Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban quite possibly is the most well-known owner not only in the NBA but across all sports. Other names ring a bell to some like Brooklyn Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft or even Magic Johnson who is a part owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Sparks. Despite the money, success and name recognition for some other owners, Mark Cuban still tops the list of most well-known professional sports owners. So when he made a move over the weekend to revoke the credentials of two ESPN writers, many people took notice and were very confused about his decision.
ESPN reporters Tim MacMahon and Marc Stein are two of the more well-known NBA reporters with Stein quite possibly being the number one NBA news breaker in the ESPN family. Stein got his start in Dallas but quickly was moved off the Mavs beat and covered the NBA nationally for ESPN but his home is still in Dallas. He was featured in the Dirk Nowitzki biopic ‘The Perfect Shot’ and even participates in community events for Mavs players. MacMahon was recently moved off the Mavs beat and ESPN has started to have him cover NBA on a more national level. Cuban revoked the credentials for the two over the weekend and speculation on the removal hit some weird points.
Some speculated the Mavs did it because the reporters were ‘supporters’ of Donald Trump. Of course, that has proved to not be the case. Others believe it is because Cuban is mad about ESPN dialing back their Mavs coverage and not having a full-time beat reporter for the team. Art Garcia of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram sheds some light on that idea.
Mark Cuban has revoked Dallas Mavericks media credentials from ESPN.com reporters Marc Stein and Tim MacMahon this season.
The media blackout also extends to all ESPN.com reporters wishing to cover Mavericks’ games at American Airlines Center this season. The Mavericks are aired locally on ESPN Radio 103.3 FM. ESPN is also a national broadcast partner with the NBA.
Cuban declined to discuss in detail the reasons behind the decision not to allow the two longtime Dallas-based reporters access to American Airlines Center during Mavericks’ games. The decision went into effect with Friday’s game against Portland, the second home game of the season.
“They’re not banned from the building,” Cuban said Sunday night. “They can still buy a ticket.”
The NBA league office is aware of the issue.
“We are in communication with both ESPN and Mark Cuban about this matter,” NBA spokesman Michael Bass said via email.
ESPN also issued a statement.
“We’re committed to thoroughly covering the Mavs and the NBA,” ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz said via email.
The Pro Basketball Writers Association also released a statement on the Mavs decision.
The Professional Basketball Writers Association released the following statement today in response to the Dallas Mavericks’ move to revoke the credentials of Tim MacMahon and Marc Stein.
“We are deeply troubled by the Dallas Mavericks’ move to revoke the credentials of two respected, longtime NBA journalists. The Mavericks’ move is without merit. We call on the Mavericks to reverse their decision or for NBA officials to intervene to allow Tim MacMahon and Marc Stein to continue their work.”
Sam Amick of USA Today Sports did received a comment from the Mavs owner.
Mavs owner @mcuban to @USATODAYsports on the decision to revoke season credentials of @ESPNSteinLine & @espn_macmahon pic.twitter.com/rgKNQANSck
— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) November 7, 2016
One more from @mcuban to @USATODAYsports on this situation… pic.twitter.com/N8xtwk3CVh
— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) November 7, 2016
Tim Cowlishaw of The Dallas Morning News went on ESPN Radio in Dallas to talk about the Cuban situation, according to our very own J.D. Shaw who heard the spot on Monday evening. Cowlishaw said he was communicating with Mark via e-mail and Cuban is trying to ‘save journalism’ by changing up the reporting style of big networks like ESPN. Cuban has been stressing the fact that every team should have a specified beat reporter for each team. He also is looking to do away with ‘bot reporting’, something highlighted in an article Cuban tweeted out on Monday night. He also has retweeted some similar stories after posting this tweet below.
Robots Take Over The Sports Section https://t.co/huUZr9QOSD via @HuffPostMedia
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) November 8, 2016
(UPDATE 11/7/16):
Mark Cuban released the following statement to the Associated Press.
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban says his decision to revoke the credentials of two ESPN writers who cover his team was driven partly by concern that automated game reports could eventually replace human-generated content.
Cuban said Monday that he banned Marc Stein and Tim MacMahon from Mavericks home games to bring attention to the issue of companies using automation in sports coverage.
The Associated Press, in a partnership with Automated Insights, produces automated stories on minor league baseball but does not use the technology for most of its sports coverage. The AP has at least one reporter at all games in the four major professional sports and most major college football and basketball games.
“Maybe I will be wrong but I see a direct path from the trends in coverage of games we are seeing over the last couple years to the automation of reporting on games and the curation of related content,” Cuban wrote in an email to the AP. “This isn’t a knock on wire services or their reporters. They are valued and valuable in sports coverage.”
Cuban said he was responding to what he considers a disturbing trend of reporters being replaced by machines.
“While it may seem counterintuitive to ban someone from covering us as a way of stopping automation, it really was my only option,” Cuban said. “As is evident by the AP partnership with Automated Insights, it’s not if but when.”
If Cuban is indeed looking to change the landscape of journalism, this is quite the statement to make. Cowlishaw went on to say that MacMahon understands Cuban’s decision to revoke his season credentials, Stein has yet to make any statement.
It’s no secret that journalism is in a weird space. With everyone looking to get their news fast and also get the best or funniest quotes, the days of a full story recap are gone. Cuban is supposedly looking to change that.
