ESPN Lets a True Journalist Go and It Comes Back to Bite Them
By Ken Reed
Brett McMurphy has long been a journalist in every positive sense of the word. In short, he’s a pro’s pro.
But ESPN decided to let McMurphy go as part of a layoff in April 2017. McMurphy still had 18 months left on his contract at the time and instead of taking another job and letting ESPN out of the remaining months on his deal, he kept working independently.
Recently, he broke the Urban Meyer-Zach Smith domestic abuse scandal at Ohio State on his Facebook page. It’s the college sports story of the year and ironically, ESPN paid McMurphy — via his still in effect salary — to break the story on Facebook instead of ESPN.
McMurphy also independently broke the Scott Frost to Nebraska story. Count that as another miss for ESPN.
ESPN’s journalistic integrity has been in question for at least the past decade. True, the sports network still has a few quality journalists like Bob Ley, who does excellent work, including hosting the investigative journalism show Outside the Lines, but they are the exception. Today, too many of ESPN’s “talents” are childish entertainers like Chris Berman and not true journalists.
It is sweet revenge for both McMurphy and everyone who longs for more honest and in-depth sports journalism that McMurphy beat the self-proclaimed Worldwide Leader on one of the biggest sports stories of the year.
— Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans
Sports Forum Podcast
Episode #22 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Rethinking Sports Fandom with Author Craig Calcaterra – We discuss Calcaterra’s new book “Rethinking Fandom: How to Beat the Sports-Industrial Complex at Its Own Game” and explore new ways to be a fan in the year 2022.
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Episode #21 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Chatting About a Broken Game With Baseball Writer Pedro Moura – Moura is a national baseball writer for Fox Sports. We discuss how and why the game of baseball is broken, what factors caused it, and offer a few thoughts on how to “fix” a great game.
Episode #20 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Coaching Youth and High School Sports Based On What’s Best for the Athlete’s Holistic Development – We chat with long-time youth, high school and college basketball coach Jim Huber.
Episode #19 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Capturing the Spirit of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League with Anika Orrock – We discuss the hoops AAGPFL women had to jump through to play the game they loved as well as the long-term impact and legacy they have in advancing sports opportunities for girls and women.
Episode #18 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Talking about the 50th Anniversary of Title IX and the Lia Thomas Controversy with Nancy Hogshead-Makar – Hogshead-Makar is a triple gold medalist in swimming, a civil rights attorney and CEO of Champion Women.
Episode #17 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Talking Sports With Legendary New York Times Sports Columnist Robert Lipsyte – We chat about Lipsyte’s amazing career and some of the athletes he covered.
Media
"How We Can Save Sports" author Ken Reed appears on Fox & Friends to explain how there's "too much adult in youth sports."
Ken Reed appears on Mornings with Gail from KFKA Radio in Colorado to discuss bad parenting in youth athletics.
“Should College Athletes Be Paid?” Ken Reed on The Morning Show from Wisconsin Public Radio
Ken Reed appears on KGNU Community Radio in Colorado (at 02:30) to discuss equality in sports and Title IX.
Ken Reed appears on the Ralph Nader Radio Hour (at 38:35) to discuss his book The Sports Reformers: Working to Make the World of Sports a Better Place, and to talk about some current sports issues.
- League of Fans Sports Policy Director Ken Reed quoted in Washington Post column titled "What happened to P.E.? It’s losing ground in our push for academic improvement," by Jay Mathews
League of Fans is a sports reform project founded by Ralph Nader to fight for the higher principles of justice, fair play, equal opportunity and civil rights in sports; and to encourage safety and civic responsibility in sports industry and culture.
Sports & Torts – Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans – at the American Museum of Tort Law
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