老虎伍茲的“形像工程”

2007年8月《男性健康》雜志以老虎伍茲為封面

2007年夏，老虎伍茲(Tiger Woods)的代理人給《高爾夫大師》(Golf Digest)的編輯帶來了有些匪夷所思的消息。盡管這本雜志每年花費(fèi)數(shù)十萬美元以保證獲得采訪伍茲的優(yōu)先權(quán)，伍茲卻罕見地接受了另外一本雜志《男性健康》(Men's Fitness)的深度采訪和封面拍攝。

In the summer of 2007, a representative for Tiger Woods called an editor at Golf Digest with some awkward news. Though the magazine was spending hundreds of thousands of dollars annually to secure preferential access to Mr. Woods, the golfer had agreed to a rare, in-depth interview and cover shoot with another publication, Men's Fitness.

《高爾夫大師》的編輯杰瑞•塔德(Jerry Tarde)承認(rèn)，對于伍茲的這個(gè)決定他頗感“迷惑”。知情人士透露，根據(jù)《高爾夫大師》和伍茲所簽訂的合同，這本刊物每年出資一百萬美元向老虎伍茲基金會(huì)(Tiger Woods Foundation)提供捐贈(zèng)，還負(fù)責(zé)印刷該慈善組織的年報(bào)并贊助了多個(gè)伍茲喜愛的高爾夫球巡回賽事。而作為回報(bào)，伍茲同意每月為刊物撰寫有關(guān)高爾夫球技巧的稿件，并減少在競爭刊物上露面的次數(shù)?！陡郀柗虼髱煛肥且槐居商┘{仕出版公司(Conde Nast Publications Inc.)出版的月刊。

Golf Digest editor Jerry Tarde acknowledged that he was 'mystified' that Mr. Woods had agreed to this. Under Golf Digest's contract with Mr. Woods, the monthly, which is owned by Conde Nast Publications Inc., spent as much as million annually on donations to the Tiger Woods Foundation, printing the charity's annual report and sponsoring many of Mr. Woods's preferred tournaments, according to a person familiar with the terms. In return, Mr. Woods agreed to contribute monthly articles on golf techniques and limit his appearances in competing publications.

然而，2007年8月《男性健康》雜志所發(fā)表的文章和照片中對伍茲私人生活的詳盡展示卻是《高爾夫大師》從未獲得過的?！陡郀柗虼髱煛返木庉嬎卤硎?，由于那次訪談并未違反《高爾夫大師》與伍茲的協(xié)議，他并未對此表示抗議。他說，他以為伍茲之所以同意接受訪問，是為了增加他的教練基思•克萊文(Keith Kleven)的曝光度?！赌行越】怠肺恼轮写罅恳昧丝巳R文的談話?？巳R文沒有回應(yīng)我們的置評(píng)請求。

Yet never had Golf Digest been granted the level of access to the golfer's private life allowed for in the article and photo shoot published in Men's Fitness in August 2007. Mr. Tarde says he did not object because the interview wasn't a violation of Golf Digest's agreement with Mr. Woods. He said he assumed Mr. Woods had agreed to the interview as a way to generate publicity for his trainer, Keith Kleven. Mr. Kleven, who was quoted extensively in the Men's Fitness article, did not return calls for comment.

實(shí)際上，伍茲和美國媒體公司(American Media Inc.)達(dá)成了一筆不同尋常的交易。該公司是《男性健康》雜志和小報(bào)《國家調(diào)查》(National Enquirer)的所有者。直接參與協(xié)議簽訂的人士表示，伍茲同意拍攝《男性健康》的封面和圖片報(bào)導(dǎo)，而作為交換，《國家調(diào)查》壓下了有關(guān)伍茲和一名并非其妻子的女性曖昧關(guān)系的報(bào)導(dǎo)和照片?！赌行越】怠访科诘陌l(fā)行量大約為70萬冊，還不及《高爾夫大師》近170萬冊發(fā)行量的一半。

Mr. Woods had cut an unusual deal with American Media Inc., the owner of both Men's Fitness magazine and the National Enquirer tabloid newspaper. Mr. Woods agreed to the cover shot and photo spread in Men's Fitness, whose circulation of about 700,000 per issue is less than half of Golf Digest's nearly 1.7 million, in return for the National Enquirer squelching a story and photographs purportedly showing Mr. Woods in a liaison with a woman who wasn't his wife, according to people directly involved in the arrangement.

美國媒體公司否認(rèn)與伍茲達(dá)成妥協(xié)交易、撤掉了伍茲的照片。該公司在12月10日和11日發(fā)給《華爾街日報(bào)》的書面聲明中表示，有關(guān)美國媒體公司和伍茲之間交易的描述是“不準(zhǔn)確”和“虛假的”。該公司的發(fā)言人和律師均拒絕具體說明不準(zhǔn)確之處，不過表示提供這份協(xié)議相關(guān)信息的人士“消息有誤”。在問到是否就撤下文章同伍茲達(dá)成過協(xié)議，這位律師表示“不予置評(píng)”。

American Media Inc. denies there was any deal to quash photos of Mr. Woods in a compromising situation. In written statements to the Journal on Dec. 10 and 11, the company said descriptions of a deal between American Media and Mr. Woods were 'inaccurate' and 'false.' A spokeswoman and a lawyer for the company declined to specify the inaccuracies, but said sources who described such an agreement were 'misinformed.' Asked whether there was any deal made with Mr. Woods to quash a written article, the lawyer said 'no comment.'

伍茲的經(jīng)紀(jì)人馬克•斯坦伯格(Mark Steinberg)拒絕就《男性健康》的文章或者任何有關(guān)伍茲婚姻不忠的指控發(fā)表評(píng)論。美國媒體公司首席執(zhí)行長大衛(wèi)•派克爾(David J. Pecker)也拒絕置評(píng)。

Mr. Woods's agent, Mark Steinberg, declined to comment on the Men's Fitness article or any allegations concerning marital infidelity by his client. AMI Chief Executive Officer David J. Pecker also declined to comment.

不過，美國媒體公司的前雇員以及直接參與這項(xiàng)協(xié)議的人士透露，在伍茲和《國家調(diào)查》的所有者之間確有交易存在。近距離審視兩年多以前伍茲的不忠行為何以免于曝光揭示出了這筆交易的最新細(xì)節(jié)。這樣的審視還讓我們看到了伍茲和他的助手們?nèi)绾螛O力隱瞞這位高爾夫球手的越軌行為，以保護(hù)其超級(jí)巨星的形像──伍茲的商業(yè)贊助讓他成為了體壇上最為富有的運(yùn)動(dòng)員之一。

But according to accounts provided by former employees of AMI and other individuals with direct knowledge of the arrangement, there was a deal between Mr. Woods and the owner of the National Enquirer. A close examination of how exposure of that alleged infidelity was suppressed more than two years ago reveals fresh details about the quid pro quo. It also offers a look at how Mr. Woods and his handlers worked to hide the golfer's off-course behavior to protect the image of a superstar whose endorsements made him one of the richest athletes in sport.

那位據(jù)稱于2007年被拍到和伍茲在一起的女性最近得到了一筆數(shù)目未知的金錢，作為回報(bào)，她向通俗小報(bào)《世界新聞》(News of the World)獨(dú)家講述了她的故事。這名女子名為明迪•勞頓(Mindy Lawton)，是佛羅里達(dá)一家餐廳的員工，在照片中至少還有一位她的家人和伍茲合照。據(jù)知情人士透露，該協(xié)議禁止勞頓在12月20日之前談?wù)撍倪@段所謂情史──12月20日是那期《世界新聞》在英國上市兩周后的日子?！妒澜缧侣劇钒l(fā)言人海莉•巴洛(Hayley Barlow)確認(rèn)了勞頓和該報(bào)簽有協(xié)議。她說，“《世界新聞》一向享有披露重大新聞的美譽(yù)，而這也需要付出代價(jià)。”《世界新聞》的總部設(shè)在倫敦，屬于新聞集團(tuán)(News Corp.)所有，該集團(tuán)同時(shí)也是《華爾街日報(bào)》的出版商。

The woman purportedly photographed with Mr. Woods in 2007, a Florida restaurant employee named Mindy Lawton -- along with at least one of her family members -- was recently promised an undisclosed sum in return for telling her story exclusively to News of the World, a London-based tabloid owned by News Corp., which also owns The Wall Street Journal. The agreement blocks her from discussing her alleged relationship until after Dec. 20 -- two weeks after it was first published in the U.K., according to people familiar with the matter. Hayley Barlow, a spokeswoman for News of the World, confirmed Ms. Lawton is under contract to the newspaper. 'News of the World has a reputation for breaking big stories and that comes at a price,' she said.

知情人士表示，《國家調(diào)查》這段故事的開始是在2007年冬末春初，故事的發(fā)生地是在佛羅里達(dá)州溫德梅爾(Windermere)伍茲家附近教堂的停車場上。知情者說，為《國家調(diào)查》工作的一個(gè)人跟蹤伍茲來到了那個(gè)空曠的停車場。躲在暗處的攝影記者拍到了已婚的伍茲在車中和一位女性約會(huì)的畫面。知情者稱，之后，攝影記者尾隨伍茲來到了一個(gè)小型機(jī)場，伍茲登上了一架私人飛機(jī)離開?！秶艺{(diào)查》的總部設(shè)在美國佛羅里達(dá)州的博卡拉頓(Boca Raton)。

The National Enquirer episode began with an encounter in the late winter or early spring of 2007 in a church parking lot near Mr. Woods's home in Windermere, Fla., according to the people with direct knowledge of the situation. A person working on behalf of the National Enquirer, based in Boca Raton, Fla., tailed Mr. Woods to the empty parking lot, these people said. Hidden from view, the photographer snapped photographs of the married Mr. Woods meeting a woman in his car. After the encounter, the photographer followed Mr. Woods to a small airport, where the golfer got on a private jet and took off, those people said.

曾見過照片的知情人表示，由于光線過于昏暗，這些照片讓人幾乎難以看清楚伍茲和那個(gè)女人在停車場做了些什么。該知情者說，如果沒有更多證據(jù)，這篇報(bào)導(dǎo)不大可能得到發(fā)表。不管怎么樣，直接參與此事的人士透露，《國家調(diào)查》還是告知了伍茲的代理人和照片中的那名女性，表明該報(bào)擁有伍茲有婚外情的照片證據(jù)，并打算將約會(huì)照片公之于眾。不過，知情人說，該報(bào)并沒有向伍茲的代理人透露照片的畫質(zhì)非常之差。

The photos were so poorly lit that it was nearly impossible to tell what the couple was doing in the parking lot, says one person who saw the pictures. This person said it was unlikely the story could have been published without more evidence. At any rate, the Enquirer notified Mr. Woods's representatives and the woman in the photograph that the publication had photographic evidence of the golfer having an affair and was ready to expose the encounter, according to people directly involved. It didn't disclose to Mr. Woods's representatives that the quality of the photographs was so poor, according to those people.

知情者透露，在幾個(gè)小時(shí)之內(nèi)，伍茲的代理人便向《國家調(diào)查》表示，伍茲對所謂的外遇不予置評(píng)。直接參與此事安排的人士還表示，不過伍茲的代理人提議：如果《國家調(diào)查》放棄這篇報(bào)導(dǎo)，伍茲將坐下來接受其姊妹出版物《男性健康》的深度訪談。

Within hours, representatives of Mr. Woods told the Enquirer that Mr. Woods wouldn't comment on the alleged affair, say people close to the matter. But the representatives made an offer: If the Enquirer dropped the story, Mr. Woods would sit for an elaborate interview for sister publication Men's Fitness, according to people with direct knowledge of the arrangement.

在伍茲陣營向美國媒體公司提議采訪之后，知情人說，美國媒體公司開始和知名的Lavely & Singer律師事務(wù)所談判。這家設(shè)在洛杉磯的事務(wù)所有15名律師，擅長以積極策略處理有關(guān)名人的文章糾紛。代表伍茲的杰伊•拉弗里(Jay Lavely Jr.)和他的合伙人馬丁•辛格(Martin Singer)均未回應(yīng)《華爾街日報(bào)》的置評(píng)請求。

After Mr. Woods's camp offered the interview to American Media, people familiar with the matter say the company began negotiating with Lavely & Singer, a 15-lawyer firm in Los Angeles that is known for its aggressive tactics in disputes surrounding the publication of controversial articles about celebrities. Neither Jay Lavely Jr., who represents Mr. Woods, nor his partner, Martin Singer, responded to questions from the Journal.

在經(jīng)過幾周的討論之后，雙方敲定了一份合同。曾見到過這份文件的人士說，合同中具體闡明了有關(guān)那次采訪和拍照的原則，也同時(shí)保證，伍茲在教堂停車場約會(huì)的故事不會(huì)被發(fā)表。

After weeks of discussion, the two sides hammered out a contract detailing guidelines for the interview and the photo shoot, as well as the guarantee that the story of Mr. Woods's rendezvous in the church parking lot wouldn't be printed, according to a person who has seen the document.

那次的采訪和照片拍攝在2007年完成。“我們談得非常好，”羅伊•約翰遜(Roy S. Johnson)表示。他是《體育畫報(bào)》(Sports Illustrated)的前編輯，當(dāng)時(shí)約翰遜作為自由撰稿人進(jìn)行了那次采訪。“他在樓下的健身房為我們鍛煉。他為了讓我們捕捉到那完美的一擊為我們擊球。我們還談到了他和妻子艾琳(Elin)經(jīng)常一起去鍛煉。”

The interview and photo shoot took place in 2007. 'We had a great discussion,' said Roy S. Johnson, a former Sports Illustrated editor who was working as a freelance writer conducted the interview. 'He worked out for us in the gym down there. He hit balls for us to be able to capture that wonderful swing. We talked about how he and Elin often worked out together.'

在2007年8月刊上，滿面笑容的伍茲出現(xiàn)在了《男性健康》的封面。一篇3,500字的文章出現(xiàn)在內(nèi)頁，標(biāo)題為“老虎！”這是《男性健康》的漂亮一招。美國發(fā)行量審計(jì)局(Audit Bureau of Circulations)的數(shù)字顯示，當(dāng)期雜志在報(bào)攤上賣掉了大約17.6萬份──比起《男性健康》當(dāng)年出版的10期雜志的平均發(fā)行量高出了30%。在2007年5月，約翰遜被任命為《男性健康》的主編。

In the August 2007 issue, a beaming Mr. Woods appeared on the cover of Men's Fitness. Inside, a 3,500-word story appeared, headlined 'Tiger!' It was a coup for Men's Fitness. The issue sold about 176,000 copies on the newsstand -- more than 30% more than the average for the magazine's 10 issues that year, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. In May 2007, Mr. Johnson was named editor in chief of Men's Fitness.

美國媒體公司對此事的來龍去脈有不同解釋。在上周四的一封電子郵件中，該公司發(fā)言人薩曼莎•特倫克(Samantha Trenk)表示，有關(guān)采訪的想法來自于伍茲。“伍茲陣營接觸了我們，他們很高興老虎和羅伊之前就熟識(shí)，”她說。

American Media disputes that version of events. In an email Thursday, Samantha Trenk, the spokeswoman for American Media, said the idea for the interview came from Mr. Woods. 'Tiger's camp approached us, and was happy that Tiger and Roy had a previous relationship,' she said.

在5月下旬，《媒體投放統(tǒng)計(jì)》(Media Industry Newsletter)的主編史蒂夫•寇恩(Steve Cohn)接到了一家公關(guān)公司打來的電話。電話中說，他們代表美國媒體公司講述一件事，那就是通過讓伍茲登上《男性健康》封面，約翰遜使出了漂亮的一招。于是，寇恩在2007年7月16日的文章里寫道，由于和伍茲的長期友誼，約翰遜得到了那次采訪機(jī)會(huì)。

In late May, Steve Cohn, editor in chief of Media Industry Newsletter, took a call from a public-relations firm that said it was working for American Media pitching a story that Mr. Johnson scored a coup by getting Mr. Woods to pose for the cover of Men's Fitness. Mr. Cohn wrote in his July 16, 2007 issue that Mr. Johnson secured the interview based on a longstanding friendship with Mr. Woods.

不過在本周，約翰遜卻表示，他和邀請伍茲接受采訪一事并無關(guān)系，也從未被告知那場讓人艷羨的訪問到底是如何安排下來的。他說，“我對發(fā)生了什么事情并不知情，我當(dāng)時(shí)是個(gè)自由職業(yè)者，他們讓我寫這個(gè)訪談，我也樂意效勞。”

This week, however, Mr. Johnson said he had nothing to do with securing Mr. Woods and was never told how the coveted interview was arranged. 'I wasn't privy to anything that transpired,' he said. 'I was a freelancer. They asked me to write the story and I was happy to do so.'

美國媒體公司表示，他們從未聲稱約翰遜安排了對伍茲的采訪。

American Media said it has never claimed Mr. Johnson arranged the interview with Mr. Woods.