OT: ESPN suspends Simmons for 3 weeks for calling Goodell a liar

[8893]

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...ium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial&hpt=hp_t2

 

[progrocks]

He is not a news reporter, he is a columnist.
Crazy that he is suspended longer than the NFL thought Rice should be suspended for.

ESPN logic - Calling a liar a liar is worse than knocking out a woman

 

[Kitaman]

Love or hate him, he ain't scared to speak his mind. I respect any high profile 'writer' who does that. ESPN instead of requesting a public clarification decided to send a message to all of their 'contracted partners' to "shut the fick up'.

Censorship is alive.

 

[Husky25]

Censorship is preventing something from being said or heard, a la the twins in Good Morning, Vietnam. Consequences happen after the fact.

ESPN, in a cowardly manner, is telling warning their other on air talent that they can say whatever they choose, but will suffer consequence if they do.

It wouldn't surprise me if this came from the NFL. It wouldn't surprise me if ESPN, being a slave to the almighty dollar that they are, was threatened that their NFL contract would not only not be expanded once it comes up for renewal, but would be stripped.

ESPN can't afford that, given what they must pay out for their college contracts, Finally, it wouldn't surprise me if Dad (or Mom) Q. Nonsportsfan subsidizes ESPN's contractual obligations with little Johnny and Susie's $150 a day entrance to the Magic Kingdom. They are already robbing Peter to pay Paul.

 

[UConNation]

It also wouldn't surprise me if it had something to do with the "profanity-laced rant." I'm not saying that the NFL doesn't have their hand in it, but I'd say that in almost all work places, if you're identifying yourself as an employee of your company (and in this case, when Simmons discusses sports in a public forum, he's automatically associated with ESPN) and you start dropping F-Bombs, then you can expect to be disciplined. Again, I'm not saying the whole thing smells right, but it's not as though ESPN has no leg to stand on.

 

[HuskyBballFan]

I've kind of gotten sick of Bill Simmons with the exception of his podcast, but this suspension is ridiculous. I wonder if the Simmons/ESPN partnership's days are numbered.

 

[Deepster]

Ooooh, how am I going to live without an NBA Trade Value column for 3 whole weeks?

 

[SubbaBub]

It also wouldn't surprise me if it had something to do with the "profanity-laced rant." I'm not saying that the NFL doesn't have their hand in it, but I'd say that in almost all work places, if you're identifying yourself as an employee of your company (and in this case, when Simmons discusses sports in a public forum, he's automatically associated with ESPN) and you start dropping F-Bombs, then you can expect to be disciplined. Again, I'm not saying the whole thing smells right, but it's not as though ESPN has no leg to stand on.

His website content contains language that is uncensored. Any pretense that this isn't the NFL is false.

 

[upstater]

You can't call someone a liar in Simmons's capacity without proof. Bruschi implied Goodell is lying and said he should step down. That's within the bounds. But I think what Simmons did is step over the bounds. He could have said it was incredibly hard to believe Goodell. But that's different than saying he absolutely was lying or that he's a liar generally.

On another note, Goodell is a liar. And he deserves all that he's getting because he has done a Bill Simmons on other people in the past, calling them liars to serve his own purposes. If you ask me, Simmons is doing everyone a service (I too can't stand Simmons) and he's getting off lightly.

 

[CallMeBruce]

It also wouldn't surprise me if it had something to do with the "profanity-laced rant." I'm not saying that the NFL doesn't have their hand in it, but I'd say that in almost all work places, if you're identifying yourself as an employee of your company (and in this case, when Simmons discusses sports in a public forum, he's automatically associated with ESPN) and you start dropping F-Bombs, then you can expect to be disciplined. Again, I'm not saying the whole thing smells right, but it's not as though ESPN has no leg to stand on.

This would only make sense to someone who doesn't read grantland or listen to Simmons' podcasts. The language from that podcast isn't remotely out of line with his typical fare.

 

[UconnU]

Lol suspended from what? A weekly podcast? Its not basketball season.

 

[SubbaBub]

You can't call someone a liar in Simmons's capacity without proof. Bruschi implied Goodell is lying and said he should step down. That's within the bounds. But I think what Simmons did is step over the bounds. He could have said it was incredibly hard to believe Goodell. But that's different than saying he absolutely was lying or that he's a liar generally.

On another note, Goodell is a liar. And he deserves all that he's getting because he has done a Bill Simmons on other people in the past, calling them liars to serve his own purposes. If you ask me, Simmons is doing everyone a service (I too can't stand Simmons) and he's getting off lightly.

I disagree. Simmons in the context of society is a gadfly, a popular one, but no different than Charles Barkley on the Sports side or Rush Limbaugh on the politics side. His speech is protected.

While ESPN, is not bound by the 1st A, it shows what hypocrites they are in sanctioning a site and content provider for doing exactly what they want him to do because they didn't like him doing it to them and their very lucrative partner, the NFL. I suspect Simmons will be anxious to end his relationship. He has enough juice to strike out on his own or partner with Fox/SI or someone else.

As for calling a liar a liar, Goodell is free to sue and endure discovery for that end. One of the biggest problems we have in public discourse is that false statements and opinions are allowed to go unchallenged because it's not nice to say someone is lying. That doesn't fly in private conversations. If someone is lying to me as Goodell was lying in his PC, I'd absolutely call them on it.

The other interesting wrinkle is they banned him from Twitter.

 

[UCHuskies08]

They suspended Simmons three times longer than they suspended Stephen A. Smith for suggesting that female domestic violence victims ought not "provoke" men into beating them.

I guess we can see where their priorities lie.

Even if you think this is "justified," are they paying attention to the PR surrounding all of this? Why are people in $4,000 suits with fancy degrees acting so stupidly?

 

[aceboon]

I wish they delayed this suspension until the NBA season when I actually have to see/hear him. Otherwise he's outta sight, outta mind for me.

 

[David 76]

Wish he had skipped the profanity so we could be positive which caused the suspension. I think it is within his right to call him a liar. First because we know he is a liar or incredibly incompetent. Incredibly incompetent is not likely. Second, he does opinion, not reporting. A reporter would have to say: "Many people believe he is a liar"

Many people believe this is cowardice in the face of their meal ticket the NFL.

 

[ShakyTheMohel]

Not many people would have heard what he said if he wasn't suspended. Sounds like a win for Simmons.

 

[HuskyBballFan]

He got suspended because he dared ESPN to suspend him.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Love or hate him, he ain't scared to speak his mind. I respect any high profile 'writer' who does that. ESPN instead of requesting a public clarification decided to send a message to all of their 'contracted partners' to "shut the fick up'.

Censorship is alive.

His whole schtick is that he's an anti-establishment shoot from the hip regular fan who just happens to have a blog and a job at ESPN. He's trying to go the Howard Stern/Jim Rome route where the medium doesn't matter. His fans follow regardless of who pays his checks.

The suspension gives him more credo and street cred to his audience. He's not a company guy and they can't control him.

 

[bmayuc]

I've grown a bit tired of the Simmons schtick and theories(alpha dog, ewing theory), but at the same time the guy has been an absolute beast producing/promoting NBA material on Grantland, really elevating smart NBA writers like Lowe to prominence. I also enjoy Simmons on TV. And he takes it seriously that he speaks his mind, regardless of consequence.

This ups his respect in my book, and absolutely is a crusher to ESPN. Deservedly so, they will be run over, through, around, on top of, and into the coals for this.

Here simmons I'll say it too. Goodell a F&ck1ng liar who has no integrity. Go ahead boneyard suspend me.

 

[OkaForPrez]

You can't call someone a liar in Simmons's capacity without proof. Bruschi implied Goodell is lying and said he should step down. That's within the bounds. But I think what Simmons did is step over the bounds. He could have said it was incredibly hard to believe Goodell. But that's different than saying he absolutely was lying or that he's a liar generally.

Right, that would put you at risk to be sued for defamation. For example if you were a head basketball coach and you said something along the lines of, "I know this kid and he's a liar and an extortionist". That might get you appealed to the highest level of NY state apeallate court.

And while we're connecting the dots, lets not forget that ESPN is still being sued by Laurie Fine on the other side of that story for their OTL piece.

 

[HobokenHusky]

Not many people would have heard what he said if he wasn't suspended. Sounds like a win for Simmons.

Simmons is a $&@"ing p r i c k who thinks he's a lot funnier than he is. He's like the family guy of sports columnists, dropping unrelated movie and pop culture references randomly into columns that add nothing to the subject at hand. He also hates UConn (he encouraged one of his goons tear into us on his podcast a few years ago).

I mean "@&$ ESPN too, but I'm not going to prop this jabroni up as some martyr

 

[Tenspro2002]

This is a clear case of ESPN bowing to the wishes of the NFL out of monetary or self-preservation instincts.

When a news organization is in bed with the subject it has to report on, objectivity and fairness go out the window. ESPN has beyond reached that point with the NFL as well as the whole conference realignment/P5 issue.

 

[beerfan]

I’m a fan of Simmons but I find his rant a little disingenuous.

Where was his outrage of Rice’s slap on the wrist initial suspension? We all knew Rice knocked this girl out in an elevator, why should actually seeing it make any difference? Only now we are seeing the timelines of other player’s domestic violence and criminal records being reported. Did we have to see the girl get hit to cause Simmons to go on a cuss filled rant? No, the NFL commissioner had to lie about seeing the tape to get Simmons all worked up.

 

[upstater]

Simmons was like HuskyFanDan on the Patriots fan message boards about a decade ago. Worshipped Drew Bledsoe and didn't want to hear it about Brady. Crazy stuff. I credit him for somehow parlaying the looniest of loony message board daily rants into Grantland. but he's still that guy in my view.

 

[David 76]

Whether Simmons is a fraud or a jerk is irrelevant to me. He got punished for biting the hand that feeds ESPN and for telling the truth. He may relish the chain of events, may have plotted this, may benefit from it, but it doesn't change my second sentence.