Reading is Fundamental

A story in a few tweets.

First, from Sports Illustrated:

Sports Illustrated is hiring an entry-level breaking news writer based in NYC. Come join our team: https://t.co/UOlFMefXuc

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) June 18, 2018

Second, from Charlotte Wilder, a senior writer at SI:

If you can stand sitting near me in the office this is a v cool opportunity. Especially if you're a woman trying to get into sports, you should message me — DMs are open https://t.co/CI6uyFQAKV

— Charlotte Wilder (@TheWilderThings) June 18, 2018

And then, off the top rope, and flailing wildly at an incomprehensible and agenda driven point, Ed Werder (formerly of ESPN):

So men need not apply? Any others ineligible? https://t.co/GwcCrFtmak

— Ed Werder (@EdwerderRFA) June 18, 2018

Now, it’s early out here in the Pacific Time Zone, and I have not had enough coffee yet, but last time I checked, “Especially” did not mean “Exclusively”. It seems to me that Charlotte was offering to talk about the position or the experience of working at SI or in sports media in general. I didn’t see her as presenting herself as the hiring authority; I didn’t see it as being exclusionary at all.

What I do see is the fragility of an older white male who had reached the top of the game, and was laid off and appears to still be adrift. I see someone who is worried about the future. I see someone who has to reckon with the fact that the game itself has changed and that access is flattening—microscopically so, but still has flattened a bit.

But wait! There was more from Ed:

Just read aloud what you WROTE. You essentially made it clear you’re excluding males regardless of ability. I READ the words you wrote. https://t.co/kO0x9TTZRa

— Ed Werder (@EdwerderRFA) June 18, 2018

I don’t think you did, Ed. Unless you have created a new operational definition of “especially” that somehow became “only”.

Except I’m not the one who excluded anybody. She did that. I opened it to all applicants and encouraged them to hire the best. https://t.co/V2k9szIVjM

— Ed Werder (@EdwerderRFA) June 18, 2018

Charlotte didn’t exclude anybody; you read something into her words that is patently not there.

Read her original post as an aspiring young male sports writer and tell me she’s not disqualifying you from getting the job. https://t.co/cs2FVTCJk8

— Ed Werder (@EdwerderRFA) June 18, 2018

I was an aspiring young male sportswriter once. I don’t read it as exclusionary now. I wouldn’t have read it as exclusionary back then, either.

Oh so you’re saying the rest of the industry is racist and sexist except for you. https://t.co/lGkwqtBMHu

— Ed Werder (@EdwerderRFA) June 18, 2018

Well, actually, Ed...*looks left. looks right* It kind of is.

Because next week I’m going to be standing in front of a broadcasting class of young people and some will be males and I have to tell them they have the same chance at jobs like those one as all others. https://t.co/XYAvjmRrij

— Ed Werder (@EdwerderRFA) June 18, 2018

Those males in that broadcasting class that you’re going to be speaking at are going to be fine. And if they’re trying to make it in sports, they will definitely be fine.

Which is kind of the point of Charlotte’s tweet. Mentors matter. Networking matters. Especially when you’re just getting started. I don’t think Charlotte was offering to fast track anyone; again, I don’t see her as the final hiring authority for this position anyway.

But to claim that she was being exclusionary—when her words clearly (CLEARLY!) state otherwise—is a shameful, baldfaced lie and it makes me question what agenda Ed Werder is trying to serve.