WWE Exec Fired After Wife Outed As Twitter Troll

[Cristobal]

So here's a weird one. I'm putting it here rather than the general thread on Rippa's advice cuz there's a higher than average chance this thread gets locked basically in four minutes and I would like that not to be the case so if all the usual suspects for posting politically (which I'm fully aware includes me) would refrain, there's some WWE-specific stuff I wanted to ask about.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/anti-muslim-twitter-troll-amy-mek-mekelburg_us_5b0d9e40e4b0802d69cf0264?7z

tl;dr: A HuffPost reporter outed (arguably doxed) a popular twitter account (220K) followers that posted a lot of negative stuff about Islam. The account belonged to the wife of a WWE SrVP, (Salvatore Siino, which I'm shocked to learn is a real name and not a Pat Patterson-created gimmick name) and apparently WWE canned him after the reporter started inquiring.

Stuff I'd like to talk about:

• When WWE does a high-value deal like GRR with a government, does that effectively give that government a say in how WWE runs its business? (I'm sure WWE fired the guy on their own without any prompting from the KSA, but would they have if WWE hadn't had such a valuable deal signed in the region?)
  • Is that actually a bad thing?
• Is WWE basically the same as any other corporate entity at this point as far as firing people who say stupid shit in public? We all look at Vince and the wrestling side of things a lot, but how much is WWE a wrestling promotion at this point, as opposed to a largeish corporation that's core business is wrestling?

Stuff we should all probably avoid:

• The tweets themselves. Typical politically incendiary stuff.
• Anything whatsoever to do with Trump. At all. C'mon let this be the last time his name is mentioned in this thread.
• Comparisons to the whole Roseanne/Samantha Bee situations. They're valid topics of conversation but pretty overtly political.
• Anything about any religions. C'mon....

Hrmmmmmmm I dunno:

• Linda being Small Business Administrator. Probably she's not likely to say anything as she has no role in the company right now and this wouldn't really touch on anything SBA is in charge of. It's such a WWE thing to have a conflict of interest like this and somehow be unable to really profit from it, though.

 

[(BP)]

On the first point, I don't think the KSA cares at all about American Islamophobia. That doesn't mean the new deals with them weren't a factor in the firing, but it's mostly just common sense. It's an albatross they don't need around their necks and an easy call to make. 

It's easy to connect the dots politically, but they've generally done a good job of steering clear of getting in the middle of the culture wars at a time when it's increasingly hard to do so. Linda's arguably the most successful cabinet appointee up to this point because no one's paying attention to her and she'll probably leave all of it behind her relatively unscathed, which is also good news for WWE. 

[The Comedian]

Bryan Colangelo is WWE Exec?

[elizium]

34 minutes ago, The Comedian said:

Bryan Colangelo is WWE Exec?

Everyone can see that this is really a set up by Hinkie to get a job with the WWE.

[Kuetsar]

I think its more that any publically traded company can't afford to employ someone who embarasses them on Twitter.  Does the other stuff matter? I would imagine though what degrees one issues matters more than another is probably debatable. I think would apply to any inappropriate tweets, not just relating to Islam. I haven't worked in a corporate environment, but I imagine anytime you make a stink big enough for the company to have to comment about, and you are not absolutely essential(and as Hollywood shows even then) you will be packing your bags.

[Greggulator]

This all makes total sense from a corporate PR perspective. They hired a guy with some experience/education who they thought could make them money. They probably knew about his wife and held out hope no one would dig too much and make that connection. Her husband knew he was on thin ice because of her. Once she got outed, he has to go.

No one from the KSA is calling Vince and demanding his ouster. But the WWE is more-or-less an international marketing company. Anything that is detrimental to the brand is gone. That's business. 

[supremebve]

21 minutes ago, elizium said:

Everyone can see that this is really a set up by Hinkie to get a job with the WWE.

The Stugotz is strong in you.

[S.K.o.S.]

WWE actually came out of that looking pretty fantastic. 

1 hour ago, Cristobal said:

When WWE does a high-value deal like GRR with a government, does that effectively give that government a say in how WWE runs its business?

I suspect the answer is "It only gives them as much of a say as WWE wants to let them have."

[Infinit]

Wow...this broad seems like a real piece of shit.

[Wyld Samurai]

WWE became corporate the moment they went public. 

[username]

I mean, this women is just spewing some hateful shit.  Once WWE was "made aware" of this (there is a solid chance they knew beforehand) their hand was basically forced.  To not fire would be seen as to condone and no way a random unknown exec of questionable worth could possibly survive their spouse doing this.  To be frank if Vince did this even he couldn't survive it.

[John from Cincinnati]

2 hours ago, Cristobal said:

Is WWE basically the same as any other corporate entity at this point as far as firing people who say stupid shit in public?

These days, absolutely -- if your stupid gets any notable attention.

 Strange to think we're still in the same decade where Michael Cole got a sensitivity training wrist slap for calling Josh Matthews a "fag." That's an immediate pink slip now.

IIRC, this was also around the same time:

And WWE's so much like the rest that if you're well liked, they'll probably hire you back in six months when it all blows over.

[SorceressKnight]

3 hours ago, elizium said:

Everyone can see that this is really a set up by Hinkie to get a job with the WWE.

Bad programming that makes its fans ashamed to watch it, while the people in charge keep signing away big draft picks who MIGHT make things better in the future? I thought Hinkie worked there.

But past the joke, one thing to keep in mind here- whether the KSA demanded his firing for this or not is a question- but the article DID say her husband was involved with bringing WWE television deals to the United Arab Emirates. Knowing that's what this guy was doing in particular makes this a little more obvious why he'd be fired.

[mattdangerously]

Five bucks says this Amy Mekelberg lady is one of Dinesh D'Souza's exes.  She fits his type:  blonde and vile.

[(BP)]

In regard to the actual piece, it's a fascinating and chilling article that checks off so many boxes about class, race, mental illness, and social media in American life. But since this is DVDVR, I'll just leave it at she looked uncannily like Ricky Morton in that yearbook photo. 

[Spritenaut 32]

This thread is still open?  What da hale, people?  You choose now to exercise restraint on the internet?

I am disappoint.

[w. josh]

"@amymek" being the "anonymous" handle for a woman named Amy Mekelberg is some Superman-putting-on-glasses shit.

[JonnyLaw]

8 hours ago, SorceressKnight said:

But past the joke, one thing to keep in mind here- whether the KSA demanded his firing for this or not is a question- but the article DID say her husband was involved with bringing WWE television deals to the United Arab Emirates. Knowing that's what this guy was doing in particular makes this a little more obvious why he'd be fired.

I agree.  This isn’t just a PR firing.  This is a guy who is tasked with negotiating with a Muslim country getting fired for his wife tweeting wildly anti-Muslim tweets.

Without getting too much into politics, it is similar to how people keep wondering when/whether Kellyanne Conway’s husband’s tweets will get her in trouble with Trump.

[Victator]

Would WWE really know what his wife was doing on Twitter? Part of me thinks it is unfair to fire someone for what their spouse does. But apparently he was aware and knew to downplay the connection. 

The forum being terrified of politics is a funny running gag. 

[S.K.o.S.]

8 minutes ago, Victator said:

Would WWE really know what his wife was doing on Twitter?

Maybe, maybe not.  They have plausible deniability, but they lose it once the media shows up and says "Hey did you know about this?  Well now you do."

[Ace]

 

[Raziel]

35 minutes ago, Victator said:

The forum being terrified of politics is a funny running gag. 

As it should be. We can barely go a month talking about wrestling without it turning into a shitflinging circus, add current politics and *that* lovely discourse? 

[piranesi]

Fuck social media.

"Let's harness the absolute essence of humanity and turn it into an electronic drug that coats the surface of the earth so that everyone will be in it at all times until the collective tonnage of it merges us all into our most basic selves. A singular hypnotized voice devoid of thought!"

"But, sir, the essence of humanity is horrifying. That will create a monolith of stupid that will consume the globe."

"Sorry, can't hear you here in my mindfulness tube!"

 

[DJ Hero Morganti]

The greater internet fuckwad theory is 14ish years old.  This just adds more data points to the issue and shows that the it can actually have consequences in meat space.

[supremebve]

I don't blame social media for anything.  Literally millions of people go on social media every day without being racist assholes.  The problem is that the world is filled racist assholes.  Social media just exposes these people for who they are in real life.  This behavior is solely the fault of the people who are perpetrating the behavior.  It is not the fault of social media, the media, the leftest agenda, the right's agenda, the homosexual agenda, pc culture, SJWs, or anything else.  A certain percentage of people are going to be fucking horrible, we need to hold those people accountable for their behavior and stop blaming everything else.