Former NBA player and son of championship coach Doc Rivers, Austin Rivers, has had enough of “anonymous sources” and emphatically let that be known in a recent video posted to social media.
“Y’all kill me with this anonymous sh*t. Seriously. No more of that. I don’t want anymore people talking about they heard such and such about a player due to an anonymous source, or I heard ‘this guy wants out’ or ‘he wants to be traded’, ‘he wants to be signed here’, ‘he’s unhappy, or ‘I heard that guy is not a pleasure to work around’ says an anonymous source.
Enough of that anonymous sh*t. If you are going to speak on a player’s character, if y’all are going to come out here and talk about a player’s personal life and certain things about him , either say it with your chest and say that you feel that way or if you’re quote somebody else, say their damn name. I’m tired of the anonymous sh*t. “
There was a portion of a recent Ramona Shelburne piece in which an unnamed teammate branded Russell Westbrook as “immature.” It was this part of the report that drew Rivers’ ire in particular:
“Y’all over here talking about Russell Westbrook is immature, says an anonymous teammate of his own. Then say the teammate then. Who said that bullsh*t?…I played with Russell, the last thing I would ever describe him as a teammate is immature. This guy is like the epitome of what a professional looks like. How he approaches his craft, how hard he works, how much energy and pride and passion he plays with every game. “
While Rivers raises several lucid points, the presence of the is not departing anytime soon. As vexing as the specter of the “anonymous source” can be, they are still a vital part of journalism. There are valid reasons for sources to remain anonymous, such as professional or personal safety and no journalist worth his salt is going to expose their sources, as that would be career suicide. The responsibility for the media is to understand that everything that is allegedly divulged to you, does not need to make it on air or in print.
