Do Morals Make A Sports Radio Career Harder? – Barrett Sports Media

This week, when former Florida Gator Tim Tebow signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars, I wanted to tweet a few things. Then, I remembered that unlike years past, Twitter has become more toxic.  After dealing with the blowback of “Wear a mask,” I held my social media tongue.  Then, it dawned on me. I don’t think I could do a show in Jacksonville right now in the slightest.

My issues with Tebow go back to a documented incident in 2013 where he wanted to speak at a church in Texas that was known to be anti-black, anti-Muslim, anti-gay, and anti-Jewish.  I said on Fox Sports Radio then that I was anti-Tebow.  I still remember hearing the complaints from listeners.

I do not apologize for my thoughts on Tebow.  I reiterated my sentiments when he signed a publicity stunt disguised as a minor league baseball deal with the New York Mets.  It was something I believed in then and stand by now.

The challenge is, how to objectively cover something or someone when it goes against your morals and principles.

“Be honest with the audience, but you don’t have to tell them the whole truth,” FOX Sports Ft. Myers morning show host David Moulton explained when I approached him with my Tebow dilemma. “You can say, Hey, I’m not a Tim Tebow guy, but you don’t have to go to the depth of explaining why that is.”

“In Alabama, if some kind of scandal went on with (Alabama) coach (Nick) Saban, here they would be like ‘we know Saban and all that stuff, so you know, we gotta be nice to the guy,” John Mountz, Program Director for the Alabama Radio Network. “What’s worse is if your station has a relationship with the team you run the risk of possibly losing some relationships by what you were going to say as an objective broadcaster.”

“I’ve known talk show hosts that make nobody mad,” Mountz elaborated. “They also entertain nobody. And they usually don’t last very long. It’s the ones that actually kind of shake things up really are the ones that get the following and last long-term. Yeah, you’re going to tick people off. It just comes with the territory and, I guess that’s where you do have to be careful. I think being a smart businessperson is knowing that there are dollars to be made.”

Alabama is a unique market in that college football is such a massive part of the culture. Last year, I was bothered by Alabama’s apparent defiance at Covid-19 when the subject was raised that college football maybe should not have been played. I was pro-NFL, but against college, because those young men were being asked to take great risks while pro players could opt out and still make huge sums of money.  College kids do not get a penny.

I asked Mountz if there were any broadcasters whether in his employ or not, that objected to the Crimson Tide playing at the height of the pandemic in Summer 2020. Shockingly, he could not think of any. (sarcasm noted)

Standing up for what you believe is something I was instilled with early in age. It’s something I try to impart to my children. In sports radio, that is a slippery slope.

“I think if the last year and a half has taught sports media hosts anything, it’s that kind of be open, be honest and give your opinions,” said Mike Rutherford, radio host and owner of the blog Card Chronicle, covering Louisville sports. “If people don’t like it, they will not come back. That’s kind of the way I’ve handled things. Maybe they’ve lost a few listeners or lost a few readers, but I think in the long-term, it probably has been more beneficial for them.”

In 2008, Red Sox DH Manny Ramirez got into an altercation with a traveling secretary for the team.  Jack McCormick had not gotten tickets that Ramirez requested. Ramirez then pushed the 63-year-old McCormick to the ground.

I was working for Major League Baseball in 2008. I called for Manny to be suspended.  Instead of suspending the slugger, the Red Sox traded him to the Los Angeles Dodgers. MLB launched the “Manny-Wood” campaign and celebrated his arrival in Southern California.

I was outraged. Yet, I was an MLB employee.  I was not asked to change my opinion, but rather to downplay it. It is the same skin-crawling feeling that I felt when Tebow signed with the Jaguars.

Rutherford explained that while Louisville is a liberal city, its sports fanbase is rather conservative. Covering the Rick Pitino saga as well as the return of Bobby Petrino was like walking a tightrope.

“If you are open and honest about your political beliefs or about your views on society, people will respect you,” Rutherford said. “And the ones who don’t are probably going to come back to the sports stuff anyway.”

Play-by-play announcers and most reporters can be factual without injecting their opinions.  A good example of that is the story of three controversial baseball players: Roberto Osuna, Aroldis Chapman, and Domingo German.  All have been suspended for domestic violence incidents.

Calling the games where they are pitching is a challenge.  A bigger challenge is trying to discuss Chapman’s fastball while finding his actions to be despicable on a talk show.

Another example is new Jets quarterback Zach Wilson.  His mother raised a controversy this week after she went on Instagram complaining about Disney World having strict mask rules.

Instantly, Wilson’s mom was characterized by the controversial rhetoric that splits the nation regarding masks, which are tangled within political landscapes. Wilson does not need the headache, but now might be asked to weigh in on a subject that might be received differently at BYU than in the Big Apple.

Wilson has a long career ahead of him. Fans will hope he makes more headlines about his football acumen than his mom does on Instagram.

“At the end of the day, you are trying to attract that audience,” said Moulton. “You’re not trying to just inform and entertain an audience or doing that after you attract it.”

It is good to stand by your opinions, but it should also be noted, how difficult that can be.