Yeah, you read the title right. Allegedly, Vince McMahon lifts ban on ‘wrestler’ so it can be used on-camera.
For those that may not be aware, Vince McMahon is a control freak that micromanages the WWE to the point he’s long refused his people to use various terms.
One of those would be to refer to his wrestlers as, well, wrestlers.
According to Dave Meltzer, Vince McMahon is lifting his ban for on-air use of the term “wrestler.” The ban has been in place since at least 2008, where he declared replacement terms like superstars be used in its place. Some of the banned terms are listed listed by IWNerd.com. The reasons for this would be he wants a different vernacular than other promotions use, and many of the terms are more memorable. Both those make sense as most of the “banned” terms are ones everyone uses at some point when talking about wrestling.
It’s a curious look behind the scenes at what’s different than we’re used to in our daily lives.
Another reason is the newer terms can be categorized as “call to action” phrases that get our attention right away. They tell us what’s happening in as succinct a way as possible.
Why the change of heart on ‘wrestler’?
Okay, this is 100% theory on my part, but I’m sure others have it as theirs, too. He’s allowing the change to add a sense of legitimacy to his product.
Think about it. He’s signed a contract for Smackdown to be on Fox, and Fox wants it to be a more sports-based show. It’s why they created WWE Backstage and push it so hard during commercials and commentators during NFL and other events.
Fox is one of the largest sports networks in the world, so it’d make sense. It’s smart, assuming most people watching take wrestling seriously.
This brings to mind a great Joey Styles rant from some work he did on Raw in 2006.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEVax3BquOA
Most of us know and accept that it’s scripted (not fake) and the results are predetermined. That knowledge alone makes it difficult to shake the premise of professional wrestling being nothing more than a sideshow to many. And this brings us to another question
Why is it called Sports Entertainment?
Because it is a form of combat sports. Sure, the punches and kicks are held back or miss, but the physical abuse they dish out by throwing each other or taking repeated shots to the head or body (Seriously, let someone slap you a dozen times and see how you feel before poking fun) take a toll. In fact, there’s more physical contact in professional wrestling then in some “legitimate” sports.
It’s also entertainment as wrestlers are entertainers. They go out every night and risk life and limb to entertain us, so it makes sense to call it Sports Entertainment.
To be fair, it harkens back to carnival days when we knew the Bearded Lady wasn’t real, but we paid to see it anyway. It didn’t/doesn’t matter if it’s real or not. We’re there to be entertained, and if there’s a sports element added in, so much the better.
No matter how we view professional wrestling, it’s kinda cool that McMahon is loosening the reigns on the terminology, even if it’s just one word.
