Recent high profile incidents of fan violence have raised concerns about fan safety at major sporting events in the United States. (See USA Today article.) Teams and leagues are scurrying to beef up their “crowd management” and “crowd control” plans. The focus of those plans needs to be on alcohol.
Fans ultimately must be […]
by Dave Zirin
“You can’t throw money at the problem.” As a former public school teacher in Washington, I heard this cliche from countless bureaucrats. It was code for “Stop whining about ancient textbooks and prehistoric classroom materials, because there is no money.” Imagine my shock when the city announced it would be spending more than $500 million on a new baseball stadium. Clearly when it comes to the needs of billionaire sports owners, there always seems to be money available to be thrown.
Sonics co-owner: We wanted OKC all along – wait, are you writing this down?
August 14, 2007
“Throw another move threat on the fire: Yesterday, Seattle Sonics minority owner (and billionaire natural gas mogul) Aubrey McClendon told the Oklahoma City Journal Record that he was ‘under a self-imposed gag order’ regarding operations of the team – then yammered at length about it, including the statement: ‘We didn’t buy the team to keep it in Seattle; we hoped to come here. We know it’s a little more difficult financially here in Oklahoma City, but we think it’s great for the community and if we could break even we’d be thrilled.'” . . . | more
Media Advisory
“Build It and They Will Come: Do Taxpayer-Financed Sports Stadiums, Convention Centers and Hotels Deliver as Promised for America’s Cities?”
Thursday, March 29, 2007, Room 2247 Rayburn, 10:30 a.m.
Domestic Policy Subcommittee, Oversight and Government Reform Committee
This hearing will examine the promises of economic prosperity that are made to cities which finance professional sports stadiums, convention centers and hotels.
(from the March 29 Domestic Policy Subcommittee, Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing: “Build It and They Will Come: Do Taxpayer-Financed Sports Stadiums … Deliver as Promised for America’s Cities?”)
Witness Testimony:
Mr. Neil deMause, author of Field of Schemes: How the Great Stadium Swindle Turns Public Money Into Private Profit
Mr. Frank Rashid, waged an unsuccessful 10-year campaign to save Tigers’ Stadium in Detroit.
Who’s at Fault in the Stadium Standoff
Letter to the Editor: Washington Post – Wednesday, January 11, 2006; Page A20
In his Jan. 3 op-ed, “Why the Stadium Deal Isn’t Done,” Major League Baseball President Bob DuPuy wrote as though baseball were performing a humanitarian service against its interest by relocating the Montreal Expos to Washington.
The D.C. area’s huge population and media share, the Washington Nationals’ financial success in 2005, and the league’s anticipation of $450 million in franchise sale proceeds show that the District is the only choice for the Nats.
(Letter co-signed by: Jim Bouton, former Yankee pitcher and author of Ball Four; Ralph Nader, consumer advocate and author; Neil deMause, co-author of Field of Schemes; Dave Zirin, columnist for SLAM magazine and author of What’s My Name, Fool?; Robert Weissman, director of Essential Action and co-author of Corporate Predators; and Shawn McCarthy, director of League of Fans.)
Council of the District of Columbia
Dear Council member:
The District baseball boondoggle is swirling out of control at an ever accelerating pace.
Neil deMause, co-author of Field of Schemes and blogger of fieldofschemes.com, highlights exactly what everyone knew would happen after the DC Council approved the worst stadium deal ever — that it would continue to get even worse for DC residents and taxpayers:
George M. Steinbrenner III
Owner, New York Yankees
Dear Mr. Steinbrenner:
So you want to be the man who tears down “the House That Ruth Built.” And for what? More profit.
Neither you, nor the city government you pressured, nor anyone else should ever do this to a place so rich in history and tradition as Yankee Stadium. Would the city ever tear down Carnegie Hall? Adding wasteful insult to senseless injury, you command hundreds of millions of dollars in public subsidies and primary neighborhood parkland to support a new impostor stadium.
The Honorable Adrian Fenty
Council of the District of Columbia
Dear Mr. Fenty:
With the primaries fast approaching, many voters are waiting for a plan as to what you would do to fix the baseball stadium mess should you become the Mayor of the District of Columbia.
Sports Forum Podcast
Episode #32 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Prolific Author Joe Posnanski Joins the Show – Posnanski is one of America’s best sportswriters and has twice been named the best sports columnist in America by the Associated Press Sports Editors. We chat about his new book, “Why We Love Baseball,” his new Substack newsletter called Joe Blogs, and we cover topics including how baseball treats its fans, MLB’s numerous rule changes this past season, how the sport can become more fan-friendly, the greatness of Negro Leagues champion Buck O’Neil, and much more.
Listen on Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Anchor and others.
Follow on Facebook: @SportsForumPodcast
More Episodes on Apple Podcasts; Spotify; Google Podcasts; PocketCasts; & Anchor
Episode #31 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Foul Ball Safety Is Still an Important Issue at Ballparks – Our guests are Jordan Skopp, founder of FoulBallSafety.com and Greg Wilkowski, a Chicago based attorney. We discuss the historical problem of foul balls injuring fans and why some teams are still hesitant to put up protective netting in some minor league and college baseball parks.
Episode #30 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The State of College Athletics with Dr. David Ridpath: Problems and Potential Solutions – Ridpath is a sports administration professor at Ohio University and a member of The Drake Group, a college sports reform think tank.
Episode #29 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The Honorable Tom McMillen Visits League of Fans’ Sports Forum – McMillen is a former All-American basketball player, Olympian, Rhodes Scholar and U.S. Congressman. We discuss the state of college athletics today.
Episode #28 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: A Chat With Mano Watsa, a Leading Basketball and Life Educator – Watsa is President of PGC Basketball, the largest education basketball camp in the world. We discuss problems in youth sports today.
Episode #27 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Kids’ Sports: How We Can Take Back the Game and Restore Quality Family Time In the Process – Linda Flanagan is author of “Take Back the Game: How Money and Mania Are Ruining Kids’ Sports and Why It Matters.” We discuss how commercialized and professionalized youth sports are hurting kids and their families.
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.
- Reed Appears on Ralph Nader Radio Hour League of Fans’ sports policy director, Ken Reed, Ralph Nader and the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner discussed a variety of sports issues on Nader’s radio show as well as Reed’s updated book, How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan. Reed's book was released in paperback in February, and has a new introduction and several updated sections.
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.
Vanderbilt Sport & Society - On The Ball with Andrew Maraniss with guest Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director for League of Fans and author of How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan
Sports & Torts – Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans – at the American Museum of Tort Law
Books