ESPN Running Scared ~ | The Boneyard

ESPN Running Scared ~

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Okay - maybe not really, but there is clearly concern to go to these lengths. This is the cross-over between sports journalism and business self interest people here talk about.

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/s...ommissioner-mike-aresco-came-job-late-process

Documents: Aresco not on initial list

Updated: August 24, 2012, 11:16 AM ET
By Brett McMurphy | ESPN

Top officials from the NFL, the Texas Rangers, Major League Soccer and Major League Baseball were among the final candidates to become the Big East's commissioner and eventual commissioner Mike Aresco wasn't even considered a serious candidate until days before he was hired, documents obtained by ESPN revealed.

Also, Russell Reynolds Associates, which conducted the search, threatened legal action against at least one Big East university and the conference itself implied it might take legal action against one of its member schools to keep it from fulfilling ESPN's public records request.

Aresco was named Big East commissioner on Aug. 13. However, less than a week before, he was not mentioned as a candidate in nearly 70 pages of documents sent to the league's search committee between June 15 and Aug. 6. The documents were obtained from two Big East universities by ESPN.

On Aug. 6, Rick George, chief operating officer of the Texas Rangers since 2010, and Mark Abbott, president of Major League Soccer since 2006, were listed as the only "finalist candidates." Both individuals interviewed that afternoon at Russell Reynolds Associates' offices in New York.
Besides George and Abbott, others who also interviewed according to the documents, were: Ray Anderson, NFL executive vice president of football operations since 2006; Tim Brosnan, Major League Baseball's executive vice president of business; Dennis Robinson, Formula One Grand Prix COO since January; and Arlen Kantarian, former CEO of the U.S. Tennis Association.

Last month, league officials said the Big East planned to name a new commissioner at the end of August. However, industry sources told ESPN that the Big East -- once notified of ESPN's public records request on Aug. 6 -- quickly decided to name a commissioner before the records request could be fulfilled.

"The Big East felt the search would be compromised if the names got out beforehand," a league source said. "That's exactly why they moved up the timetable to name the commissioner."
It's unknown if any candidates withdrew from consideration for fear their names would be exposed in the emails Russell Reynolds Associates sent to several Big East public and private universities.

In three separate e-mails to the Big East's search committee between July 15 and July 31, Russell Reynolds Associates' managing director Alan Reene and executive search consultant Liz Boardman warned the committee "if any of the (candidate) names were made public, we would certainly lose candidates" and if it wasn't confidential it "would likely result in the withdrawal of the relevant candidate(s)."

Industry sources said the Big East believed once it named a commissioner, ESPN would withdraw its request for the public documents. League sources with knowledge of the search confirmed to ESPN that Aresco didn't emerge as a candidate until just days before his hiring.

"Well I am not going to be able to get into specifics in order to protect the confidence of the search firm and the Big East," Aresco told ESPN.com's Andrea Adelson. "The search firm does the preliminary work and obviously you ultimately meet with presidents and have to convince them you're the person."

A former vice president at CBS Sports, Aresco would not specify when he became a candidate.
"When I look back at some of the interesting hires over the last several years, when Myles Brand was hired as the NCAA president, that came out of the blue," Aresco said.

On Aug. 6, ESPN submitted public record requests to the University of Cincinnati and University of South Florida -- their respective presidents Greg Williams and Judy Genshaft were on the search committee -- seeking information regarding the Big East's search. Russell Reynolds Associates legal representation threatened to file a lawsuit against USF to keep the university from providing the documents to ESPN. The firm's lawyers also contacted Cincinnati questioning what documents the school would release to ESPN.

"We are willing to take the necessary steps to obtain judicial intervention and declaration," attorney William E. Grob wrote on behalf of Russell Reynolds Associates to USF on Aug. 10. Russell Reynolds Associates' legal team also argued the candidate's names should not be available through ESPN's public records request because "all communication ... included the express notification that the information was highly confidential" and the "subject line of each electronic communication ... is marked confidential."

Covington & Burling, a law firm that represents the Big East, also implied the league would pursue legal action against -- oddly enough -- one of its league members if it fulfilled the records request.

Attorney Benjamin C. Block wrote to USF's legal counsel on Aug. 9 that "(the Big East) may need to seek immediate relief from the courts if this issue cannot be solved amicably."

In early June when Russell Reynolds Associates was hired by the Big East for an undisclosed amount to conduct the search, it indicated in an email, obtained by ESPN through sources, that the characteristics of the next commissioner should be: "strong interpersonal skills, a servant leadership style, exposure to the media, superb managerial skills and a fabulous communicator. Experience negotiating with television networks is not essential, but can be learned."

Russell Reynolds Associates, which prides itself on "protecting the integrity and confidentiality of the search and candidate process," also indicated the commissioner's salary would exceed $1 million annually with long-term incentives.

Joe Bailey, who was the Big East's interim commissioner the past three months, was a former partner at Russell Reynolds Associates. That was a key factor in RRA being named as the Big East's search firm, sources said.
 
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LOL, we land a commissioner who is universally praised, so it doesn't much matter how the process went. to paraphase Bismark, never watch commissoner selections or sausages being made.
 
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you have to love this part "The documents were obtained from two Big East universities by ESPN."

i wonder which two schools that might have been? personally I'd be pretty ticked if the rest of the BE kept Cuse and Pitt in the loop for the selection process. i wonder if any of the brilliant minds at ESPN considered the possibility that we didn't include them on our most pertinent discussions.

I really don't see the point in an article like this. Does ESPN really think the search for a conference commissioner is the most interesting thing they can report on? also, does anyone else think this is a pretty idiotic use of the FOI act? now i'm starting to actively hate them
 
U

UConn9604

you have to love this part "The documents were obtained from two Big East universities by ESPN."

I'd have to guess two public universities (which would be thus subject to FOI regulations and laws, and have to give it up), one of which is in ESPN's home state...
 

huskypantz

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I'd have to guess two public universities (which would be thus subject to FOI regulations and laws, and have to give it up), one of which is in ESPN's home state...
USF and Cincy were the two.

Since ESPN and the BE are business partners, definitely toes the line between seeking insider business info and having journalistic intentions. I have no idea what to make of this, other than ESPN's article serves to stir the pot.
 
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I would think a hiring process would be exempt from foia till it was completed.
 
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They tried to use FOI statutes to see who was under consideration. the Big East tried to delay any selection until the deal was sealed. Since various state FOI statutes are different and get interpreted differently, I assume they went where they felt they'd get the "best" interpretation, and likely with the least onerous appeal procedure. Aresco was something of a surprise pick but that could have been intentional, it could have been that he was a late entry, or it could even have been that initially he wasn't approached because people assumed he wouldn't be interested.
 
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This article embarrasses one entity and that entity is ESPN. The whole thing is childish. Maybe next they can tell us who was smoking in the bathroom.
 
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Negative press from ESPN about the Big East? Shocking.

Sooner or later crap like this starts to backfire. A major league, global business, headhunting firm makes a great hire for the big east conference, and that hire turns out to be probably (probably, I have no idea if Aresco was the last interview - but well, it seems like it...) so maybe, the last guy interviewed, got the job.

Shocking. So shocking.
 
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They tried to use FOI statutes to see who was under consideration. the Big East tried to delay any selection until the deal was sealed. Since various state FOI statutes are different and get interpreted differently, I assume they went where they felt they'd get the "best" interpretation, and likely with the least onerous appeal procedure. Aresco was something of a surprise pick but that could have been intentional, it could have been that he was a late entry, or it could even have been that initially he wasn't approached because people assumed he wouldn't be interested.

Exactly. ESPN wanted to know who was being interviewed. The search firm was explicit, from the moment that they were hired, that compromising the privacy of the individuals in consideration was a major threat to finding the most qualified individual.

Joe Bailey is no fool. THe reason the search was to happen so quickly...and a search, for a job like this, handled over the summer months? We're talking about people that take LONG summer vacations in places that most of us can only dream about........but a fast search like this over the summer?

It was done exactly like that so, that a company like ESPN, wouldn't be able to very quickly blow the whistle on who the candidates are.
 
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ESPN appears to be a parody of itself. Does anyone work there who is not a mendicant or a supplicant to management? (other than Jay Bilas). I have never seen such a collection of clowns with an obviously dictated agenda outside of a political campaign. Unfortunately, like a political commercial, there are always some poor folk who actually believe what they are reading or watching.
 

CL82

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I would think a hiring process would be exempt from foia till it was completed.

Depends. If they were circulating names around, then no.
 
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ESPN appears to be a parody of itself. Does anyone work there who is not a mendicant or a supplicant to management? (other than Jay Bilas). I have never seen such a collection of clowns with an obviously dictated agenda outside of a political campaign. Unfortunately, like a political commercial, there are always some poor folk who actually believe what they are reading or watching.

Well Pat Forde from Yahoo thinks so too... from his article yesterday about the Top Movers and Shakers in College Football:

"8. Lee Fitting, producer of ESPN’s College GameDay - You know Chris Fowler, the best sports studio host of any kind. You know his affable and insightful sidekicks, Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso and Desmond Howard. You know Fowler’s host consigliore, Scott Van Pelt. But Fitting is the sharp mind behind the scenes who makes the best show on television go. And don’t underestimate the influence of “College GameDay” on setting the agenda for what fans (and poll voters) are talking about and paying attention to each week of the season. (my emphasis added)
 
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I would think a hiring process would be exempt from foia till it was completed.
These things get a little complicated sometimes. I think internal Big East stuff is probably exempt from FOI but when say the President of USF, a public University, gets an email from the Big East in her capacity as President it isn't as clear cut. And when it is in her capacity as a member of the Big East Board which she holds by virtue of being President of the school...well I think various states might have different readings and different laws and exemptions.
 

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all this is great news for uconn, ruty and lville. it shows that espn wants only 5 major leagues and if this nbe is going to get any kind of good contract espn will lead the way in the power 5 getting more teams to decrease the value of the nbe.
 
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They tried to use FOI statutes to see who was under consideration. the Big East tried to delay any selection until the deal was sealed. Since various state FOI statutes are different and get interpreted differently, I assume they went where they felt they'd get the "best" interpretation, and likely with the least onerous appeal procedure. Aresco was something of a surprise pick but that could have been intentional, it could have been that he was a late entry, or it could even have been that initially he wasn't approached because people assumed he wouldn't be interested.

or, he (Aresco), being very media savvy and knowing that "reporters" either were, or would soon be slinking around, wanted his name kept out of any and all correspondence until the selection process was completed.
 
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http://espn.go.com/blog/bigeast/post/_/id/35621/insight-into-big-east-commissioner-search

Good old AA on the Big East Blog is saying this as "an excellent piece of reporting" Now, Im not a reporter, but I would think to qualify as excellent reporting, you would first have to write about a subject that people actually care about.

This whole thing is comical. I can't believe she posted that just to pimp BMM's post. I won't even call it an article because it's just an unnecessary diatribe.
 
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