Baylor University football sexual assault scandal; dead meat media

Numerous media reports have suggested that Kenneth Starr, President of Baylor University, has indeed been fired following revelations by Outside The Lines that many incidents of footballers either sexually assaulting or physically assaulting people had been either swept under the carpet or just plain covered up.

Media feeding frenzy.

The media has responded to the story in a feeding frenzy. For many reporters, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hit the headlines with a juicy scandal. There were some allegations on Twitter that this is just a downer on the Bears, but there is so much smoke in this fire, that some of the allegations, at least are going to stick.

Fallout.

As everybody knows, there are always two sides to every story, but the trends on social media indicate that there will be little space to maneuver for Baylor. Fallout is going to be huge, and already, the baying has started for the head of Coach Art Briles. Beyond that, Alex Dunlap points out that this whole scandal is going to fall out well beyond just Baylor.

Feeble investigations.

The Waco Trib reported that this calls into question the efficiency of the laws that made parents and students feel safe on campus.

Instead of openly acting on complaints about assaults and sexual allegations, Baylor seems to have covered them up, and investigated them in a “feeble and indifferent manner.” It is because of these reports that reporters and the public are stoking the fire in the smoke.

More allegations will follow.

Questions are being asked of the AG’s office, about using the Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) to smokescreen the reported incidents.

No doubt other universities are going have similar allegations. This follows in every major incident, from Clintons’ “I did not have sex with that woman” to the Oscar Pistorius murder trial that ended up with a flurry of reports that he acted aggressively in public on a number of occasions.

Delays don’t help.

When the press gets hold of a story that is inadequately faced fair and square, and when personalities from within the institution react aggressively, this just feeds negativity into the story.

The statement by Baylor University, that they will not respond to rumor and speculation and expect to make a delayed announcement on the June 3rd, seriously puts the media on edge and any reporter worth his salt would be asking if they have something else to cover up or hide.

Dead meat.

Baylor is dead meat with the media and this is probably because it was the media who uncovered the many reports that had been buried, ignored or just locked away in a Police safe. In these days of internet and fast communications, transparency is the order of the day. Hide things, cover up things or just sweep them under the carpet – and you can crow until the cows come home, and nobody will believe you.

Trial by media.

In many ways, the media has become the accepted authority when it comes to trial by public opinion. Nothing is going to change that reality. It boggles the minds of some Twitter commentators that Starr, the man involved in the impeachment of Clinton, has not yet learned just how damaging the media can be. No amount of wishful thinking is going to make the media go away just because there is a holiday coming up.

People are listening.

People are reading the allegations and they are listening to the victims of assaults, but Baylor’s silence about the sex scandal is lending credibility to these stories. Baylor needs to front up and face up as soon as they can, because if they don’t, the University may never recover from the tarnish on its reputation.