Here is the edited out piece of Donald Sterling’s secretly recorded audio from Deadspin (start at 1:20):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzxH71erDJk
Why was this edited out? This part is even more offensive than the first part, in my opinion, as Sterling throws his own under the bus in the same breath as he throws V.’s–a double whammy! Knowing as we now do that the tape was deliberately cut before TMZ released it into the wild, one must ask, who made the call to cut out this segment? It certainly was as newsworthy as the tape that TMZ did release. Was Sterling set up from the start? V. claims she did not release the recording, and that makes sense because presumably her only motive in making the tape would have been blackmail anyway. But who did she give it to? Who had access to it? Who knew about it? And who gave the green light to a media blitz against Sterling?
I assume releasing a selected portion of the audio was a calculated decision for three reasons: (1) part but not all of the tape was released – that implies some high level decision-making and a willingness and some ability to hold back rather than a hard-hitting journalist making a full report; (2) TMZ presumably depends on industry insiders to get much of their info – if they go off half-cocked and infuriate sports owners or leagues or whomever, they can expect to be shut out of future insider info, so presumably they would have vetted a huge story like this first; (3) the Victoria Nuland call in which she (our assistant secretary of state) was caught on tape plotting the coup in Ukraine was completely and thoroughly buried by the mainstream media. This could actually lead to WWIII or Cold War II – surely more newsworthy than anything Donald Sterling says, right? Yet that audio was buried. The media gatekeepers screened out that call but let this call go through – and edited it to boot. What gives?
This entire story has a very bad smell about it and it strikes me that it was staged. I mean aren’t his players making money? Was he not paying them? What about all of his employees? Vendors? Advertisers? Everyone involved has known this man and his views and took his money and looked the other way( INCLUDING THE LA NAACP) for 33 YEARS and NOW it is a problem?? (whew. ya smell that??)
William,
The stench is bad…I can smell it over here. The true story is undoubtedly not what has been presented in the media.
And the argument, about this difficult subject, did not have near enough emotion in it from the mistress’s delivery. It had to be staged, from her end.
Where is Perry Mason when you need him?
How weird is this – TMZ says there are 45 minutes more of the tape and that there is no doubt he KNEW he was being recorded! This is crazy! http://www.tmz.com/2014/04/29/donald-sterling-recording-real-racist-authenticated-nba-lawyer/
Monica,
The thought that HE knew he was being recorded also went thru my mind. I didn’t suggest that as it wasn’t quite as obvious as for her. So, if he knew, the thought I had was that they might be setting up a scenario to maximize a buyout to remove him from the picture. Again, we might need Perry Mason.
I don’t understand that angle. I know you can’t use a recording in court in California unless both know it’s being recorded. What exactly are you thinking?
Monica,
In response to your question. And note this scenario is extremely far fetched. He bought the team some 30 years ago for way less than $100M. The market value today is less than $600M. If he caused a furor with the tape, as we all know that topic is one of the supreme sacred cows in the U.S., the stink would be so great that the league and others would work quickly to get Sterling out of the picture. Sterling would dig in his heels, but a bidding war would ensue (I’ve heard #’s up to $1B at this point), and Sterling would handsomely enhance his gain. He’s 80+ and has cancer, and might not care about the tarnished reputation. But again, very far fetched! Now you know why I didn’t offer it up front. I don’t think the state taping laws apply in this scenario.
I get the feeling that Sterling knew he was being recorded, just as I got the feeling Victoria Neuland (and the guy she was talking to) also knew she was being recorded. If you listen to what is said, it seems that names, etc are mentioned that would not otherwise be named, other then to put their name on the recording. Unnatural, so to speak.
It is as if Sterling was setting up a conversation to defame Israel, and Jews generally. The underlying motive is certainly one to ponder. Especially to anyone who has actually been to Israel and seen the racial and religious harmony. It makes no sense, but none of this conversation makes sense, but it does play into the pattern of some Jews lying about Israel for some unseen agenda. (ie: Benjamin Freedman) http://www.redstate.com/diary/barrypopik/2010/07/03/refuting-modern-anti-semitism-the-myth-that-all-jews-are-khazars-from-700-1000-ad-who-never-lived-in-palestine/
as for him…he seems more worried about what others think…his girlfriend is, in her words, “mixed,” he had a black manager for 22 years (20 of which were losing seasons) and a black head coach…so he obviously had no problem with having relationships with minorities when it it benefitted him, yet he says “I feed them, I give them cars” – he makes a bundle off that team and they earn their keep, yet he thinks he’s doing them some benevolence. Also, is “Dennis” okay with all of these relationships just not a picture of Magic Johnson in a second circle of social contact? I don’t get it. also, Sterling is a dope for falling into this trap so completely. I read in one spot that the whole recording is an hour long! I’d like to hear it all. And to your point, he was slated to receive an NAACP lifetime achievement award next month http://nypost.com/2014/04/29/naacp-to-tighten-up-award-policies-amid-sterling-scandal/ Who knows what all give and take goes into this sort of thing? Care to speculate further? I can’t put my finger on the angle. If he ends up losing the team, maybe that will be proof in the pudding. Let’s keep an eye on who ends up benefitting.
I listened to that whole thing up there, and I didn’t feel any outrage. I was expecting to hear him say the N-word, or make nasty remarks about black folks, but i didn’t really har that. I just hear an old guy with a young girlfriend making it clear that he has a choice about who he associates with. He’s bigoted, but a lot of rich old guys are. They’ve got to the point where nobody can tell them what to think or say.
I do have an issue with all this manufactured outrage though. it’s like everyone thinks that having a bigoted opinion should disqualify a person from owning or having anything. Call me what you want, but I don’t really think that watching a basketball game has a lot to do with some cranky old dude spouting his opinions to his trophy girlfriend. More power to him. whatever.
I thought his painting the entire nation of Israel as a hotbed of racism was shocking. No? I agree with you that what he did or said is not and should not be a crime. I heard a radio guest say he committed “an egregious act of racial hatred” – but there was no act whatsoever. As for the NBA, I’ve always thought sports leagues were cartels that wouldn’t be permitted to exist as they do in any other industry. That’s neither here nor there, but if he is going to get the benefit of living in a “gated community” so to speak, he has to follow the rules of the deal. He’s been an owner for a long time (the longest, I think) and surely could have influenced the way the NBA operates over the years. He probably benefitted from just the kind of politicking he’s suffering from now, so I don’t have a ton of sympathy for him.
But I do smell a rat! Nothing this big gets out without the approval of powerful people in the media. Who benefits?
Monica,
Re your first point: it is widely known outside the United States, (due to our controlled media), that the nation of Israel does not treat all Jews the same. In fact, just recently there was a program to render sterile via innoculation, the Ethiopian Jews. And I believe this was done under the guise of an ordinary vaccine. The Ethiopian females were not aware what was being done to them. Does the word “hypocrisy” come to mind.
Bradrad says: “call me what you want”.
Ok, may I call you “Correct”? These are partially my sentiments also. There is a real question here about a possible larger/different picture, but it could be as simple as what you are suggesting. And I have a problem with the way “labels” are used. Bigot, racist, etc, are often used to shut up folks and are part of the PC control philosophy. We are supposed to have the freedom of association. But talk about a slippery slope. We are now at the point where your assets can be stripped from you or your employment denied if you have the wrong views. And what’s very telling, our nation’s founders are pure evil today in the minds of the PC Crowd who run things.
Ah, more information becomes available on the Stirling controversery. Appears a prior NBA owner, Jay-Z, held a “blacks only” party at a lavish club in London in 2010 and specificaly banned white people who had arrived to attend the party. This was an event held in public yet I recall no screaming for Jay-Z’s head and no week’s worth of coverage on the main stream media. Jay-Z’s assets weren’t put in jeopardy. The league also took no action. But I really do understand as this whole matter is not about “racist” behavior at all, but about PC Control. And that control mandates harsh penalties for those that violate the PC agendas. When we talk about racist behavior in today’s world, it is only to quell/control the opinions/actions of white folks. Non-whites have no related controls. It is that simple. A link is provided below for an article on Jay-Z’s party. But note, we still have the unanswered question about the reason the conversation was taped and released.
http://www.debbieschlussel.com/71171/black-nba-owner-held-black-only-party-whites-turned-away-nba-did-nothing/