Jay Mariotti resigns

This isn't true. He always put the column first and foremost. Never mailed it in a day in his career.

 

I have never read anything close to the De Luca column. My question, for those who are in the know, was the column ordered from on high?

 

Michael Miner of The Reader used to do a weekly thing on Bob Greene, entitled 'We Read Him So You Don't Have To.' Surprised he never offered the same service for Mariotti sufferers.

Under any other circumstance, the celebratory comments and statements would amount to a crowd cheering for the guy on the ledge to jump, and breaking into song and dance when he hit the pavement. But in this case, given the public grief Jay gave his colleagues over the years, it seems a fitting and sadly-deserved farewell.

 

Telander dancing on the freshly filled grave. But classy about it:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-080827-telander,0,5123276.story

To me, here is the best part, which not only addresses Mariotti's biggest failing but can be extended to sports departments and newsrooms across the nation:

"As sports writers, we study and analyze teams all the time. We look at chemistry, teamwork, coaching and discipline like all of that has nothing to do with any other business, and yet that's the blueprint for success anywhere and in any business. So in these stormy seas, let's give it a try..."

How often does management, at the department level or the newsroom level, ever actively do anything to foster teamwork and, more important, an overall sense of team? My experience: Hardly ever. Often never.

We've got managers who pit staffer against staffer, who reward stars while dumping on drones and who let all manner of s*** run downhill, often faster than it came toward them. We've got petty rivalries and jealousies within the ranks. We've got prima donnas (like Jay and plenty of others) who act like the plum jobs are birthrights, then thumb their nose at the ethics of it all -- work ethic sometimes, basic reporting requirements other times, etc. -- and behave as if the fundamentals of this business are beneath them. I've encountered a lot more "stars" in this business who, in terms of camaraderie and pitching in and sharing the wealth, act like Billy Zane's character dealing with the folks from steerage ("Down, down! How 'bout you feel the bottom of my boot?!").

All of this was traditionally lacking. But now, with everyone covering their nuts (OK, private parts) to look out for No. 1 through at least the next pay day, we all are leaving tons of untapped potential and collaboration on the table. And even those of us who consider ourselves great team players have to understand that much of this starts at the top. When the suits who cut, slash and burn continue to reap bonuses and fat paychecks for shredding the product and rocking staffers' lives, no sense of "team" is possible. That, sadly, is the problem with Telander's plea, as right as he is -- Michael Cooke continues to own multiple homes internationally (I'm guessing) and Rick T. lives in posh Lake Forest on his star's megasalary (while being a guy who always has been willing to pitch in to help his beat folks, from what I hear). Meanwhile lots of Sun-Times grunts are praying that they can handle the mortgage, car note, tuition bill and groceries two or three months out from now.

T-e-a-m! Right... At this point, most of us are limited to the sort of bonding that war prisoners felt, the night before the morning of the firing squad.

 

I didn't say he mailed it in. I said he was a media personality first and that's true, thanks to ESPN...."ceasing to be a writer" didn't mean he quit writing, but that he was more than a writer.

 

Great stuff by Miner...

 

Before the Telander lovefest begins in earnest, he has his faults, too. Mostly writing on deadline, which he seems to avoid like the plague.

 

Wow, that deluca column was something else.

The whole situation is so bizarre. The more the Sun-Times piles shit on Mariotti the more you wonder why they kept him around. I'm an outsider on this story, but it's pretty obvious they tolerated him (and his lack of ethics) when he was causing controversy and (maybe) sparking readership.

But now that he cowardly fucked them like he cowardly fucked everyone else, they join the anti-Mariotti bandwagon.

It's also odd to see Telander speaking to the Tribune. If the story is that hot in Chicago, why doesn't Telander do his own column on it?

 

I understand your point, but this statement is ridiculous. Your top columinists--with decades of experience--should be paid the same as the 'grunts' (your word) so the staff can feel they're all part of the team?

You want to talk about lack of loyalty and trust between management and staff, absolutely. But blaming disproportionate salaries is just silly.

 

Because DeLuca already had it covered and they probably figured one "Fuck you, Mariotti" column was enough.

 

Who is Chris De Luca and how big was the piece of raw meat that Michael Cooke must have waved in front of his snout to get him to write that gleeful, internal rip job?

Never mind Mariotti's despicable ways and insufferable ego. Let the outsiders -- Guillen, Harrelson, ideally others from other Chicago teams, along with readers and some journalism experts -- provide the voices in a reaction piece, if you feel one is warranted.

But De Luca's own stuff that weaves throughout, then dominates, is amateurish b.s., a chance by a wannabe star to put the Sun-Times dirty laundry in the street one more time. Very classy. Should have saved it for his blog. Or his e-mails to his buddies. Or this board.

 

And will Around the Horn really continue to employ Mariotti now that he's a former sportswriter?

What newsroom will he broadcast from? His basement?