Deadspin savages Whitlock and The Undefeated

[bigpern23]

How Jason Whitlock Is Poisoning ESPN's "Black Grantland"

A long, but worthwhile read about SJ's favorite writer and his leadership - or lack thereof - at The Undefeated, ESPN's black version of Grantland.

If you don't wade through the whole thing, the closing paragraph is just a ferocious takedown of Whitlock.

"Whitlock is a social commentator with a 15-year-old’s understanding of American history and a 75-year-old’s appreciation for pop culture."

 

[RecoveringJournalist]

And suddenly, Bill Simmons seems like a low-maintenance model employee.

 

[RecoveringJournalist]

People who have worked with him have said ever since his Oprah appearance, which came during the Rutgers "Nappy Headed ***s" debacle, Whitlock has seemed to think he's on a different planet than other writers/columnists.

He basically said, "He always had a giant ego, but was tolerable. Then he went on Oprah and started to think the world revolves around him."

 

[Inky_Wretch]

And they waited to post this on Whitlock's birthday.

 

[Songbird]

Reading it now but I have a short attention span and saw "Uplift" and am willing to bet that Jason loves this Rakim song, which plays into his raison de etre ...



Pretty good read so far.

 

[Mr. Sunshine]

Greg Howard is the new Scoop Jackson. Whitlock couldn't have asked for a better foil.

 

[LongTimeListener]

He basically said, "He always had a giant ego, but was tolerable. Then he went on Oprah and started to think the world revolves around him."

They'd need to up a year to 400 days long.

 

[Big Circus]

Greg Howard is the new Scoop Jackson. Whitlock couldn't have asked for a better foil.

Hey, he's the best soccer writer Deadspin's got.

 

[poindexter]

Wtf ever happened to Scoop Jackson?
That's a name from the past.

 

[SnarkShark]

God damn, these stories are always so long.

 

[Mr. Sunshine]

Howard can be full of ****, but long as it is, that's good stuff. Whitlock comes off terribly.

 

[JackReacher]

That was some pretty cringe-worthy reading. I mean, I can't even imagine having to work for someone like that.

Wow.

 

[Songbird]

Bit of a hatchet job even if it's warranted on some level.

On another level I wonder if Jason suffers from CTE because he's painted as someone who's so passionate and on-point one day only to go off the rails the next.

And yet he comes off sympathetically other times, and Greg only scratched the surface of the psychology behind the man. "Being Jason Whitlock" would be a fascinating 30 for 30.

 

[RecoveringJournalist]

Interesting because few "mainstream journalists" have championed Deadspin more than Whitlock. Granted, Whitlock has never seen a bridge he doesn't want to torch, so that relationship may have gone sideways years ago.

 

[RecoveringJournalist]

The hatchet job is coming from the person at ESPN who sent all those memos and video to Deadspin. I'm guessing those close to the situation know exactly who leaked that stuff.

 

[JackReacher]

Whitlock loves giving people nicknames. Read almost anything he's ever written. Leon "Scandal" Carter. PRETTY CLEVER!!!!!

He apparently has the management skills of a 14-year-old. What a ****bird.

 

[RecoveringJournalist]

I wonder if Peter King or Bill Simmons were that psychotic with their pitches for MMQB or Grantland.

 

[Stoney]

Interesting because few "mainstream journalists" have championed Deadspin more than Whitlock.

Had the same thought. I seem to remember back in their early days Whitlock was the voice always defending/supporting sites like deadspin when others would bash them. Kinda biting the hand that once fed them here.

 

[BitterYoungMatador2]

I had forgotten the guy was alive to be honest.

 

[RecoveringJournalist]

Had the same thought. I seem to remember back in their early days Whitlock was the voice always defending/supporting sites like deadspin when others would bash them. Kinda biting the hand that once fed them here.

Of course, they may see him as the ultimate hypocrite for going back to ESPN after everything he said about them.