The LeBron James free agency saga has made everyone antsy, including media members tasked with being on the front lines of the story. That led to an odd moment Friday morning: a section of ESPN’s Chris Broussard’s report on James’ ill feelings toward Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert’s infamous 2010 letter being removed without explanation.
ESPN removes anonymous quote from most recent LeBron James update
An initial version of the story quoted an anonymous league executive suggesting James would be a hypocrite if he returned to play for Gilbert because he spoke so strongly about removing Clippers owner Donald Sterling from the league. The quote is here:
But using that line got at least one other reporter mad because it violated journalism ethics:
NBA exec uses mask of anonymity in @Chris_Broussard story to call @KingJames a "hypocrite" for considering @cavsdan. http://t.co/6vja8W3art
— Chris Sheridan (@sheridanhoops) July 11, 2014 Rules of journalism state that anonymous sources should only be used to report facts, not opinions. @Chris_Broussard breaking that rule.
— Chris Sheridan (@sheridanhoops) July 11, 2014 And now, the story doesn’t include that quote. Instead, it ends right before it. And later, Broussard tweeted this, even though he was the one to include the parallel in his story in the first place.
What Dan Gilbert wrote was idiotic & stupid, but not racist & comparable to D Sterling. 2 totally different situations. Shouldn't b compared
— Chris Broussard (@Chris_Broussard) July 11, 2014 Regardless, we now know what other members in the league think of James’ indecision. How much does that matter? That’s up for the reader to decide.
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