Folks can be forgiven if they raise one pointed eyebrow in response to Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's admission to MTV news that he has used steroids. The UMiami defensive tackle-turned-wrestler-turned-actor is in the process of molding himself into a family-friendly star. "I tried it," he said while gamely promoting his new Disney vehicle Race To Witch Mountain in the back of a car. "Me and my buddies tried it back in the day when I was 18 or 19. Didn't know what we were doing."
We're accustomed to actors dropping bombs on the promotional trail, and certainly the ensuing publicity from Johnson's admission may help The Mouse earn back its estimated $50 million budget for Witch Mountain. But The Rock has always appeared to be appropriately conscientious of his role model status among kids, and his thoughtful response here seems genuine (and is certainly a welcome change from the deny-deny-deny-admit-apologize cycle we see elsewhere).
Johnson admits to having seen his fair share of steroid abuse, which is expected since he went from a high school locker room to big-time college football (he was a member of the Hurricanes' 1991 National Championship team) to the CFL before finding his way to WWE, where stars resemble greased-up Michelin Men. When asked about the Alex Rodriguez controversy, Johnson said, "It's not as prevalent today in our sports as it was 10 years ago. But we have to recognize that a culture was created where it was OK to do that, and a lot of team managers, owners, players who didn't do it would turn the other cheek. We recognize that, and now we have to institute stronger penalties, which we are doing. A-Rod is an example of a lot of guys — and women, for that matter — of that era in all athletics."
It's refreshing for Johnson to speak so candidly, and certainly his perspective on the subject can be appreciated in light of all the usual secrecy. But if "that era of athletics" stretches from the late '80's to Alex Rodriguez, he's talking about an awful lot of willful ignorance. Despite Johnson's positive outlook, with the ongoing Roger Clemens/Brian McNamee story and wrestling still reeling from the deaths of Christ Benoit and Eddie Guerrero, there is no evidence that either the culture of permissibility or the use of performance-enhancing drugs has changed at all.
Janie Campbell is a Florida native who believes in the pro-set and ballpark hot dogs. Her work has appeared in irreverent sports sites around the internet.