Sandgren accuses reporters of 'perpetuating propaganda machines'
After finding himself at the centre of controversy, Tennys Sandgren launched an attack on the media at the Australian Open.
Published : Jan 24, 2018 20:41 IST
Tennys Sandgren has accused reporters of "perpetuating propaganda machines" after finding himself at the centre of a social media storm.
Sandgren's unlikely run at the Australian Open ended at the quarter-finals courtesy of a straight-sets defeat to up-and-coming star Hyeon Chung on Wednesday.
However, the 26-year-old's form on the court has been overshadowed somewhat after he was questioned earlier this week about links to the alt-right movement on Twitter.
Sandgren defended himself by saying he "finds some of the content interesting" but that he is not an alt-right sympathiser.
And, addressing journalists at a news conference after his loss to Chung, Sandgren launched a diatribe against what he feels is unfair reporting in the media.
"You seek to put people in these little boxes so that you can order the world in your already assumed preconceived ideas," he said.
"You strip away any individuality for the sake of demonising by way of the collective. With a handful of follows and some likes on Twitter, my fate has been sealed in your minds.
"To write an edgy story, to create sensationalist coverage, there are a few lengths you wouldn't go to mark me as the man you desperately want me to be.
"You would rather perpetuate propaganda machines instead of researching information from a host of angles and perspectives while being willing to learn, change and grow.
"You dehumanise with pen and paper and turn neighbour against neighbour. In so doing, you may actually find you're hastening the hell you wish to avoid, the hell we all wish to avoid.
"It is my firm belief that the highest value must be placed on the virtue of each individual, regardless of gender, race, religion or sexual orientation.
"It's my job to continue on this journey with the goal of becoming the best me I can and to embody the love Christ has for me, for I answer to him and him alone."