen. She's an American athlete who happens to be black and probably inspired ALL young athletes regardless of race or gender. She's an incredible athlete and a class act.

You are so right on!

That statement made my day..Thanks!!! Some people can see that the problem here is that we AMERICANS are lable by race, sex and etc...We are ARMERICANS........

agree with you 100% ... america needs to get away from this type of thinking - if you where born and raised her thats what you are "AMERICAN" ...

Lie.

I also saw the commercial and thought nothing of it. Are the media so bored that they have to create confusion and discord? This is a time to praise our young people for doing a go job. Not try to call attention to racism which it was not.. Just like the swin suit mishap at the womens' water polo match, they kept playing it over and over. (Just like the did with the Janet Jackson incident). I guess they figure they have to keep up confusion in order to keep up ratings. HOW SAD!!!

NBC's mistakes started by assigning Bob Costas to moderate the coverage of events.
This clown along with Matt Lauer are the two most arrogant, egotisical morons in television.

Agree, except you can add to that the Celebrity Rehab doctor, an expert on everything. Not a sports commentator, I understand, but still annoying as hell.

Amen!

Well spoken... I couldn't agree more...