Seriously? (warning - long) I know you guys love when I do that. I warned you all about these unnamed sources before, now ESPN has a professional writer doing it. Pathetic.
The article starts out very solid, reporting. So, and so were candidates, so and so didn't show up in any documents at all until days before the official hiring. Threats of legal action to maintain confidentiality of sensitive information in the hiring process, information requested by ESPN directly from university leadership, through free press regulations. Good reporting, all referenced with solid sources.....
Then this....
"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."
League officials did say that. That’s a set up. This is a professional writer we’re talking about. It immediately gives credibility to……
...there's those industry sources again. The same ones that said Boise was going back to the MWC. The same ones that have been wrong about everything, that hasn't come directly from a league president or from the league office officially since January. So, we're supposed to believe that the ESPN information request - is what motivated the hire?
Really McMurphy? that's what motivated a quick hire? an ESPN information request? BS
So let's continue. Next line.
"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."
See? The league source this time – credibility set up, but now….WOW! an unnamed industry source has credibility? Well the league did say that they'd have somebody hired by the end of August. They said it in May. But the timetable got changed? When? BS. Strawman.
Let's move on next paragraph.
"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."
Huh? Talk about setting up a strawman. Who withdrew? Did anybody really withdraw? Says who? But yeah, let's go ahead and jump to those emails that would expose something and creative something negative. BS
Next paragraph. These are professional writers, they know what they're doing. Here's your explanation for that unfounded statement, coming after, to emphasize the BS - false strawman conclusion.
"In three separate emails to the Big East's search committee between July 15 and July 31, Russell Reynolds' 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)."
All that paragraph does is re-inforce what was stated immediately, and that is reasonably to be expected to be known, that privacy in the interview and hiring process was very important to the success of finding the highest qualified individual - that was specified on day 1, in that both potential interviews, and those already interviewed, would no longer have interest. THis isn't news, and is part of any hiring process, at any level. If you've got a job, it's not a good idea to go out and interview for another job without a clear plan in mind, and your communication issues and profiles with your existing employer and your potential future employer are all lined up properly. Look at what Flipper did to Jagodznski. Of all the executives mentioned, I'm sure that they will have repercussions of some sort, for interviewing for the BIg East job. This isn't mickey mouse business we're dealing with - these are long term professional sports executives in very high profile jobs.
Let's move on.
"Industry sources said the Big East believed once it named a commissioner, ESPN would withdraw its request for the public documents."
What? What the hell is that? We hired Aresco in the specified time frame because ESPN we thought ESPN would withdraw the public document request? There's that industry source again. But wasn't it the league source that said that the public document request is what speeded up the process? Let's look back...
Yup - it was the unnamed league source that said that ESPN request supposedly sped up the process (all of which happened in the time frame specified in May, by Joe Bailey). So McMurphy - another unnamed industry source confirmed what your unnamed league source said? Or is it the same unnamed industry source that you started this mess with, that said that the league decided to name it's commissioner quickly before information could be sent out – or was it because they wanted the ESPN request withdrawn?
So – in conclusion, the league did a shotgun hire on Aresco, because they didn't want to send out records, and then were hoping the records wouldn't go out, once the hire was made b/c ESPN would withdraw?
BS. Next line:
"League sources with knowledge of the search confirmed to ESPN that Aresco didn't emerge as a candidate until just days before his hiring."
League source(s) this time? Yes, that’s exactly what the information says, so he closes his argument with a statement that validates that unnamed BS league source.
I'm supposed to believe those multiple league sources now? BS.
Here's what McMurphy did with his article.
He publicly notified the entire corporations of every one of the candidates he named, that their leader was interviewing for another job, and then he tried to blame the Big East for it all, and not his own company, for doing that.
I really don't know how some of these ESPN people can sleep soundly at night.
Baa.