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Pittsburgh Trib debacle

WordMP

New Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2005
Messages
29
So does sports editor Kevin Smith take the fall for wrong story on Steelers coaching situation or does the writer, Mike Prisuta? They completely whiffed, not only saying that Russ Grimm was offered the job but saying that he had accepted it. Foolish on both of their parts. I would think Smith is more at fault. Kudos to SI, ESPN and Fox Sports for nailing it down.
 
HAS it been nailed down?
I asked on the other thread if this was a heads-roll offense?
 
I have no opinion on whose head should roll, but just wanted to chip in that I've never been impressed by that sports section. Poor reporting, copy editing, confusing headlines, the whole bit.
 
ESPN, SI and Fox Sports are all saying it is done, and the Post-Gazette also is confirming it. Trib still has Grimm story on front page of its Web site.
 
I'm curious as to who the mystery source was.

Last time I'll give the T-R the benefit of the doubt. What a whopper.
 
WordMP said:
ESPN, SI and Fox Sports are all saying it is done, and the Post-Gazette also is confirming it. Trib still has Grimm story on front page of its Web site.

That's because the T-R is one of those forktarded papers where the higher-ups think the paper just sort of puts itself out after 5 p.m. Friday.

That story will be on that site until at least midnight.
 
Assuming Smith signed off on running the story, both he and Prisuta should take the hit for this one, though I wonder if the higher-ups pushed for them to have something whether they were really sure or not.

Most of it has to fall on Prisuta. Smith wasn't the one talking to the source. Prisuta was. He got fooled.

Also strikes me as interesting that there was nothing from the Trib's new Steelers' beat writer on this. They are still having to cover making such a late hire on a vitally important beat in that market. I doubt the guy has the connections to even be a player on this story.
 
I'm eager to see how and where exactly the dust settles on this one. Right now it's plenty of finger-pointing and who-dun-it. If, in fact, the new Steelers coach is Mike Tomlin and not Russ Grimm. If it's Tomlin, I wonder if Prisuta was ordered by the higher-ups to run with a tip write the story simply for posterity's sake - so the Trib could convince themselves that they were keeping up with the Joneses (see: PG vs. Trib on the Penguins beat).
 
Trib took story off Web site and now it is nowhere to be found. No comment from the paper either.
 
WordMP said:
Trib took story off Web site and now it is nowhere to be found. No comment from the paper either.

Wow, those bastards just live to prove me wrong this weekend.
 
AP has it as done deal now, too. Not a good day for the careers of Kevin Smith or Mike Prisuta
 

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