Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Urban Meyer and Erin Andrews: Is that allowed?

Within the media explosion that followed Urban Meyer's resignation I was struck by comments ESPN's Erin Andrews apparently made to a sports columnist in Pennsylvania:
During her "peephole incident" last year in which a man drilled out a lock in her hotel room door and inserted a tiny camera to photograph her, Andrews confided in the Meyer family and leaned on them to get through the ordeal. ...

"He can deal with haters," (Andrews said). "There were times last year when that whole thing happened to me when I called him up crying. And he was the one giving me advice about people like that. He did the same thing for Tim [Tebow]. He gave me some quotes to remember about how to handle that sort of thing. So, I really don't think it's that. The only people in his life that he wanted to please that I know of are Shelly and his three kids.

“But at this point, I haven't talked to Coach or Shelly and I really don't know anything. This came as a complete surprise to me and people I know in the inner circle are shocked."
Not that I look to Andrews for unbiased coverage of the University of Florida, but are you really allowed to do that as an ESPN college football reporter? To call a coach at a major college program, cry, and lean on him for support and advice?

What sort of a relationship is that for a reporter to have with a source?

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Does she really qualify as a "reporter" anyway.

Anonymous said...

It's her private life, I don't see the big deal. Does it bother you b/c it involves two people associated with a school that owns your program?

(Insert your best jort joke here) and then tell me how great Herschel Walker was back in the 80's.

Anonymous said...

You wear jorts douchebag.
Tim Teabag couldn't hold Hershcel's jock.

Happy now?

Lucid Idiocy said...

Anonymous 10:06 - It bothers me because I'm a newspaper reporter by trade. I covered the Georgia legislature for several years. When I had a bad day I didn't call up the speaker of the house and talk to him about it, because the next day I might have to write something negative about him.

I hope you hire Bobby Petrino, and we'll see you in Jacksonville.

Anonymous said...

Tim Teabag... clever. The fact it only took you four minutes to come up with that retort is most impressive. You definitely earned your Keystone Light today.

@Lucid - Yeah I understand where you are coming from. I guess I just don't consider her a reporter... more of a commentator and something nice to look at during halftime. Maybe they are the same thing, I don't know. Does she even write for ESPN?

I really don't want Petrino or Mullen. Strong might be nice but not sure he's ready yet but I would take him over the other two. I really like the OC from Okie State. That guy has some impressive numbers if you look at them.

Next year should be interesting for both programs. See you in Jax!

Lucid Idiocy said...

Her title is "ESPN Sideline Reporter." So while you may not consider her one, ESPN certainly does.

Anonymous said...

Yeah but, uh. oh. okay.

Anonymous said...

Urban said, "Honey, you have a nice @ss and that is nothing to be ashamed of".

Anonymous said...

In all honesty, I don't see much of a problem. I'm in the reporting biz, and while they would probably advise against Andrews' actions in J-School, it's not a big deal. Everyone is already aware of her ties to Florida. As a sideline reporter, the possibility for bias to show is limited. If real hard news ever breaks in Gainesville that would require "negative" reporting, they would send Tom Rinaldi or someone else.

Basically, I wouldn't do what she did, but no biggie.

Lucid Idiocy said...

They wouldn't "probably advise" against it in journalism school, they would say you shouldn't do it, ever.

Is it terribly important? Not really. It's sports. It's ESPN. All you have to do is watch Erin Andrews be in the same room with Tim Tebow and any questions about objectivity are answered.

But if this doesn't bother you, I don't think you can complain about ESPN bias.

But that's all the time I have for this subject. I had a rough week, and I need to call the governor of North Carolina to get her advice on how to get through it.