This type of reaction is the reason that I think the AJC story is bad. The AJC writer didn't find new pictures of Bell in the locker room, they were available to the NCAA when Pastner made his comments. The AJC writer didn't find new video of Bell opening a package with a basketball, it was available to the NCAA when Pastner made his comments. The NCAA had access to everything in the entire article before they made decisions about what allegations to make. The only information that the AJC writer gained access to recently was the interview tapes. Since the NCAA conducted those interviews, they had access to them as soon as anyone.
There are things in this story that are bad for Pastner. Those things have been in the public for at least a year, and almost two for most of them. The dukebasketballreport article says that the AJC article is full of details. However, the details are along the lines of:
- The NCAA didn't ask questions that this AJC writer wishes they did.
- Pastner didn't fully explain situations that the NCAA didn't inquire about.
If those types of assertions are allowed to become "proof" that he wasn't truthful, then how about the following assertions:
- NCAA investigators failed to ask a certain mutt running back about a Trans-Am.
- NCAA investigators failed to ask Coach K about payments to Williamson.
- NCAA investigators failed to ask Justin Fields how much money he was paid to sign with the mutts.
- NCAA investigators failed to ask me if I violated the speed limit in the last week.
The NCAA not asking questions isn't "proof" that you misled them. Not explaining details that the NCAA doesn't ask about isn't "proof" that you misled them. Pictures of RB in a location that CJP said he didn't allow him to go aren't "proof" that CJP misled the investigators. Video of RB supposedly opening a package years ago isn't "proof" that CJP misled the investigators about how many packages he sent to RB.
The article could have pointed out the Bell pictures and video and questioned whether CJP told the truth. Instead the article listed those as falsehoods and mixed them with general "they didn't ask" type statements. If you want to find the truth, you look into actual questions and try to get the answers. If you want to write a hit piece, then you mix unanswered questions with general vague statements and hint at something untoward. Which way was this AJC article written?