Sarah Phillips of ESPN

[The Posse]

(05-14-2012 09:34 AM)SkyBlues42 Wrote:  Talk about a disappearing act. What possibly the biggest story when it came out, now it's just gone.

I'm eagerly awaiting the Dateline NBC or 60 Minutes feature with a SJP interview and a lot of idiotic reporting about the "dark side of sports betting."

[BattaBing]

(05-14-2012 09:34 AM)SkyBlues42 Wrote:  Talk about a disappearing act. What possibly the biggest story when it came out, now it's just gone.

What more do you want? They got caught red handed and ran for cover. Are you expecting a public apology from these lowlifes?

[SkyBlues42]

Yes. Or at least some type of punishment other than just getting ripped in the media and fired from a freelance gig at ESPN. Instead, they are probably back to working 9-5's preparing for their next scam in another industry.

[Beyond the Bets]

Q: Any updates on Sarah Phillips? I was following the story closely after it broke last month but haven't heard much of anything since. Has ESPN explained its hire? Has there been any fallout? Will ESPN offer details on the situation? Any updates would be appreciated. 

—Jordan, from somewhere.

BTB: This response is a bit delayed primarily because there's been nothing to report on. After Deadspin wrote a series of stories about Phillips, a former sports betting writer at both Covers and ESPN who scammed people on the Internet, she immediately vanished. [Note: Deadspin provided a thorough recap of the crazy story, which you can find by clicking here.]

In late May, Deadspin reported that ESPN had made changes to its hiring practices, preferring to conduct more face-to-face interviews while also double-checking backgrounds. Quite obviously, the Phillips saga could have been avoided had Page 2 editor Lynn Hoppes been more diligent on either of those fronts. (Maybe he was too busy screwing up birthdays of random celebrities?)

Phillips, though, has returned to Twitter over the last few days after a near 45-day absence. In her Twitter bio, she describes herself as a "Former columnist for ESPN.com: Page 2 & Playbook."

Here are the two most recent tweets on her timeline, an obvious reference to LeBron James and the Miami Heat:

While it's unlikely we'll ever hear from Phillips, we at least expected to hear from ESPN, which to this day has yet to follow up on the messy story that made national and international news. And if ESPN refused to comment, then surely the Poynter Institute—which is serving as an ombudsman—could chime in and offer its commentary on the situation?

Well, apparently not.

SI.com's Richard Deitsch, in an interview with Poynter Dean of Faculty Stephen Buckley, asked about the Phillips situation and if there would be an update.

From SI:

SI.com: Do you have any plans, or should you have any plans to address the Sarah Phillips situation, a freelancer who allegedly used her position at ESPN to bilk people out of services?

Buckley: We don't have any plans to address the Sarah Phillips case specifically or alone. We do have plans to address some of the issues connected with that situation. If it sounds like I am being vague, it's because I am.

Which begs the question: Is Buckley ... Sarah Phillips?

[RyanParrill]

This shifts the discussion a little...but I couldn't believe the response Poynter gave Deitsch in regards to Craig James

Quote:I think that's a fair question, and if we promised we were going to write something, we should have. I think the audience asks a fair question, especially given that we did say we were going to. If we made a promise, we should have kept it.

Translation: We'll be the ombudsman for ESPN, unless shit gets serious. Then we'll avoid that.

[Beyond the Bets]

Yeah, deplorable.

[NoBluffHere]

So she is retweeting Drew Brees comments on twitter now?