The United States of Omerta but what about CN during the Armstrong years?

[Mrs John Murphy]

I'd also add questions about Mick Rogers and Possoni as well.

 

[Dr. Maserati]

I'd also add questions about Mick Rogers and Possoni as well.

And Bobby J

 

[Hugh Januss]

I dont often agree with Benotti - but they are valid questions.

I would add a more pointed on Mick Barry.
He was first implicated way back in May 2010 by Floyd, Brailsford said they would attempt to establish the facts.
So, why did he not allow Kimmage to interview Barry at the TdF in 2010?

He didn't want those facts?

 

[Dear Wiggo]

They have to report the news right? Like an open letter from Ferrari to counter Greg Lemond back in 2010: http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/open-letter-from-dr-michele-ferrari

Or how about giving Ferrari a platform for advertising himself and his superior knowledge, for a couple of years, even after going to court for doping?

http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/riders/2004/diaries/ferrari/?id=default

Doctor's orders: The Dr Michele Ferrari Journal

Dr Michele Ferrari, coach to cycling greats including Moser, Bugno, Argentin and Rominger, in addition to four-time Tour de France winner and defending champion Lance Armstrong, has never been afraid to push the boundaries of sports science.

In the centenary edition of Le Tour, cycling's most controversial sports doctor will be providing Cyclingnews readers with his unique insight into the mindset of what makes or breaks a champion.

Which boundaries are we talking exactly?

I'd like them to keep the content but perhaps come out with a statement regarding their complicity with the advertising of this fraud. Yes, it was under different management, no I don't care that that is true. So was Australia, but we still said sorry to the Aboriginals.

 

[Tinman]

Hear you JMJ, Benotti, Dear Wiggo, and agree, and not looking to raise your ire. But also note that you set your expectations high (and that coming from me who routinely gets criticized on this). Quite rightly so, but just an observation. 3 considerations, (and I know I shouldn't be "fighting" Benson's fight):
- there is a journalist Omerta, not talked about a lot, but you know it does exist. Go too aggressive and access disappears. Note Kimmage.
- hindsight is a wonderful thing. And guys like Ferrari blur the boundaries. Yes a post hoc sorry would be nice, but presonally I don't need it. It's not a major sin of the past for me.
- there is a **** lot happening for CN & Benson. As a business they seem to be doing well, raising their profile, putting out a lot more articles (my observation). It's a turbulent time in cycling and they seem to cope well. I like the articles I see in the past week or so, the tone, etc. The board seems to be working better (although the influx of new people is huge and creates its own problems).

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

Well they could start by working harder to nail down Wiggins and Sky.

Wiggins claims he only rode against Armstrong in 2004... the evidence points out 2 tours and a TDF as well and the 2009 Milan San Remo.

Either he has early stages of alzheimers or he is playing fast and loose with the past in order not to draw too much attention to himself.

 

[Benotti69]

I'd also add questions about Mick Rogers and Possoni as well.

I dont expect Sky to do anything. They'll talk to Murdoch media outlets and BBC who are about as impartial any old dictatorship of yore when it comes to British sport.

Now is the time to sieze the moment and bombard these people with hard questions. We have the facts now get them to explain the truth and not hide behind the usual lies of it was the past or worse Wiggins bullsh!t of lies so stupid that he must think people are babies.

Wiggins has gone beyond the pale in lying!

 

[Dead Star]

I dont expect Sky to do anything. They'll talk to Murdoch media outlets and BBC who are about as impartial any old dictatorship of yore when it comes to British sport.

Now is the time to sieze the moment and bombard these people with hard questions. We have the facts now get them to explain the truth and not hide behind the usual lies of it was the past or worse Wiggins bullsh!t of lies so stupid that he must think people are babies.

Wiggins has gone beyond the pale in lying!

It's the ridiculous way in which statements are ended with '....but hey, Team Sky and Wiggins are clean!'. No questions asked. No investigation regarding Leinders or their signing Rogers/Possini.

It's a style of gloating and self-absorbed glee that I find similar to post-'99 when there was all the jubilation regarding Lance and how everything was so much better after the Festina scandal. As you stated, Wiggins is already very vague with the truth. It's just ignored. Doesn't fit in to the 'four legs bad, two legs good' agenda (replace four legs with Lance and two legs with Wiggins).

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

Which is exactly why Wiggins and Sky need to be called to account by the media.

I don't expect anything from the UK media - they're on the nationalist bandwagon.

CN I think needs to refuse to be pushed around by Sky and if Sky start threatening CN then CN should report the threats so people can see what kind of team Sky are.

 

[Dead Star]

Completely agree. They can brag about transparency for eternity, but it's all hollow when their behaviour and actions are the exact opposite.

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

The third paragraph of this article needs to be written on the gravestone of everyone who ever called themselves a cycling journalist during this period.

http://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/philip-gomes/blog/126927/we-ve-been-here-before

For those who have followed the sport for several decades none of this is a surprise, less so if you’ve been watching since the L’affaire Festina broke in 1998. Claiming innocence or surprise about what was happening to cycling after that event meant you were wilfully blind - none more so than the UCI and journalists covering the beat.

It also seems that the closer you are to the sport and to Armstrong the less you saw. Omerta.

Benson, Friebe, Westemeyer, Weislo. He's talking about you.

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

The media performance today in the McQuaid press conference shows that Benson's words about 'tougher journalism' are about as meaningful as the Sky anti-doping pledge.

No hope for the sport as long as the current band of hacks remain responsible for holding the UCI to account.

Absolute ****ing disgrace.

 

[Alex76]

agree.

save a couple of journos that was an absolute fking disgrace by the media today.

pointless.

hope they all enjoy the buffet that's been laid on.

 

[Zam_Olyas]

Was CN present at the UCI presser?

 

[sniper]

The media performance today in the McQuaid press conference shows that Benson's words about 'tougher journalism' are about as meaningful as the Sky anti-doping pledge.

No hope for the sport as long as the current band of hacks remain responsible for holding the UCI to account.

Absolute ****ing disgrace.

Most ****ing definitely.

I'm hoping (though probably in vane) for more actions along the lines of the German ARD, when they stopped coverage out of protest. Newspapers and journo's could put similar boycots in place, and make clear that they won't cover cycling as long as McDrug'm are in charge.

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

Was CN present at the UCI presser?

It would be pretty bizarre if CN wasn't at perhaps one of the most significant press conferences in cycling history.

 

[Lukenwolf]

It would be pretty bizarre if CN wasn't at perhaps one of the most significant press conferences in cycling history.

which would mean they were just as mute as the other sockpuppet imposters, who labelled themselves journalists. In that case they could've just as well not bothered to waste money on the flight

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

which would mean they were just as mute as the other sockpuppet imposters, who labelled themselves journalists. In that case they could've just as well not bothered to waste money on the flight

I'm sure they enjoyed the free food and drinks.

Benson's words in this thread are as worthless as Sky anti-doping pledges.

 

[Benotti69]

It shows how pathetic the sport has become when it is the Irish fighting it out to either rid the sport of doping(Kimmage and Walsh) or maintain the omerta (McQauid)!

It like something out of Beckett!

 

[Lukenwolf]

THis whole fiasco is frustrating me no end, especially since the media have more than ample power to blow Phat Pat into the middle of last week.

I've seen it all before - 1989 in East Germany. We all knew the state was rotten to the core. We were the ones standing in long lines for goods that you wouldn't think could ever be on short supply. Everybody knew things were dire and nobody said anything. Each and every media outlet only published the claptrap they were force-fed by the communist party.

Know what changed? A lowly little youth magazine on state-run TV, that nobody gave a **** about (especially the youth) suddenly decided to sod it and started running critical features and engaged in a sprinkle of investigative journalism (they didn't have to dig very deep, really). That was about spring-time in 1989. The thing that broke the dam was the Tjienanmen massacre in summer 1989. That's when others followed the lead of that plucky little youth magazine. Three months later Honecker was ousted. Four months later the Berlin wall fell and a year later Germany was re-united.

Well cycling had it's Tjienanmen moment with Armstrong. The question is, where is cycling's little youth magazine that dares to call bull****. How hard can it be? Two bloody journalists took down Nixon. How hard can it be to topple some mentally disturbed Irishman with an attitude problem?

It's infuriating.

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

Isn't this the kind of article where CN needs to be a lot more critical of riders.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/contador-says-there-is-no-new-proof-against-armstrong

Contador claims that there is no test evidence against Armstrong and all the evidence is from before 2005.

This is left unchallenged by CN.

This has subsequently been repeated and cited on this forum as 'the truth'.

However, we and CN also know that this claim is untrue as i) witness testimony is proof and ii) there is new test evidence as the USADA report makes quite clear that the study of Armstrong's blood profiles from 2009-2010 shows strong evidence of blood doping.

This is exactly how myths like 500 tests passed get built up because no one ever stops the rider, or even in the write up, pauses to say 'well actually what this rider is saying isn't true because x,y,z

Stories like this in their present form are not journalism but churnalism.

 

[Benotti69]

Isn't this the kind of article where CN needs to be a lot more critical of riders.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/contador-says-there-is-no-new-proof-against-armstrong

Contador claims that there is no test evidence against Armstrong and all the evidence is from before 2005.

This is left unchallenged by CN.

This has subsequently been repeated and cited on this forum as 'the truth'.

However, we and CN also know that this claim is untrue as i) witness testimony is proof and ii) there is new test evidence as the USADA report makes quite clear that the study of Armstrong's blood profiles from 2009-2010 shows strong evidence of blood doping.

This is exactly how myths like 500 tests passed get built up because no one ever stops the rider, or even in the write up, pauses to say 'well actually what this rider is saying isn't true because x,y,z

Stories like this in their present form are not journalism but churnalism.

It is copypastism. CN are not interested in Journalism. That is so obvious.

They are copy paste bots.

Happy to perpetuate myths, PR spin and even lies.

Look how they have let McQuaid away with lies, lies and damned lies for years even when the thick F**k contradicted his own lies.

In 7 years of McQuaid he got 1 difficult question. That's a joke!

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

And no one seems willing to pick up on Andrew McQuaid potentially libelling Greg Lemond.

You'd think this would be a big story - you know what with Greg Lemond calling for McQuaid's resignation, and the response of the McQuaid clan being to go onto twitter and to accuse Lemond of being doped...

More, rock solid, new tough on the UCI doping from CN, Velonews etc.

 

[blackcat]

Stories like this in their present form are not journalism but churnalism.

thought this is felicitous.. “News is something somebody doesn't want printed; all else is advertising.” - William Randolph Hearst

irony is Hearst. But the plainspeaking may have been in a different non-orwellian context like a shareholder meeting on strategy

 

[blackcat]

Moyers has used it in a slightly amended form.