Whitlock Asks Why Mainstream Media "Virtually Ignores" ESPN

Today’s journalists “must acknowledge that we're part of the story, reinvent our rule book and turn our reporting, analyzing and investigative spotlights on each other," according to FOXSPORTS.com's Jason Whitlock, who wrote under the header, "Time To Rethink Role Of Sports Journalists." Whitlock: "We need to be held accountable.” Whitlock noted some of his critics "are troubled by my focus on ESPN. They wrongly believe I'm hostile toward ESPN because I split with/was fired by the network. I chose to liberate my mouth from ESPN because the network's business relationships with all of the major sports leagues stand in the way of free, creative speech. I'm occasionally hostile toward ESPN because it's an arrogant, reckless, destructive monopoly.” He added that “the mainstream media virtually ignores” ESPN, and leaves the coverage “of the most powerful institution in sports to basement bloggers and a handful of harmless, press-release-rewriting embedded sports writers.” While some bloggers have covered ESPN, Whitlock wrote, “For the most part, bloggers can't do it. They just don't know enough. Their instincts are horrible." Whitlock: "We need a far more aggressive and above-board system of policing ourselves than relying on editors who may have hired us simply because they share our agenda” (FOXSPORTS.com, 5/7).