Nike Chair PHIL KNIGHT "acknowledged" that recent steps
by Univ. of OR (UO) President DAVE FROHNMAYER "distancing"
the university from the Worker Rights Consortium has "eased
the sting" caused by UO's decision to align with the WRC in
April, according to Greg Bolt of the Eugene REGISTER-GUARD.
Knight has returned to watch UO football games, saying, "The
university modified its position [on the WRC] a little bit,
and I just sort of felt comfortable coming back to the
games. ... I'm still very emotionally tied [to the
university], no question. ... I think these campus issues,
this issue with regard to organizing campuses and fighting
business and fighting Nike -- in particular on those
campuses that have endorsements with Nike -- I think that's
going to be with us for several years, all across the
country. And so in some ways it's just step one, battle
one, on this issue" (REGISTER-GUARD, 11/11). In a telephone
interview, Knight talked about some of his fears on the
labor issue: "My nightmare is that I go to the negotiating
table, and among those people ... I am fighting with is my
own university." Commenting on Knight's return as a fan,
the REGISTER GUARD's Ron Bellamy wrote that "steps taken by
Oregon away from the WRC made [Knight] feel more
'comfortable' about attending games, and he'll be with the
Ducks for the rest of the season" (REGISTER-GUARD, 11/11).
