Media Monster

Jay Mariotti Pleads No Contest To One Misdemeanor Charge, Other Six Dismissed

Remember when ESPN commentator/Fanhouse columnist Jay Mariotti got arrested and everyone went crazy? Of course you do. Well, since then, he got suspended from Fanhouse, the L.A. District Attorney didn’t take his case on, and the L.A. City Attorney charged him with seven misdemeanors. But the matter didn’t receive any closure until today – and all told, his punishment isn’t too bad.

Mariotti pleaded no contest to one of the seven misdemeanors (misdemeanor domestic violence), while the other six were dropped. In addition to a mandatory year-long domestic violence course and an order to stay away from the victim, he gets probation for three years and 40 days of community service – but no jail time.

Clearly, Mariotti did some inappropriate stuff here, hence the no contest plea. But the reactions to Mariotti in the court of public opinion vs. a court of law were so wildly out of disparate that it’s almost mind-blowing. The near-unanimous glee at Mariotti’s initial arrest, especially among fellow media members, was unprecedented, while his official punishment today was, well, mild.

And the punishment he received today might well be exactly what he should have gotten. But the opinion he stirs in people sure isn’t mild. When you stake a reputation on not tolerating mistakes in others, it’s no surprise when people refuse to tolerate your own.

With all this in mind, The Big Lead wondered today whether Mariotti will ever be back at ESPN. But let’s assume for a second that both ESPN and Fanhouse take him back. The big question then: will he change his tone at all?

We think he almost has to. Absolutely no one would take him seriously anymore – and they shouldn’t – if he sanctimoniously ripped into a player for, say, a domestic violence charge. However, if he takes his personal low point and uses it constructively in his writing, he might have something there. Let’s hope that, in whatever Mariotti does next, he doesn’t forget – or willfully ignore – the past.

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