The Cavaliers showed the above video – a man battering his girlfriend for being a Bulls fan, her becoming a Cavs fan as a result – at their last home game.
The video was disturbing, harmful and tone deaf. It rightly earned the Cavaliers plenty of public scorn.
Internally, the fallout is limited.
TMZ:NOT ONE SINGLE PERSON is getting fired for that whole Cleveland Cavs domestic violence arena video debacle. Not a one.
Our super solid Cavs sources tell us ... despite the public outcry for someone to get the axe, the organization wants to use the situation as a teachable moment ... instead of a public execution.
We’re told team execs spoke with EVERYONE that had a hand in making and airing the video -- in which a male Cavs fan SLAMS his GF for being a Bulls fan -- and explained why it was a bad idea.
This isn’t necessarily the wrong decision.
As bad as the video was – and it was unbelievably awful – firing someone doesn’t necessarily help anything. We’re better off with more people understanding and recognizing domestic violence. I’m still stunned by the number of people who claimed the video doesn’t depict domestic violence, assessments which could have troubling real-world effects.
Given their slightly misguided apology, I’m not sure the Cavaliers organization is the best source of that lesson, but I’m hoping for the best.
And yes, the video was far worse than the Rockets’ horse-gun-emoji tweet, which got their digital communications manager fired. If that were his only transgression, he probably shouldn’t have been fired.
Some companies are just quicker to scapegoat someone than others. The makers of the Cavaliers video should feel lucky they work a place that doesn’t prioritize that.
