For any UK fan that despises Lexington Herald-Leader sportswriter Jerry Tipton as much as me, I have started a started an online petition to have Jerry Tipton fired:
You have to provide a valid email address to sign, but this is to ensure that no fake or prank names are used. I have set the goal at 40,000 signatures and don't think it will be hard to find 39,999 people that agree with me. He has recently crossed the boundary of professionalism, and has almost worked to sabotage UK's newly hired coach and the work he has done in recruiting thus far. If you don't know what I am talking about, then don't bother with signing. Thanks.
Sorry Tyranny22. I didn't intend for the statement to discourage signatures, I figured that Tipton's antics were well-known to most UK fans by now.
In a nutshell, Tipton recently contacted the parents of two of UK's most recent verbal commitments, Vinny Zollo & Michael Avery; he openly questioned their kid's decisions, while attempting to shed a negative light on coach Billy Gillispie. His questions included the parent's knowledge of grueling practices, and citing a direct correlation to players being injured as a result of his methods--supposedly dating back to his days coaching at UTEP. He also asked if they knew about Gillispie's previous run-ins with the law, and his supposed alcohol abuse. The parents themselves even told another reporter that they were uncomfortable with several of Tipton's questioning, because they perceived them as negative reflections on the program, and even the state-- Zollo's mother has reportedly said that Tipton even inferred that Lexington is a bad place to live.
I will be the first to say that I am all for objective journalism; but when your work does more to hinder the program that you cover (and the program that essentially keeps you employed), a line has been crossed. If this was a sportswriter from Durham, NC or Knoxville, TN (or pretty much anywhere besides KY) I would understand; but to act in a negative way as a direct representative of the state is uncalled for and just plain wrong.
Jerry Tipton is such a jerk. He is part of the reason for the problems at UK years ago. I have never seen a local paper trash the hometown university like Tipton and some of the other writers do. Not only does Tipton need to go but Story and Clay also.
I appreciate the spirit. However, the petition won't work. All that will do is create exposure to the paper and show that people at least read their product. If you wan't to hit them where it hurts, then ask people to stop taking the paper for 1 month all at the same time. See if you can get 40K subscibers to not read the LHL for 1 month, two weeks would probably work. Then you would get some level of action.
This guy does this with all UK sports, I mean what he is saying is no different than what all the rest of the media outlet says but I would agree that the hometown paper should be looking for the positive story and not the negative.
How about posting a link to his column bashing UK? Honestly, who in their right minds would waste their entire adult life writing about something they hate? And as for Clay and Story, Bourbon, give us a break. These guys write great columns about UK and if you bothered to read them daily, which I doubt you do, you would know that.
ukcats I must say I agree with you. I think the guy loves UK and their sports, but he tries to be too objective. I think he is trying to be objective and get the real scoop but I guess my point is that you look to the local media outlet for relief and not objectivity. I'll be honest, what he writes doesn't bother me but it puzzles me sometimes. I don't read the guy that often.
I still stand by what I said, the petition is wastin' your time, if you want to get the guy fired you need to hit them where it hurts, their wallet. If I was their marketing director, I would love to see a petition come in stating that 40K people even new who this guy was. That would tell me people are reading even if they aren't liking.
TrueBLUE, I think Tipton's writing should be 100% objective. For the pro-UK articles that everyone wants and enjoys reading, Story and Clay write columns that are very pro-UK and almost always very insightful. By the way, I do not work the LHL if it seems like that haha.
As for Tipton, he has been writing about UK basketball since 1982. Almost 26 years! Many of you are suggesting that he is anti-UK. Imagine yourself having to write about Louisville basketball for the next 26 years. You would go insane! Why would Tipton spend such a long time here if he hates UK?
