Ben Miller looks at the ROH Situation...

[The_One]

Ben Miller looks at the ROH situation



No Honor Here
by Ben Miller
ben_miller@mac.com

Whatever one’s opinion of Rob Feinstein’s actions leading up to his
unwanted role in a sweeps ploy by a NBC’s Philadelphia affiliate, the
actions of Feinstein, RF Video and Ring of Honor in attempting to
control this public relations nightmare have been laughable. RF Video
and Ring of Honor, reputedly founded, owned and operated by Feinstein
from their inception, decided the best course of action in maintaining
as many “smart” wrestling fans as possible was concocting a story so
inane even the dullest of marks would see right through it.

To fully analyze the events of the past week, one must first examine
the tabloid nature of Feinstein’s outing. Nary a reader would enjoy
their innermost vices being laid bare in such a public fashion. As an
alleged pedophile, the line between personal privacy and necessary
public knowledge becomes irreparably blurred, especially for a person
who has gained a significant amount of fame in wrestling circles. Just
as Feinstein’s reputation gained through RF Video’s success likely
helped the launch and burgeoning success of Ring of Honor, so too will
his despicable behavior hurt Ring of Honor’s future prospects. Those
who have attempted to separate Ring of Honor from Feinstein in the past
week are making a half baked argument. When one person is so integral
in the financial fortunes of a business, that business is most
certainly an enabler for the person’s misdeeds.

Even if one argues that Feinstein’s action should not reflect
negatively on RF Video and Ring of Honor, buying the ownership transfer
touted by all parties takes a true dullard. In his first and only
public statement since his outing, Feinstein claimed to resign from two
companies that he was heretofore reported to have owned autonomously.
His statement would be funny in its parody of disgraced Fortune 500
CEOs if it weren’t so pathetic. Owners of small businesses don’t have
the option of merely stepping aside the way a corporate leader would.
There isn’t a robust network of well-trained executives waiting in the
wings to move the company forward. When leadership of a small business
changes, it is the result of the owner selling, plain and simple. In
the case of RF Video and Ring of Honor, no reasonable person could
believe that Feinstein completed all the details of the sale of these
two companies in the past 48 hours. In fact, no reasonable person
could believe that Feinstein has legitimately severed ties with either
company. The press releases produced by RF Video and Ring of Honor
have been utter hogwash designed at salvaging whatever fan loyalty
remains for those two companies.

The decision to remain as a consumer of the RF Video and Ring of Honor
product lies in the hands of each wrestling fan. Just as revelations
of marital infidelities and violent crimes by high profile athletes
cause a portion of fans to leave while another portion stays, so too
will the coming months see an interesting dichotomy of people who
refuse to support a business run by an apparent pedophile on principle
and those who believe that a business owner’s personal life should stay
personal. Rob Feinstein, Ring of Honor and RF Video have done
themselves no favors by manufacturing press releases that insult the
common sense of any educated pro wrestling fan. Now it's the fans'
turn to react to that.


credit: Observer....


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