Whether the developments of the last few weeks indicate that we've made progress in society is debatable.  For one thing, it's great to see an Asian guy getting hired into the top spot of a major sports franchise.  We thought Norm Chow might be that guy, to be the first head coach of a National Football League team, but he hit his ceiling as the offensive coordinator.  We thought Kim Ng might make the jump to General Manager with the LA Dodgers or some other team.  She's moved from team to team, garnering respect in heaping amounts along the way, but she hasn't been able to climb the ladder to the top rung yet.  So it's with a mixture of relief, pride and just a touch of resignation (does it always have to feel like we're climbing a mountain?) that I'm excited to see an Asian American get hired to lead the operations of an NBA team.

Jeremy Lin is a great story as well.  His previous coaches praise his leadership on the floor, tenacity and smarts. I can deal with the latter two near-model-minority attributes, since it's rare to hear praise for an Asian guy in sports revolving around leadership.  Then again, it's rare to hear praise for an Asian guy in sports, generally.

And then K-Town.  I just don't know what to say.  Does this give us more color?  Does this make us less "boring"?  Any publicity is good publicity?  Watching the trailer below is like camping out on the banks of a railbed to watch a train wreck.

Without further ado:

Rich Cho, an Asian American with Burmese roots, was the first Asian American to be hired as a general manager of a major sports team when the Portland Trail Blazers announced that they were hiring him to replace the departed Kevin Pritchard. 

Then the undrafted Jeremy Lin, fresh out of Harvard, became a Summer League sensation when he matched first overall draft pick John Wall.  Throw it down, Asian man!  Lin's efforts earned him a contract with the Golden State Warriors this week, making him the first Asian American in the NBA.

But now comes word that MTV has picked up K-Town, the Asian American answer to the Jersey Shore.  And that can be arguably described as one giant leap backwards - I'll leave that up to you to decide.