Questions about Race

I have a lot of questions about race, ethnicity, and racism. Most of my questions deal with race in the United States. In what I am about to write I don't have answers to the questions I am going to ask. I am just thinking. But I feel it is important for us to think about and discuss important cultural and spiritual issues. I am convicted by the Spirit when I read biographies of guys like Wilberforce and Lewis who would sit around with their friends for hours and discuss the "Christian" view of current events and other important social issues. I want more of that in my life. Challenge me.
I am not a football fan, however I enjoy keeping up with current events. I recently heard about the death of Sean Taylor as I am sure you did. I had never heard of this young man until he was shot and later pronounced dead. I was reading an article about him and found out how the shooting took place. The article then discussed his stats and then mentioned he was once convicted for brandishing a firearm. At the moment I read that, I automatically assumed he must have been involved in some shady stuff and I might as well be reading about some low life thug. The article had some redemption in my eyes when it quoted Clinton Portis saying Shawn Taylor's life was drastically changed for the better at the birth of his daughter. But I was left with a question.
Do news paper articles include everyone's prior records in articles describing their deaths? Joe Kennedy, the pitcher for A's who recently died, had no mention of crime. Perhaps he was never convicted of a crime. But why include Taylor's record? Was Taylor's crime mentioned because it involved a gun, the same weapon that killed him?
What about other athletes who die? I am assuming when Michael Vick, O.J. Simpson, and Barry Bonds die we will all read about their "wrong doings" again. But I wonder when Jose Canseco and Mark McGuire pass will we read about how they used to inject one another with steroids? I guess we will just have to wait and see...