Washington
Related: About this forumWSU: We lost $1.6 million in pledges after Mike Leach tweeted fake Obama video
Washington State lost out on over $1.5 million after football coach Mike Leach tweeted out a blatantly doctored video of President Barack Obama this summer.
Leach tweeted out the video in June and asked his followers for their thoughts. The video was heavily edited to make Obama appear to be saying things he was clearly not actually saying in a 2014 speech to the European Union. Leach was defiant after tweeting the video and even got into a spat with a sportswriter following the tweet.
His actions cost the school some serious cash. A spokesperson told the Lewiston Tribune that the school lost out on pledges totaling $1.6 million in the aftermath of Leachs decision to tweet out the video.
A follow-up email Wednesday evening from Marketing and Communications Vice President Phil Weiler clarified the amount: As the president mentioned, no one who had made a cash gift has asked for their money back. We did have five donors let us know that they had altered plans for their future giving, however. These were primarily estate gifts that would have been paid out upon the donors death. These planned estate gifts totaled $1.6 million.
If Leach immediately apologized for tweeting out the video and said he made a mistake and wouldnt repeat it again its easy to see how the dumb decision wouldnt have been a big deal. But he didnt do that.
The eccentric coach engaged with people on Twitter after posting the video, asking users to prove that the video was fake. From our own Ryan Young in June:
All told, Leach asked Twitter users to prove it nine different times (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9) as he continued to march through the internet battlegrounds, conveniently missing the many people trying to provide him with proof the video he shared was fake.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/ncaafb/washington-state-we-lost-dollar16-million-in-pledges-after-mike-leach-tweeted-fake-obama-video/ar-BBPMbfX?li=BBnb7Kz
brush
(53,924 posts)He's lucky they're in first place.
It's all about the money with these big-time football programs.
central scrutinizer
(11,665 posts)He was fired from Texas Tech for harassing a player who wouldnt play with a concussion. Asshole
CatMor
(6,212 posts)he should have been fired but I guess winning games is more important than having integrity.
Bradshaw3
(7,533 posts)I've interviewed him and thought he was one of the most intelligent coaches I ever talked to (I know, low bar). He has a law degree and while eccentric he always seemed pretty bright. Maybe he has a side that wasn't public till now.
Gothmog
(145,667 posts)Salviati
(6,009 posts)He's making $4 million a year. Make him cough it up.
Haggis for Breakfast
(6,831 posts)the University to lose $1.6 million in funds, they's have had their ass handed to them by the Chancellor that afternoon.
This really does reveal where the university's priorities lie.