http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/sam...rnalists-reports_b_1832503.html?utm_hp_ref=tw Mr. Ferguson's Recent Banning of Journalists Suggests the Tyrant Is Out of Control It was the tyrannical Robert Mugabe who said "We don't mind having sanctions banning us from Europe. We are not Europeans." Mr. Ferguson, football's greatest tyrant, doesn't mind banning journalists because they are not part of Manchester United. Lost amidst news of Wayne Rooney's four-week lay-off, Robin van Persie's exquisite first goal and the narrow 3-2 defeat of Fulham was the revelation the Scot had banned two more newspapers from his pre-match Friday press conferences at United's Carrington training ground. Although this is not an extraordinary occasion - Ferguson has made a habit of excluding journalists and newspapers for years - it is an exceptional one. For it is perhaps the first time Ferguson has meted out an exclusion for writers being right. The Daily Telegraph's Mark Ogden wrote a report on Saturday 18 August detailing that Rio Ferdinand had sustained a groin injury during the squad's Friday training session and would miss the season opener against Everton. That accuracy has now cost him and the Daily Star Sunday's Paul Hetherington their seats for when Ferguson holds court every Friday. Ferguson's latest pathetic and puerile crusade warrants a belated intervention from the Football Writers' Association. He probably uses a different 'F' and 'W' as the acronyms for their members, but as The Guardian's Daniel Taylor said, the bee in his bonnet is buzzing out of control. United's Trafford Training Centre in Carrington, opened in 2000, resembles a James Bond villain's fortress. Surrounded by 30,000 trees, photographers' prying lenses can't snap any training ground altercations like down the road at Manchester City and this is exactly what Ferguson wants. In-house and no leaks. Maybe he was so infuriated by Ogden and his colleague's story because it was leaked. It is not a stretch to imagine the fastidious Ferguson entering a room and interrogating players or staff as he attempts to weed out a mole like George Smiley, albeit more animatedly. His value of loyalty throughout his career is renowned. Taylor himself delivered the news of the latest bans on Sunday, safe from any rebuke since he was ostracised by Ferguson over five years ago. His barring stemmed from his exceptional 2007 book This Is The One: The Uncut Story of a Football Genius. A diary written over two of the most contrasting successive seasons in United's history under Ferguson, it is a fascinating, anecdote-ridden read that sheds light on what may make this footballing enigma tick. Alas the operative word in the title is 'uncut' rather than 'genius'. Despite extolling Ferguson Taylor revisits the moments when the hairdryer was turned up to 11. Since the year This Is The One was published, Ferguson's press conferences have been televised by United's in-house channel MUTV. Taylor told yours truly last year as a consequence of this "Ferguson knows he can't 'Hairdryer' anyone" and described the press conferences as "tense, joyless affairs". "It would be on News at Ten if he did [the hairdryer]. Seriously, I've seen it many times. Everything you've heard, it's worse... believe me." Maybe Ogden isn't missing out. At 70 and fitted with a pacemaker, Ferguson can't subject his health to the tirades of old. So rather than lose his temper he will most likely instruct United's PR expert Karen Shotbolt to inform a journalist they won't be allowed to return for the foreseeable future. But there's a contradictory side to his media marauding. Last season Ferguson suddenly lifted the BBC's seven-year ban and welcomed them back with the quote: "The FA treat us like s**t." He had vowed the BBC would only be allowed to return if they apologised for their investigation into his son's dealings as an agent, but none had been made. So why the sudden u-turn? The previous month, DHL struck a partnership for United worth a staggering £40m just to have their logo appear on the club's training kit for four years. The BBC, who stream portions from managers' pre-match press conferences and are arguably the most renowned media organisation in the UK, would afford DHL greater exposure. Cynical it may be, but that is what Ferguson has become in the Glazer Age. Paying lip service isn't necessarily defunct in these social media times, but the competitiveness has intensified and the competition isn't always fair. Ferguson may not be around for the new batch of journalists who venture to Carrington, although his disobliging conduct may dissuade budding writers enthusiastic about a media career. Not that he will care. Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini broke bread with journalists covering the Mancunian clubs last year in what was a rare act of solidarity in the modern football age. Ferguson meanwhile may rather break their fingers. ---------------------------------------------------------- So, is he out of control? I think the banning of journalists and the reasons for it are pathetic in my opinion. However, having said that, Fergie has a habit of making himself look foolish in press conferences at times, remember the mocking and subsequent walkout when a journo dared to ask him if United were struggling in Europe...a few weeks before United crashed out! Maybe Fergie isn't out of control, maybe he is just losing it and like the PR woman at United, has 'shot his bolt' when it comes to being the controlling figure he once was. Instead of fronting up the journos and having proper two-way communication, Fergie does what any grown man would do, sulks and takes his ball in! What do you think?
Only with the negative stuff... I could understand it if the journos were making stuff up or were asking questions that were out of order. But this is just basic football reporting, stuff we see all the time with regards to other clubs, i.e. training knocks, possible injuries etc, so why the childish reaction from Fergie?
Surely it suggests the old bastard continues to control the media like a puppet master rather than being out of control?
You have missed the point mate. It's not about feeling sorry for the press, or for the journos that Fergie has petulantly decided to ban. The article is about Fergie losing control, be that control of his team and any news from the training ground, or possibly...control of his senses at his tender age?
The bit in the article about the BBC U-Turn due to the DHL deal is wide of the mark so there may be more to the banning than the article has said too. The bottom line is that this article is just speculating. The BBC U-Turn came not that long after managers started being fined for refusing to attend interviews with the BBC which was costing Fergie or more likely Manchester United thousands every week. It is more likely, though still speculative, that Fergie was told to or decided to speak to the BBC again because of that.
Is he protecting his players? How is banning a journo for reporting a true story, a story that was common knowledge anyway a few days before the Everton game, protecting his players? The guy was banned after that match, it seems more likely that Fergie has threw his toys out after losing. I understand managers protecting players after a match, but this is nothing to do with that. I am not sure what license United apply to what Journos can or cannot publish, but I would guess that there is no gag applied..so if that is true then what is the problem? And if there is a gag applied then that would be pathetic imo.
Maybe he is losing control of the media, and the only option for him with regards to a journo who doesn't kowtow to him is to issue his bans. Maybe that is what the article is getting at, not Fergie being out of control personally, but him being not able to control what is reported, unless he takes his ball home. Whatever it is, it just seems childish to me...
Yeah, of course it is speculation as to why he lifted the BBC ban. He didn't keep to his word though did he, i.e. the BBC never apologized and yet they got his post-match comments...so it is only reasonable to suggest that there was something else to it. Maybe it was the threat of the fines from the PL. This would mean that Fergie values money more than he values the reputation of his son...after all, it was this reputation that prompted Fergie to start his boycott. Fergie is a man of principles, as we are led to believe...yet he will drop these when it comes to money, fair enough, at least we know where he stands...if this is the reason!
Maybe he just can't be arsed putting up with people he doesn't like? If I was in a position of power as he is, I'd tell a few people to fuck off too.
He's sending a very clear signal. Report anything that happens during training sessions that may give our opponents the edge and your career will suffer as a result. This Ogden bloke reported something that had obviously been fed to him by an inside source at Carrington - SAF is sending the message that's not acceptable and Ogden will probably now think twice the next time he writes such a story. You guys just don't get it do you? You spend all that time bleating about how the media seem to favour Utd, and then fail to realise exactly why that is - the media knows the power SAF has, and the damage it can do their careers if they stray on his bad side. Whether or not it's morally acceptable is debatable, but as long as it continues to work I couldn't give a flying ****
I don't think you get it, when it comes to costing the club thousands of pounds principal goeas out of the window. The fines being picking up for not speaking to the BBC wern't pennies, I'm sure Fergie would prefer an extra 15-20k a week available in players wages than on FA fines.
Well said. I didn't hear our Liverpool pals complaining when Kenny didn't give them a second of his time. You can't have it every way, if you think Fergie treats jouno's like **** then you should have also been complaining about Dalglish's disdainful attitude. You didn't though, but now media friendly Brendan is in charge you will, quite naturally and as is always the case, take the moral high ground.
He's very much in control and journo's know not to mess with him. Most managers would do similar if they could get away with it. For out of control, peurile, bullying behaviour though look no further than Queen Kenny. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-LlwzIFhkA
I thought so What's the point of debating with a person who can only see one side to a story. Makes your whole opinion rather invalid simply because you don't bother to take both sides into consideration. Your just a wum as far as I can tell.
