When a fan runs onto a field during a game, the broadcast doesn’t show it in order to avoid encouraging others from following suit. For similar reasons, we’ve ignored the weird fight that has unfolded between a reporter and 49ers defensive lineman Javon Kinlaw.
I’m not going to spend much time on this, other than to say it’s obvious that the reporter is utilizing his access to troll one specific player in a deliberate effort to provoke the kind of reaction that will elevate the reporter. I’ve watched the videos. It’s painfully obvious. It’s a get-rich-quick scam by someone who is willing to antagonize players under the guise of “calling it like I see it.”
That’s really all we have to say about it. I wanted to say nothing. I finally decided to say something, but to say as little as possible.
And the something I’m saying is this. It’s a know-it-when-you-see-it situation. The reporter wants to boost his own platform by picking a fight with a member of the 49ers, and then by acting like he didn’t pick the fight. Again, it’s painfully obvious.
We won’t give him the satisfaction of using his name. Whether the 49ers want to continue to give him access is their business. It’s actually good for the team, given that players have rallied against the reporters. Meanwhile, the reporter in question is borderline gleeful over the fact that he has stirred things up by crossing the line from fair criticism of a football player to a personal attack on a human being.
That’s all I’m going to say. You can Google it for more details, if you want. I refuse to give the reporter the attention he craves, because it’s obvious that the entire exercise is calculated toward that specific goal.