Fred Oien article

[SUPERBUNNY]

Re: Fred Oien article

Personally, I think a big reason Vandrovec wrote the story is because he wasn't around the SDSU program for most of it, and it was news to him.

I'd have to quibble with the newsworthiness today of Fred's alleged inebriation at the 2008 Summit League tournament in Tulsa. In 2008, that would have been news. It's not really news now. Over a year later, it's just a curiosity at best, but I guess it does allow those who need to wallow in what a bad man Fred Oien was to wallow a little while more.

Keep holding on tight to it, or let it go. Everybody gets to make that choice.

The king is dead. Long live the king.

Bingo filbert! Everyone makes their choice on the issue and there will never be a consensus.

I said what I had to say and am moving on. All the best to Fred in his retirement.

I look forward to getting to know Mr. Sell and wish him all the best as our new AD.

SUPERBUNNY

[jackmd]

Re: Fred Oien article

Anybody wonder if maybe Dr. Oien took a look at things and realized that maybe he needed to focus more on himself and his personal health? His position was certainly one associated with a lot of stress. Do you suppose that stress lead to some of the episodes quoted in the article? I'm not asking anyone to feel sorry for Dr. Oien, I'm sure he isn't interested in anyone feeling sorry for him. Fred is a man, men make mistakes, they have shortcomings.

Try and see it from the perspective of the guy who the story is about. The guy whose legacy, IMHO, should be about what he did for SDSU, his staff, his students, the community of Brookings and the state of SD not about the cracks in the armor brought about be his own indiscretions and the nature of his position in society.

That said, the article has generated public discussion about a guy that was relegated to a position of "watching from the wings" as his hard work and passion were being paid off. It brings to light not only the "bad things" about Fred but also allows for discussion about the "good things". I suppose that was some of the intent, at least I hope so.

Lastly, he has personality flaws, he misused alcohol, he made a fool of himself on occasion. Now, you decide who that he is and whether that he deserves a 2 page article in the largest newspaper in the state. Remember the he could be anybody.

[zooropa]

Re: Fred Oien article

He didn't quote any anonymously. Is that because none offered anything new or additive? Or is it Argus policy to avoid or to not quote anonymous sources period?

I suspect that TV would've buried the story if the anonymous sources didn't confirm what Grenz said.

[zooropa]

Re: Fred Oien article

Over a year later, it's just a curiosity at best

except it apparently helped precipitate an investigation that led to Oien's retirement and the hiring of a new AD.

[zooropa]

Re: Fred Oien article

If Stu wrote this article, it wouldn't have been nearly as even handed.

Oien had issues. They were under investigation last fall. In the middle of winter, having (probably) reached his 59 1/2 years and 'rule of 85' (age + years of state employment if he was under the SDRS), he retired.

IMO, if that investigation is circumstantially connected to his retirement, it is relevant and newsworthy, inasmuch as SDSU just went through the process of hiring a new AD potentially because the old AD was under investigation for improper conduct.

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Regarding Daly trashing Oien, take a good look at his quote:

“Fred was not always the easiest person to be a head coach under,” said Daly, the former football coach who now lives in Sioux Falls. “We faced challenges, and that made it probably a little more uneasy than it needed to be.”

That's the only quote from Mike Daly in the article.

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And as far as all this being 'dredged up from 10 years ago', the article details conduct from just over a year ago (the 2008 Summit Basketball tourney).

--

I mean, I'm sorry that Oien is the focus of this kind of publicity, but the fact is, he occupies a very public position, second only to Chicoine's, in representing SDSU, and if he was slurring his words and having difficulty walking at a conference hosted event last spring, that reflects poorly on the university.

akaJG nailed it on the Argus website: 'TV didn't write this story, Oien did.'

[filbert]

Re: Fred Oien article

Personally, I think a big reason Vandrovec wrote the story is because he wasn't around the SDSU program for most of it, and it was news to him.

I'd have to quibble with the newsworthiness today of Fred's alleged inebriation at the 2008 Summit League tournament in Tulsa. In 2008, that would have been news. It's not really news now. Over a year later, it's just a curiosity at best, but I guess it does allow those who need to wallow in what a bad man Fred Oien was to wallow a little while more.

Keep holding on tight to it, or let it go. Everybody gets to make that choice.

The king is dead. Long live the king.

[jacksfaninne]

Re: Fred Oien article

I understand the reasoning behind the article. Fred was/is a public figure. Maybe this is obvious, but I think the news nugget that would have justified it running would have been if it became clear that the events around Fred's departure indeed were different than what the university represented to the public.

Question: TV interview more than 24 sources for the story. Only a few went on the record. He didn't quote any anonymously. Is that because none offered anything new or additive? Or is it Argus policy to avoid or to not quote anonymous sources period?

[Evolution Prime]

Re: Fred Oien article

In retrospect, it was probably the best time for it. Didn't want it coming out during the WBB run to the tournament. Didn't wantit coming out during the search for a new AD to overshadow that. Didn't want it to come out any later else it would have lost any more relevance that it already has. Like it was mentioned before school is out and the new AD has been hired. Its time to move on.

[SFJACK]

Re: Fred Oien article

If there is a good time, now is it. School is out, the major revenue generating sports are not in session. What's wrong with the timing?

I agree there isn't a good time. Like JummyJack said, it is a tough article. To do it now just doesn't make sense to me. I could have better stated it that it just shouldn't have come out at all.

The article just wasn't filled with a lot of substance. It is definitely a splashy headline and I'm sure sold some papers but it wasn't a quality piece. And I would have labeled it a quality piece had there been more quotes from others that give it more credence. Daly and Underwood? Come on. Outside of that Micah is the only quote and I respect him a lot.

That thing should have gone in the round file as Nidaros suggested.

SUPERBUNNY

[SUPERBUNNY]

Re: Fred Oien article

When would be a good time?

During football season when we're fighting for a MVC title?

During the basketball season this year, the year the men finally turn the corner and have their first winning season in D1 history?

Or during the womens season when they make another run at the top 25?

The future is bright at SDSU and Fred Oien is a huge part of that. If it had to be done, it might as well be now so it doesn't serve as a distraction or take away from what is being done between the lines.

I agree there isn't a good time. Like JummyJack said, it is a tough article. To do it now just doesn't make sense to me. I could have better stated it that it just shouldn't have come out at all.

The article just wasn't filled with a lot of substance. It is definitely a splashy headline and I'm sure sold some papers but it wasn't a quality piece. And I would have labeled it a quality piece had there been more quotes from others that give it more credence. Daly and Underwood? Come on. Outside of that Micah is the only quote and I respect him a lot.

That thing should have gone in the round file as Nidaros suggested.

SUPERBUNNY

[TeaJackrabbit]

Re: Fred Oien article

When would be a good time?

During football season when we're fighting for a MVC title?

During the basketball season this year, the year the men finally turn the corner and have their first winning season in D1 history?

Or during the womens season when they make another run at the top 25?

The future is bright at SDSU and Fred Oien is a huge part of that. If it had to be done, it might as well be now so it doesn't serve as a distraction or take away from what is being done between the lines.

[SUPERBUNNY]

Re: Fred Oien article

This is my first comment on the article and all things that have followed.

TV has done a great job covering SDSU Athletics and has given us both the good and the bad and done so objectively. I don't necessarily have a problem with the way the article was written. It is fairly thin on substance. The timing of the article is really the issue for me. Why now? How long has TV been investigating this? It just doesn't serve any great purpose to do it now.

To me it is water-cooler talk that is turned into a high-profile article. Yes, there are quotes attached to it but just a few and from a couple of people (Daly and Underwood) that were quite well known for their fued with Dr. Oien. Those two have been gone for more then a decade and TV dug them up for a quote. Guess what, they didn't have much nice to say. I don't care how nice or good of a boss you are, you won't get along with everyone and there will be disgruntled people.

I'm not trying to give Fred a free-pass here. He has his faults which the article touches and he has to live with their consequences. He was a tough boss and may have gone too far at times. His toughness may be one of the reasons transition to D1 went so well.

At the end of the day, under his leadership the Athletic Department has flourished. When you add up the positives and negatives he left the place better then he found it. I wish Fred nothing but the best in retirement and have thanked him for all he has done for SDSU.

It was very disappointing to see the article come out in the Argus Leader now but it did. As far as I'm concerned its time to turn the page!

Good luck to Mr. Sell as our next AD.

GB, GB, GJ!

SUPERBUNNY

[JimmyJack]

Re: Fred Oien article

I suspect all said here is very accurate and the bottom line. I am having a difficult time forgiving TV for doing this article.

I don't blame anybody for being mad about the article. It's a tough story. Anybody who knows Fred (and I have known him since he was a student teacher at Hillcrest School when I was in second or third grade) hates to see this kind of thing after all he has done for SDSU.

[Nidaros]

Re: Fred Oien article

I know this wasn't an assignment from his editor. Terry, as beat writer, is responsible for generating what we call "enterprise" stories, or topical, newsworthy stories from his beat. TV generated this one. How do I know that? Two ways: First, I have talked to him about it. Second, I know from having worked in newsrooms how things are done. No doubt TV bounced this idea off of his editor, but it wasn't "assigned" to him by his editor. TV is responsible for this one, and I know from talking to him, that he did the best he could do with it.

Want a news story that you disagree with to go away? It's easy, do what JackJD (or is it MD?) always recommends: Don't let them rent space in your head. Add my advice to that: When it comes to the media, you have to take the bad with the good. And finally, there's the old saying: There's no point arguing with somebody who buys paper by the truckload and ink by the barrel.

Reporters and editors will do what they do. Ultimately, have we gotten good coverage (both in quantity and quality) by and large from the Argus? I'll say. There will always be bad stories. But nobody's going to remember the details of this one in a few months. What they will note is the overall direction of SDSU coverage. We're doing pretty well overall.

I suspect all said here is very accurate and the bottom line. I am having a difficult time forgiving TV for doing this article. I think this article about Dr Oien's preceived anger is one that could have gone in the circular file since he did not have good sources. Even if there were a dozen confirmations of anger, what does it tell us now? I posted this before, but look at Dr Oien's counterparts at USD during his tenure. Doyle and Higgins were so imcompentent that they made Fred look like a genius. So would you rather have some one as your AD who had passion and anger, or a docile incompentant?

Mike Daly and Scott Underwood are really part of the past. Their departures from SDSU occurred in the first half of Dr Oien's tenure. So much of what I have heard through rumor contridicts their somewhat noble image that Terry created for them in the article. How many times have I read TV article? I think about seven times.

I bought a book of essays on Willa Cather's novel "My Antonia" several years ago, and I have not cracked page one. Its time to read something else that does not concern HPER at SDSU. Willa Cather a Nebraska native won a Pulitizer Prize for several of her novels. I believe "My Antonia" was one of them.

[Evolution Prime]

Re: Fred Oien article

Thanks for some inside information, JJ. Like I claimed earlier, I know nothing about the journalism business and how it works. I assumed an article like this would come down from the editor of the respective department.

Still, no ill will towards TV from me. He is, in fact, just doing his job.