(Image source: Deadspin)
BY MARC STEIDLER
ANCHOR CHRISTINA HARTMAN
You're watching multisource sports video news analysis from Newsy.
After nearly 50 days of Twitter silence, one of college football’s most popular writers and Tweeters finally spoke - er tweeted. Bruce Feldman says he’s leaving ESPN for CBS Sports --
He explained his decision on the Dan Patrick Show:
“You know if you’re not a part of their agenda, and if you’re a problem for them, you can’t exist in that world. Once you come out of there, ya know, do you have faith in the people who are running the place? If you can’t trust the people you work for, you have a problem.”
Depending on who you believe, Feldman was either suspended or -- instructed not to work by ESPN in July. This after Feldman co-authored a book with former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach. The problem? Leach is suing ESPN for defamation. The Poynter Review Project’s Kelly McBride writes in a guest column for ESPN that the network needs clearer professional standards.
“We believe if ESPN had better guidelines on who can write as-told-to books, this whole thing could have been avoided. But there [is] little consensus among top managers on the topic.”
One writer for the “...ology” blog says we shouldn’t be surprised if this kind of problem happens again.
“ESPN is wrapped up in the commodification of sports. Sports generate profits, and broadcasting sports generates profits. When money and business become entangled with journalism, conflicts of interests will always crop up.”
If this does become a recurring issue, Bleacher Report’s Adam Wells writes ESPN better check its moral compass.
“If the company wants to present sports news and do it honorably and with some semblance of integrity, they need to not stop treating quality journalists... like dirt when they do everything that they are asked to do.”
SI.com reports ESPN disagreed with Feldman’s account but wouldn’t comment further.
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