USC football player Ting tests positive for steroids

Harry Mok
August 3, 2006

Brandon and his twin brother Ryan said they quit because they wanted to focus on getting into medical school.

It's kind of unique to have twins on the same team but also to have Asian Americans on a big-time sports team is not that common.

I've posted a couple of things about Asian American athletes in the past. As I was thinking about posting this one, I wondered why I was doing it. Was it just because they're Asian American? Why do I even notice? Aren't we beyond the "Asian spotting" whenever you see someone Asian American doing something in the public limelight? I guess I'm still Asian spotting since I've been posting these things. Should I stop?

Contributor: 

Harry Mok

Editor in chief

Editor in Chief Harry Mok wrote about growing up on a Chinese vegetable farm for the second issue of Hyphen and has been a volunteer editor since 2004. As a board member of the San Francisco and New York chapters of the Asian American Journalists Association, Harry has recruited and organized events for student members. He holds a master’s degree in journalism from the University of California, Berkeley, where he was also a graduate student instructor in the Asian American Studies Department.

Comments

Comments

Melissa wrote on Fri, 08/04/2006 - 11:34am
I can't stop Asian spotting. I guess I still feel a need to do it. Hell, I even notice Asian names, not just faces. For example, today I went to the office supply cabinet to get some Avery mailing labels. The example name they had on the front was "Shelley Takahashi." Go Shelley!
Harry Mok wrote on Sat, 08/05/2006 - 11:17am
Good to know I'm not the only one that is Asian spotting. I guess I had a momentary lapse into fantasy land, thinking about how nice it would be if we did live in a race neutral world, where it wasn't a big deal if [insert racial group here] was doing or not doing this or that.I'm back in the real world now.
Anonymous wrote on Sun, 08/06/2006 - 1:57am
The Ting Brothers were not all that good. They both kept getting burned in the Rose Bowl against Texas for the National Championship. Good decision for them to quit.
Chowgirl wrote on Thu, 08/03/2006 - 10:44pm
I don't think you should stop "Asian spotting". Isn't that kinda the point of this blog? I don't come here looking for news about Swedish-Americans, if you know what I mean. Personally I hope we always have sources like this blog, regardless of how times change.Anyway on to the twins. Why did both of them quit, were they both taking steroids? And how strange is it that Barry Bonds' name keeps coming up?
delis wrote on Thu, 08/03/2006 - 10:46pm
This is newsworthy because of who their father is. Well, more accurately, it is newsworthy because of who their father's patient is.Their being Chinese/Japanese American does not make the story. (Although, it would have made the story when they joined the team.
Carmen Van Ker... wrote on Fri, 08/04/2006 - 7:36am
Great point, Harry. Jen and I have been discussing this issue ourselves: whether Mixed Media Watch should engage in these "hey there's a mixed character on this show!" or "check out the interracial family in that movie!" type posts.We've decided to move away from it, in part also because we're no longer exclusively focused on mixed race/interracial issues.In a way I think it's a sign of progress: that there are enough mixed people, couples or families portrayed in the media that we feel like it's excessive to point them out each time.I do agree with Chowgirl though, that it still serves an important function. I totally rely on Angry Asian Man for my "Asian spotting" needs. :)