As Morocco’s fans take over downtown Boston with a fervor that rivals the Super Bowl, it’s hard to ignore how the mainstream media misses the mark yet again. You have outlets like CNN feverishly trying to paint this as a delightful underdog story, while Fox News tiptoes around the real implications of this cultural phenomenon. It’s almost laughable—who knew that cheerleading a soccer team could be the new stratagem to distract us from the real issues? Did they think we wouldn’t notice?

What they don’t want to discuss is the palpable shift in how sports are woven into the fabric of national identity. Instead of celebrating diversity and unity, as they imply, it seems more like a marketing ploy—a way for these corporate giants to distract us from their failures. Don’t get me wrong: I admire Moroccan resilience, but the media’s incessant need to juxtapose this performance with a storyline of ‘inclusion’ feels manufactured. The messaging is painfully obvious: chew on this feel-good story so you don’t focus on the failures around you, whether it’s political strife or economic woes.

Expect the shameless exploitation of this narrative to continue, with media outlets taking turns at the mic, trying to hammer home the ‘inclusive’ angle while washing over the elephant in the room. By framing it as purely a feel-good tale, they are robbing the moment of its complexities. Let’s not allow these outlets to hijack the narrative and sell superficial platitudes instead of engaging with what this really means for communities and cultures.