Bruce Levenson will sell the Atlanta Hawks after revelation of a 2012 racist emai
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 6:51 am    Post subject: Bruce Levenson will sell the Atlanta Hawks after revelation of a 2012 racist emai

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Adrian Wojnarowski ‏@WojYahooNBA 19 dk.

Owner Bruce Levenson will sell the Atlanta Hawks after revelation of a 2012 racist email, NBA commissioner Adam Silver announces.


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Adrian Wojnarowski ‏@WojYahooNBA 16 dk.

There was meeting in NYC including NBA owners late last week discussing issue, sources told Yahoo. Levenson agreed to sell, Silver says.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 7:40 am    Post subject:

No ban?
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 7:58 am    Post subject:

Hope they go to seattle
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 10:56 am    Post subject:

Read the complete email. Something is very fishy. No way he's out for that.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 11:20 am    Post subject:

Seems like he wants to cash in like Sterling.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 12:15 pm    Post subject:

Note: I am a Black female professional.

I saw nothing even remotely racist about that email to the point where the whole time I was reading I was waiting for the racist part. There were somethings in there that were uncomfortable, but he even said that himself IN the email. Completely different situation from Sterling. I wish people would learn the meaning of the word "racist" and learn how it's different from bigotry or bias (which at most I would call the email biased in some regards). Folks are overusing the work "racist" to the point of it becoming meaningless.

Anyway, since he apparently "turned himself in" and submitted this completely nothing email to the league on his own accord, fully unprovoked out of the blue, I agree that something's up. He just must want out for whatever reason. (Just quit and sell then? Weird.)
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 12:49 pm    Post subject:

24 wrote:
Read the complete email. Something is very fishy. No way he's out for that.

Al Sharpton needs to just go away. Sterling is gone, let him stay gone.
Quote:
The Rev. Al Sharpton released a statement encouraging Silver "to continue vetting all owners."

"The announcement by Bruce Levenson is welcomed and appropriate by those of us in the civil rights community, that raised the issue of Donald Sterling's need to be removed, and that other owners must be held accountable," Sharpton said.

LINK

I think this a veiled reason to put his ownership on the market
Quote:
This is not Levenson's first effort to sell the team. In 2011, the Hawks' ownership group, headed by Levenson and Michael Gearon Jr., made an unsuccessful attempt to sell to California developer and pizza chain owner Alex Meruelo.

The group acquired the Hawks and the NHL Thrashers from Time Warner in 2004. The Thrashers were sold and moved to Winnipeg in 2011.

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Last edited by jodeke on Sun Sep 07, 2014 3:26 pm; edited 1 time in total
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 1:06 pm    Post subject:

"adding to the overwhelming black audience"

"(bleep) that the kiss cam is too black"

Attributing revenue problems to too many black fans, as black fans do not have as much spendable income as white fans.

Alluding to fans being late because the crowd is too black.

It is a sport dominated by black athletes, and the team with the largest black fan base sees it as a hinderance/problem, which it wants to change and has worked to change, from 70% down to 40%. Systematic white washing of the crowd.

I have been around commercial real estate since I was young, and was always taught to be colorblind. Ironic, as that is Sterlings domain as well. I understand that not every business is subject to the fair housing regulations, but nonetheless this type of racial analysis doesn't make Mr. Levenson look too good to me.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 3:37 pm    Post subject:

Sounds like somebody was envious of Shelly Sterling and decided to cash out.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 6:25 pm    Post subject:

24 wrote:
Read the complete email. Something is very fishy. No way he's out for that.


Seems like it's just an excuse for him to sell the team.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 7:48 pm    Post subject:

So is the new thing now? Dig up anything that can be perceived as racist and have the guy sell his team?
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 8:23 pm    Post subject:

Kobe2Dwight12 wrote:
So is the new thing now? Dig up anything that can be perceived as racist and have the guy sell his team?

No one "dug up" anything on Levenson he turned himself in for, IMO, next to nothing.

He made observations that could be construed as racist they could also be interpreted as honest reasons for low season ticket sales.

No one asked him to sell his team, that was his decision. It looks to me like he's using a unsolicited email as an excuse to sell the team.

AS 24 inked, something seems fishy.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 9:56 pm    Post subject:

24 wrote:
Read the complete email. Something is very fishy. No way he's out for that.


He's been wanting to sell for a few years, but he couldn't get approval from the minority owners.

The nba doesn't need such approval, and i don't think it's gone unnoticed how white knighting your sale can help you cash in.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 9:58 pm    Post subject:

dont_be_a_wuss wrote:
"adding to the overwhelming black audience"

"(bleep) that the kiss cam is too black"

Attributing revenue problems to too many black fans, as black fans do not have as much spendable income as white fans.

Alluding to fans being late because the crowd is too black.

It is a sport dominated by black athletes, and the team with the largest black fan base sees it as a hinderance/problem, which it wants to change and has worked to change, from 70% down to 40%. Systematic white washing of the crowd.

I have been around commercial real estate since I was young, and was always taught to be colorblind. Ironic, as that is Sterlings domain as well. I understand that not every business is subject to the fair housing regulations, but nonetheless this type of racial analysis doesn't make Mr. Levenson look too good to me.


In market research, they're looking at everything. The age, income, race, gender, etc is analyzed deeply in order to cater to what people need and maximize revenues and profits.

That info is used to determine how much to charge for tickets, what foods to offer, what colors or designs to use on the uniforms, etc etc etc. If it seems like companies are stereotyping their customers, it's because that is exactly what they're doing.
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 07, 2014 10:13 pm    Post subject:

I support the idea of more white Atlanta Hawks cheerleaders and dancers if it that will mean another Briana Blair.
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 3:33 am    Post subject:

TDRock wrote:
Note: I am a Black female professional.

I saw nothing even remotely racist about that email to the point where the whole time I was reading I was waiting for the racist part. There were somethings in there that were uncomfortable, but he even said that himself IN the email. Completely different situation from Sterling. I wish people would learn the meaning of the word "racist" and learn how it's different from bigotry or bias (which at most I would call the email biased in some regards). Folks are overusing the work "racist" to the point of it becoming meaningless.

Anyway, since he apparently "turned himself in" and submitted this completely nothing email to the league on his own accord, fully unprovoked out of the blue, I agree that something's up. He just must want out for whatever reason. (Just quit and sell then? Weird.)


I find is astounding that anyone could read that email and say that it was anything other than blatant racism.

""I think southern whites simply were not comfortable being in an arena or at a bar where they were in the minority" and "I have been open with our executive team about these concerns. I have told them I want some white cheerleaders and while I don't care what the color of the artist is, I want the music to be music familiar to a 40 year old white guy if that's our season [tickets] demo. I have also balked when every fan picked out of crowd to shoot shots in some time out contest is black. I have even [complained] that the kiss cam is too black."

So basically he recognized the still pervasive racism of Southern Whites and proposed to institutionalize fundamental structural changes in the organization in order to appease that racism. That's the very definition of institutionalized racism.


His letter of apology actually rang true as to the nature of his words.

""By focusing on race, I also sent the unintentional and hurtful message that our white fans are more valuable than our black fans. If you're angry about what I wrote, you should be. I'm angry at myself, too. It was inflammatory nonsense. We all may have subtle biases and preconceptions when it comes to race, but my role as a leader is to challenge them, not to validate or accommodate those who might hold them."


As the information comes forward, it is apparent that neither Levenson nor anyone else in management had any intention of making the email public until Danny Ferry accidentally spilled the beans and other members of the ownership cartel demanded an investigation.

Levenson may have ulterior motives to sell the team, but his email on it's face was completely racist and to deny it is disingenuous at best.
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 3:36 am    Post subject:

jodeke wrote:
Kobe2Dwight12 wrote:
So is the new thing now? Dig up anything that can be perceived as racist and have the guy sell his team?

No one "dug up" anything on Levenson he turned himself in for, IMO, next to nothing.

He made observations that could be construed as racist they could also be interpreted as honest reasons for low season ticket sales.

No one asked him to sell his team, that was his decision. It looks to me like he's using a unsolicited email as an excuse to sell the team.

AS 24 inked, something seems fishy.



Absolutely not true Jodeke.

An internal and unexpected chain of events stemming from a June free-agent meeting led to Atlanta Hawks owner Bruce Levenson putting controlling interest in the team up for sale Sunday, multiple officials told ESPN.com.

A racially insensitive email written by Levenson more than two years ago came to light only after one of his co-owners called for an investigation because of something that was included in a potential free-agent target's background report that was read aloud by team general manager Danny Ferry.

During the meeting, Ferry read a comment written by a source outside the organization that included a racist remark. According to multiple sources, Ferry did not fully edit the remark as he read it off the report.

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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 3:37 am    Post subject:

dont_be_a_wuss wrote:
"adding to the overwhelming black audience"

"(bleep) that the kiss cam is too black"

Attributing revenue problems to too many black fans, as black fans do not have as much spendable income as white fans.

Alluding to fans being late because the crowd is too black.

It is a sport dominated by black athletes, and the team with the largest black fan base sees it as a hinderance/problem, which it wants to change and has worked to change, from 70% down to 40%. Systematic white washing of the crowd.

I have been around commercial real estate since I was young, and was always taught to be colorblind. Ironic, as that is Sterlings domain as well. I understand that not every business is subject to the fair housing regulations, but nonetheless this type of racial analysis doesn't make Mr. Levenson look too good to me.


Exactly, institutionalized racism at it's core.
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Last edited by KobeBryantCliffordBrown on Mon Sep 08, 2014 3:39 am; edited 1 time in total
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 3:38 am    Post subject:

jodeke wrote:
24 wrote:
Read the complete email. Something is very fishy. No way he's out for that.

Al Sharpton needs to just go away. Sterling is gone, let him stay gone.
Quote:
The Rev. Al Sharpton released a statement encouraging Silver "to continue vetting all owners."

"The announcement by Bruce Levenson is welcomed and appropriate by those of us in the civil rights community, that raised the issue of Donald Sterling's need to be removed, and that other owners must be held accountable," Sharpton said.

LINK

I think this a veiled reason to put his ownership on the market
Quote:
This is not Levenson's first effort to sell the team. In 2011, the Hawks' ownership group, headed by Levenson and Michael Gearon Jr., made an unsuccessful attempt to sell to California developer and pizza chain owner Alex Meruelo.

The group acquired the Hawks and the NHL Thrashers from Time Warner in 2004. The Thrashers were sold and moved to Winnipeg in 2011.


I fail to see why he should. Seems more and more he is needed to keep the other side somewhat honest.
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 5:17 am    Post subject:

Treble Clef wrote:
dont_be_a_wuss wrote:
"adding to the overwhelming black audience"

"(bleep) that the kiss cam is too black"

Attributing revenue problems to too many black fans, as black fans do not have as much spendable income as white fans.

Alluding to fans being late because the crowd is too black.

It is a sport dominated by black athletes, and the team with the largest black fan base sees it as a hinderance/problem, which it wants to change and has worked to change, from 70% down to 40%. Systematic white washing of the crowd.

I have been around commercial real estate since I was young, and was always taught to be colorblind. Ironic, as that is Sterlings domain as well. I understand that not every business is subject to the fair housing regulations, but nonetheless this type of racial analysis doesn't make Mr. Levenson look too good to me.


In market research, they're looking at everything. The age, income, race, gender, etc is analyzed deeply in order to cater to what people need and maximize revenues and profits.

That info is used to determine how much to charge for tickets, what foods to offer, what colors or designs to use on the uniforms, etc etc etc. If it seems like companies are stereotyping their customers, it's because that is exactly what they're doing.


And there are some businesses where you cannot do that. Trying to make your commercial building more white will get you in trouble with the fair housing council. In some businesses you have to be colorblind. There is also something called business ethics, and something about systematically white washing a crowd of basketball fans doesn't seem very ethical towards the teams black stakeholders.
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 7:11 am    Post subject:

KobeBryantCliffordBrown wrote:
TDRock wrote:
Note: I am a Black female professional.

I saw nothing even remotely racist about that email to the point where the whole time I was reading I was waiting for the racist part. There were somethings in there that were uncomfortable, but he even said that himself IN the email. Completely different situation from Sterling. I wish people would learn the meaning of the word "racist" and learn how it's different from bigotry or bias (which at most I would call the email biased in some regards). Folks are overusing the work "racist" to the point of it becoming meaningless.

Anyway, since he apparently "turned himself in" and submitted this completely nothing email to the league on his own accord, fully unprovoked out of the blue, I agree that something's up. He just must want out for whatever reason. (Just quit and sell then? Weird.)


I find is astounding that anyone could read that email and say that it was anything other than blatant racism.

""I think southern whites simply were not comfortable being in an arena or at a bar where they were in the minority" and "I have been open with our executive team about these concerns. I have told them I want some white cheerleaders and while I don't care what the color of the artist is, I want the music to be music familiar to a 40 year old white guy if that's our season [tickets] demo. I have also balked when every fan picked out of crowd to shoot shots in some time out contest is black. I have even [complained] that the kiss cam is too black."



Quite simply, Leavenson and the hawks have a problem: not enough butts in seats in general, and not enough season ticket holders in particular. And his analysis of the problem is quite direct: The African American portion of their demographic seems to be at a saturation level, while the Caucasion portion has dwindled. They have heavily marketed to a black audience, successfully, but he doesn’t feel they can exist successfully on that audience alone. He feels they need to market more to a white audience if they want to increase it. This seems reasonably factually based, although I admit I don’t have his data.

Here’s where his analysis begins to get uncomfortable. He thinks two issues are at play here: first, that the white demographic has been scared off by the black one, in his opinion, because the white audience is not used to being in the significant minority; and second, that the way in which they market doesn’t exactly help make the white audience feel welcome. His suggestions are to add some white cheerleaders, make sure some of the crowd PR “pulls” (kiss cam, halftime participants, etc.) are white, and make some of the music more appealing to a white audience. The first portion is uncomfortable because he is basically talking about the racial opinions of a demographic they need, but while he is cognizant of it, he doesn’t exactly come across as saying “we need to make this a white place, or chase away the black folks”. He takes the tack of going for inclusiveness, making whites feel more “at home”, but not shifting everything to them. He’s not talking about making all, or even a majority of the cheerleaders white, just some. He doesn’t ask for country music, just some music that a white audience would identify with. He asks to have the PR department show a few white faces on the cameras.

Oddly, if an executive noted all of these things in reverse (color wise), and wanted to take these steps to encourage a black customer base, no one would raise an eyebrow. If he wanted to hire a black cheerleader or two, and feature some black faces on the kiss cam, and play a bit of music that is popular with middle class black audiences, that would be seen as fine business thought.
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 7:40 am    Post subject:

24 wrote:


Oddly, if an executive noted all of these things in reverse (color wise), and wanted to take these steps to encourage a black customer base, no one would raise an eyebrow. If he wanted to hire a black cheerleader or two, and feature some black faces on the kiss cam, and play a bit of music that is popular with middle class black audiences, that would be seen as fine business thought.


Why is it odd? You think the black minority or any other minority for that matter has played on the same level playing field through our history? Especially in the South?
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 7:56 am    Post subject:

johnnyhandsome wrote:
24 wrote:


Oddly, if an executive noted all of these things in reverse (color wise), and wanted to take these steps to encourage a black customer base, no one would raise an eyebrow. If he wanted to hire a black cheerleader or two, and feature some black faces on the kiss cam, and play a bit of music that is popular with middle class black audiences, that would be seen as fine business thought.


Why is it odd? You think the black minority or any other minority for that matter has played on the same level playing field through our history? Especially in the South?


Maybe some of us don't live in the past.
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 8:07 am    Post subject:

KobeBryantCliffordBrown wrote:

Quote:
Absolutely not true Jodeke.

An internal and unexpected chain of events stemming from a June free-agent meeting led to Atlanta Hawks owner Bruce Levenson putting controlling interest in the team up for sale Sunday, multiple officials told ESPN.com.


LINK

Hawks GM Danny Ferry to face internal disciplinary action over comment he repeated

Here's where I'm confused. What did Ferry say that was unedited and who made the comment? I don't think all information is included. Similar to the Rice situation, not all was disclosed until now leaving me in wonderment. Now I can make a honest decision regarding Rice.

Institutionalized racism is apparent I also see where a business interest can be attributed to Levenson's email. I'm looking at all of the equation, trying to be fair to both sides.

Quote:
Sunday night, Hawks co-owner and CEO Steve Koonin said other disciplinary action will be taken, including against general manager Danny Ferry….

According to Koonin, the Hawks held a meeting in early June to discuss free agency. At that meeting, a player was being discussed and Ferry cited a background report that included an “offensive and racist” remark.

“Instead of editing it, he said the comment,” Koonin said.


On Al Sharpton.
Quote:
I fail to see why he should. Seems more and more he is needed to keep the other side somewhat honest.


I understand the need. What bothers me is the histrionics. I don't see a professionalism that would sway me to walk with him. It's a I support you but from afar position. Cowardly, yes, but I'm unapologetic. One thing I can agree with Al is his choice of female companionship
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 08, 2014 8:21 am    Post subject:

Danny Ferry said Luol Deng still had a little African in him. And that he didn't mean that in a bad way. Thats not the exact quote but pretty close.
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