The Athletic exposé on UNC smells in so many ways.

By now, if you care, you have probably read and seen the story and videos produced by The Athletic website, which took its first foray into hard-core investigative journalism — and it failed miserably.

Nobody involved in this story has a fraction of the expertise Carolina Interim Chancellor Dr. Kevin Guskiewicz has built over his long and decorated career as a brain trauma expert. And much of the series is gleaned from 1.8 million pages of documents UNC turned over in Freedom of Information lawsuits from the media after the academic mess.

I am not here to argue the contentions on either side, only the origins of this report. One of the key figures The Athletic used in compiling the series is someone named Ted Tatos, an adjunct professor at the University of Utah and supposedly an expert researcher. He also must be a very fast reader; 1.8 million pages is a lot to consume. Most important about Tatos, which was completely ignored by The Athletic, is that he is a long-time Duke supporter and very active on Twitter and various message boards.

Through the years, he was also a prime supplier of research to our friend at the News & Observer Dan Kane during the UNC academic athletic scandal. Tatos looks and speaks with authority in the series, but his affiliation with Duke is not mentioned and should have been, as pointed out in a Tweet by the N&O’s Andrew Carter. In fact, the story was broken locally by J.D. King of the Duke Basketball Report, who acted like some kind of scientific expert in his piece. Wonder how King got the details ahead of everyone else?

Dr. John Tobben, a Carolina grad who is a radiologist at UVa, tweeted 6 takeaways after examining The Athletic’s findings. And No. 5 reads like this: “Nowhere is it acknowledged that Ted Tatos’ prior Twitter handle was @bluedevilicious and he was very active on Duke and State message boards during the scandal.”

And oh, yes, Mary Willingham surfaced from her settlement with UNC to be an “exclusive” interviewee in the story, although Mary’s information was obtained illegally and in violation of student privacy laws. Wouldn’t be surprised if her co-conspirator Jay Smith, the tenure-protected professor at Carolina, is lurking somewhere in the background. If it’s anti-UNC athletics, Smith is involved somehow.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Related Stories
‹
Chansky's Notebook: Bailing Out
Roy Williams probably had reasons for the soft statements. Carolina fans reacted strongly to the video of a team party after the win over Duke. Only Armando Bacot and Day’Ron Sharpe were in the video, but a statement from players and managers said it was supposed to be a closed event that other students and […]
Chansky's Notebook: Please, Go In!
UNC men's basketball faces what is an early season must-win at Georgia Tech. Art Chansky says a look at the statistics is painful, but not terminal.
Chansky's Notebook: Leaky Steps Up
Dean Smith used to say he’ll be happy with a one-point win. The legendary UNC basketball coach struggled spiritually between playing well according to his teachings, regardless of outcome, and winning no matter how poorly you play. Since his job was to win and he was so competitive, he chose the latter. If he was […]
Chansky's Notebook: Rock(et) Star
Ben Kiernan was UNC’s MVP of the Notre Dame game. When Mack Brown went over the 31-17 loss, he gave mixed reviews to the two main branches of his Tar Heels’ play. He said the offense was good in the first half and then “went dead” in a scoreless second half. He praised the Tar […]
Chansky's Notebook: Goals and Ambitions
Garrison Brooks has both opportunity and pressure. On paper, the ACC looks as weak as it has been in some time due to widespread losses to graduation and early departures to the NBA, and no sure-shot superstars in the incoming recruiting classes. A beneficiary of this development is Brooks, the Carolina senior who was second-team All-ACC last year and earned the league’s […]
Chansky's Notebook: A COVID Debate
Clemson was livid that Florida State wouldn’t play the game. Let’s be lawyers, and make a case for each of the teams that did not play its scheduled game over the weekend. Clemson had traveled to Florida State when it learned a player with mild symptoms who had practiced with the team all week tested […]
Chansky's Notebook: Draft Dodgers
Carolina and Duke players have lost ground in the NBA draft. Like everything else with sports in the COVID era, the NBA draft goes off tonight after being postponed for five months. And if you look at the various mock draft boards, certain things jump off your screen. First of all, about half the names […]
Chansky's Notebook: A Two-Thirds Bet?
What if Phil Mickelson and Mack Brown amended their bet? With the Masters being moved back to this weekend due to COVID, perhaps the three-time champion should revisit the fun bet he made with Carolina’s football coach back in 2003. The famed lefthander was still seeking his first Green Jacket when he partnered with the Texas football coach at the […]
Chansky's Notebook: Kudos To Carolina
UNC teams did a commendable job beating the odds. Who among us thought the ACC would be playing football and other fall sports last summer? With the pandemic upon us and the medical experts still learning, the seasons looked like a long shot. While other conferences pumped the breaks and/or called off football, the ACC […]
Chansky's Notebook: Extra Motivation
Carolina’s schedule could be working to its advantage. When the COVID-revised list of games came out, it looked troublesome for the Tar Heels with Virginia Tech and Florida State basically bookending Notre Dame and Miami with four rivalry games in a row right in the middle. Coaches usually don’t like that because it takes a […]
›