When Sherman and Bennett talked to the media about their views on race and police brutality earlier this season, the mainstream sports media barely mentioned it. When you see people try to silence athletes, it's just a sign that they don't like what the athletes particularly have to say. Many have thoughts that have nothing to do with sports, just like a lot of us have thoughts and interests that have nothing to do with our day jobs. Athletes are people they're not workhorses just to dance or hit other people or whatever for our pleasure. Greg Howard is a staff writer for Deadspin who writes about sports, race and culture. A day later, his teammate Michael Bennett took the podium to disagree with Sherman's characterization of the issue and speak about the structural inequality that has long affected black communities.) The conversation was edited for clarity and length. (You can read about the exchange on Deadspin, but here's the gist: During a press conference, Richard Sherman of the Seattle Seahawks said that while there are some bad police officers, "black-on-black crime" must be of primary concern. In particular, we focus on a fascinating exchange between two NFL players on race and police violence. Howard spoke with me about how sports media address - or don't address - race in its coverage and what, if any, obligation athletes and the journalists who cover them have to talk about race. (Whitlock was removed from his position at the site earlier this summer, and was fired altogether from ESPN this month.) Those stories gained a lot of attention, as well as the ire of Jason Whitlock, the polarizing sports columnist whom ESPN had picked to helm the site. But he's become best known for his writing over the past year about the behind-the-scenes turbulence at a planned ESPN site called "The Undefeated," which meant to focus on issues of sports and race. Greg Howard is a staff writer at Deadspin, a Gawker Media site that covers sports and culture, and has written and reported on everything from the Black Lives Matter movement to the shortcomings of boomerangs. He earned it with the Texas Rangers.LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers wears an "I Can't Breathe" shirt during warmups. The practice is controversial in part because rules on attorney-client privilege make it easy for those like Thiel to keep their activities a secret.Īn earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Williams earned his nickname with the Chicago Cubs. The billionaire’s campaign to destroy Gawker has raised serious questions about the ethics of litigation finance, which permit wealthy companies and individuals to fund lawsuits for profit or revenge. Meanwhile, the Thiel-backed lawsuits, which have roiled the media and tech world, will continue. (The lawyer, Laura Mattiacci, also said Williams will appeal a court decision this week to throw out the libel case, and that he is still pursuing a wrongful dismissal suit MLB Network, which fired him after the Deadspin story.) But on Wednesday a lawyer for Williams told Fortune unequivocally that no third party is paying for the lawsuit. The memo could be interpreted to mean that Williams received support from Thiel. Get Data Sheet, Fortune's technology newsletter. We just have to persevere,” wrote Denton. Legal protection for true stories remains strong. But today's news in the Mitch Williams case shows that, even if the wheels of justice turn slowly and expensively, they do turn. “It's easy to see the company as legally under assault. The ball player, who earned his nickname for his wild delivery on the mound, sued Gawker two years ago after the company’s sports site Deadspin published allegations that Williams had cursed out 10-year-olds and ordered a beanball during a kids tournament.Īnd on Wednesday, Gawker founder Nick Denton referred to a court victory over Williams case in a widely leaked memo to staff about Thiel and the legal campaigns being waged against the company. And for now, no one can say for certain who the plaintiffs are. But the company says there are at least two other lawsuits backed by Thiel. The most prominent case involves wrestler Hulk Hogan, who recently won an eye-popping $140 million judgment against Gawker. The scheme, if you haven’t heard, was hatched by tech mogul Peter Thiel, who admitted last month that he has spent around $10 million to bankroll lawsuits aimed at Gawker. On Wednesday, a lawyer for Williams, who is suing over an embarrassing 2014 sports story, confirmed he is not part of the scheme. You can scratch Mitch “Wild Thing” Williams from the list of mystery names who are receiving money from a billionaire in a shadowy scheme to sue Gawker Media out of existence.
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