Bernie Fine: Has ESPN's Coverage of Scandal Corrupted Its Credibility?

Former Syracuse assistant basketball coach Bernie Fine was fired from his post after being accused of molesting former Syracuse ball boys Bobby Davis and Mike Lang. It wasn't until third accuser Zach Tomaselli came forward, though, that the wheels were set in motion.

Now, according to an interview with Tomaselli conducted by the Kansas State Collegian, it has come out that ESPN reporter Mark Schwarz gave Tomaselli's phone number to Davis, although it is unclear if he prompted Davis to call Tomaselli. Tomaselli initially contacted ESPN after hearing Davis tell his story on the Herd with Colin Cowherd.

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I emailed [Cowherd] and he forwarded the email to Mark Schwarz, Tomaselli said. Schwarz is an enterprise reporter for ESPN. After talking to Schwarz on the phone, I got a phone call from a private number.

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The number was that of Davis who convinced Tomaselli to tell his story to police, which eventually helped police secure a warrant to search Fine's home. This means that, in a way, Schwarz's efforts to unite Davis and Tomaselli led to Fine's ouster at Syracuse.

Generally, the rule of thumb for a journalist is for them to never make themself a part of the story. Based on Tomaselli's account of what happened, though, that is precisely what Schwarz did. Had he talked to Tomaselli himself, that would have been one thing, but helping the alleged victims collaborate is going too far.

This revelation has understandably outraged some, including FOX Sports columnist Jason Whitlock. On Thursday, Whitlock unloaded a number of angry tweets on his Twitter page after learning about how Tomaselli came to the forefront.

In a lot of ways, it is difficult to argue with Whitlock in this instance. Schwarz most certainly has a lot invested in the Fine story as he has been ESPN's lead reporter on the scandal. Getting Tomaselli to come forward was huge in getting Fine fired and advancing the story as well.

Whitlock even speculated that Schwarz may have referred Tomaselli to the Syracuse Post-Standard in order to throw the public off his scent.

I don't think that is necessarily the case, but Schwarz's journalistic ethics and those of ESPN as a whole certainly have to be called into question. As a reporter, it is simply Schwarz's responsibility to report the news. While he has done that, he has also made the news as well.

Schwarz may very well have seen Tomaselli as a tool to further his career. Had a third accuser not come to fruition, it is very possible that Fine would have been exonerated, especially since Davis had been foiled before and his only corroborator was his stepbrother, Lang.

There is often a very fine line between what is ethical and what isn't when it comes to being a journalist. It isn't clear whether Schwarz told Davis to call Tomaselli or merely suggested it, but he was the sole reason why the conversation ever happened.

In this era of the Internet and breaking news, every news outlet desperately tries to get a leg up on the others. Sometimes this involves dirty tricks, and that is the case with Schwarz. While it is something that has long been suspected, I think Schwarz's involvement in this case proves ESPN is more interested in ratings than reporting a fair and balanced story.