About The UFC Media Waiver

Or Burn That Thing And Drop It Into The Trash

Welcome to the latest C’mon Now newsletter. This is the place where I’ll share my thoughts on all the goings-on in MMA. Those thoughts could range from media criticism to advice for folks looking to get into MMA writing to why certain fighters or managers are not good for the sport.

I have some thoughts on the success of the waiver the UFC had the media sign at the Jacksonville events.

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A little something about the waiver the MMA media signed at the three Jacksonville events. My assumption is that the waiver did what the UFC intended it to do and that was to force compliance and prevent journalism. That makes me uncomfortable.

Heading into those three events, my take was the most important story was not the fights, but the testing, and how the UFC dealt with the COVID-19 issue at these three cards. I didn’t see any true reporting from any of the folks who attended the event. I know these folks were hand-picked for a reason. I know they signed a waiver. But, according to Dana White and the UFC’s legal team, the media could have reported things that were true and what they saw at that event. That no one took the UFC up on that offer as far as testing and behind the scene stories about how well the UFC‘s protocols were followed and the frequency of the tests makes me think the waiver went a bit deeper than that. 

Also absent were questions about follow up testing or self-quarantining for the participants at the Jacksonville events. That was alarming, the media should have asked both those questions.

As things move along and more media members are permitted to attend UFC events, I hope someone will do an in-depth report on what they see and what they deal with as far as COVID-19 testing goes. In addition, the media should report on instructions the UFC gives them for traveling home from the event, self quarantining and follow-up tests two weeks after the event to make sure they are not positive for COVID-19. 

Even if the UFC updates its media waiver and the media has to sign it, the original version of the waiver probably put some fear into the media — more fear than the access media already has about losing their credentials. 

The media should be free to report what it wants. That‘s the role of journalism. That‘s already something that doesn‘t always happen at UFC events. This waiver makes true journalism more difficult and it hurts that media signed it at all. Any waiver that limits the media needs to be set afire and dropped at the feet of the UFC brass. 

Do you know something about UFC, USADA, an MMA manager or a fighter, that I should know? You can email me at trent.reinsmith@gmail.com or contact me via secure messaging on Telegram at trentreinsmith.