Sayonara USA Water Polo

In moving to a new platform and—potentially—a sharper focus for my writing, I’ve decided in one particular instance to make a clear break with my past. I’ve rescinded my USA Water Polo membership.

Some might say: Who cares? Why even talk about something that costs 50 bucks and includes the somewhat dubious distinction of (in my case) being the administrative liaison for an age-group club.

There are two considerations in my decision. First, as a writer who regularly covers USAWP athletes and competition (as the national governing body for the sport, USAWP’s responsibilities stretch from splashball to Olympic contests). That’s an incredibly broad swath of the sport in America. Considering that the bulk of the organization’s membership consists of age group athletes, and that I was—until recently—the contact for Brooklyn Water Polo Club. I often wondered if I was objective about an organization that—because of my club affiliation—I’ve had numerous dealings.

Also, it’s been said that I’m known for “puff pieces” about USAWP. I’d say that’s a matter of opinion, but it’s true that among the 1,000 (or so) articles I’ve published on water polo there’s favorable coverage of a sport I enjoy and an organization I respect.

There’s also an ethical journalism context provided by the policies of the New York Times. The Old Grey Lady does not allow its sportswriters to vote on major awards so as to avoid any appearances of bias:

Sports reporters assigned to cover games may not serve as scorers. Members of the sports department may not take part in voting for the Heisman Trophy, most valuable player and rookie of the year awards, entry into the Baseball Hall of Fame or similar honors.
Ethical Journalism: A Handbook of Values and Practices for the News & Editorial Departments

Some will say this approach to covering subjects went out the window when it comes to such luminaries as David Brooks, who favorably covered a non-profit he created using funding from the Aspen Institute. He got a slap on the wrist for what was, in regard to lesser NYT journalist (such as Lauren Wolfe), a grievous and fireable offense.

In my case, it’s not earth-shattering, though I was concerned enough about this conflict to limit my coverage of the Brooklyn polo girls’ team during an exciting run of success at the 2018 Junior Olympics

Of course, there’s more to this story than just a conflict of interest—especially as the only time that I have received any form of payment from USAWP is when they put me up for a night at the (very nice) <name of resort> for the 2018 UANA Junior Pan American Tournament <exact title?>. In return, I produced a couple of articles about the growth of polo in the Sunshine State (I’m not sure USAWP got their money’s worth; South Florida did grab my attention, including a cover story on Paola Dominguez for the cover of the April 2019 issue of Swimming World Magazine).

In a recent series of articles examining the impact of the Bahram Hojreh scandal on senior leadership at USAWP—specifically Christopher Ramsey USAWP Chief Executive Officer and Christy Sicard, the organization’s Senior Director, Membership and SafeSport Compliance. The entire time I spent looking into allegations of negligence and questionable decision-making by Ramsey and Mike Graff, outgoing USAWP board chair, I had this feeling that I was somehow being spiteful. Or, that I was betraying the organization, and not supporting the growth of the sport in the U.S.—which I most certainly do.

I can say that the whole affair left me with a different—read that not so positive—impression of the organization, especially on the issue of transparency. I was grateful that Chris Ramsey made himself available for an interview; if people don’t like how that was conducted, that’s on me.

However, I was never granted access to specific board members (which was requested numerous times). This would have helped counter the idea that there’s a top-down approach to decision-making at the NGB for the sport.

I was also struck by the reluctance of a number of sources to speak with me, either on the record or on background, due to their apprehension about how this might affect their relationship with the dominant provider for polo in America. It’s possible they didn’t trust me—sure I can accept that!—but some said it was too risky to say anything against USAWP.

These things didn’t inspire confidence in the organization; so now I’m not in any position to be conflicted in how I cover the sport in America. And, if you want to know what I think, then you’ve come to the right place.