Ohlmeyer's debut as ESPN ombudsman: The Roethlisberger story

Steak Snabler · Aug 18, 2009

Ohlmeyer's first column as ESPN ombudsman was posted today. After a long introductory section, he addresses ESPN's non-coverage of the Roethlisberger rape allegations:

Honest people can have an honest debate over news judgment. Some may quarrel with ESPN's criteria. Some may feel that when any news breaks in the world of sports, it should be "damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead." Others may think ESPN should be applauded for having standards and sticking to them.

But the more I thought about it, the more that mantra rang in my ears: "Serve the audience." Even if ESPN judged that it should not report the Roethlisberger suit, not acknowledging a sports story that's blanketing the airways requires an explanation to your viewers, listeners and readers. And in today's world they are owed that explanation right away -- to do otherwise is just plain irresponsible. It forces your audience to ask why the story was omitted. It forces them to manufacture a motive. And it ultimately forces them to question your credibility.

It appears that in an attempt to tamp down media criticism, ESPN issued a statement to inquiring news organizations that had questioned its lack of acknowledgment of this story. That doesn't cut it. In a situation like this you need to be proactive, not reactive. If ESPN felt it needed to explain its rationale to the New York Times or the Washington Post, then there is no excuse for not giving the same explanation DIRECTLY to its audience.

On radio and television, it could have been as simple as this: "Many media outlets are reporting on a legal situation involving Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger. We have chosen not to report the details of the story at this point -- doing so would not comply with our standards. A further explanation can be found on ESPN.com." On the Web site, ESPN could have posted an expanded version of this statement, including its criteria and any other necessary information.
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http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=ohlmeyer_don&id=4405442

poindexter · Aug 18, 2009

Not a fan. 4,000 words - the verbosity of a Simmons column, and all the force of a Solomon ombud column.

Schreiber set the bar high.

dooley_womack1 · Aug 18, 2009

I disagree with Ohlmeyer. If your standards dictate it not be reported, you can't be giving up those standards just because others' standards are not yours.

DanOregon · Aug 18, 2009

Better than I thought it would be - I'll be interested in reading his insights on the production side.

Smasher_Sloan · Aug 18, 2009

Interesting that ESPN was all over the Raiders coaching punch-out incident, even though there wasn't a whole lot of credible confirmation.

Guess they don't care if the Raiders are pissed at them.

BYH · Aug 18, 2009

Lectures on journalistic responsibility from the guy who fired Norm MacDonald for making fun of O.J.

Yeah, I'm not taking this seriously at all.

hacksaw2828 · Aug 18, 2009

This whole section of ESPN is a waste of time. ESPN lost its journalistic integrity when it 1) started trying to make movies 2) hired Emmitt Smith who apparently has never taken an English class 3) moved Ron Franklin and Mike Gottfried off the A team of Saturday night football 4) created Around the Horn with Woody, Skip and all the other piss ants and finally, 5) lost all the good anchors and reporters on SportsCenter. Now we are stuck with Ed Turder, Pedro Gomez, the official spokesman for Barry Bonds, and Sal, who must live in the Philly Eagles' training facility.

Pancamo · Aug 18, 2009

Sorry Hacksaw, Mike Gottfried had to go from the A team. Teams could be 0-11, losing 56-0 in the 12th game and he would say it was a great coaching staff. Kissed as much coach ass as Vitale.

Steak Snabler · Aug 18, 2009

Pancamo said:

Sorry Hacksaw, Mike Gottfried had to go from the A team. Teams could be 0-11, losing 56-0 in the 12th game and he would say it was a great coaching staff. Kissed as much coach ass as Vitale.
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That, and he can no longer speak clearly or quickly after having had a stroke. Listened to him lately on College Football Live or on the fourth-string broadcast crew? Brutal.

slappy4428 · Aug 18, 2009

BYH said:

Lectures on journalistic responsibility from the guy who fired Norm MacDonald for making fun of O.J.

Yeah, I'm not taking this seriously at all.
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Spoil sport....

tapintoamerica · Aug 18, 2009

One thing he didn't address was the network's decision to report on a civil suit against an NBA player in May. I'd like to know how that story, the specifics of which I forget, met the "standard" but the Roethlisberger story didn't.
Otherwise, pretty good first effort.

hondo · Aug 18, 2009

dooley_womack1 said:

I disagree with Ohlmeyer. If your standards dictate it not be reported, you can't be giving up those standards just because others' standards are not yours.
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The WWL has standards?

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Ohlmeyer's debut as ESPN ombudsman: The Roethlisberger story

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