John Pollock andBrandon Thurston examine the subject of independent contractors in pro wrestling following the suit filed by Kevin Kelly and The Tates.
Pollock and Thurston welcome lawyer Stephen New to discuss the lawsuit filed by Kevin Kelly & The Tates against AEW, Tony Khan & Ian Riccaboni, and the argument of whether AEW talents are misclassified as independent contractors.
Plus: How well Mr. McMahon performed in its first week on Netflix, SmackDown vs. Fox, what the move to CW means for NXT, and the countdown continues for AEW’s media rights announcement(s).
I will say, the title choice is interesting. I know AEW is a part of the lawsuit under discussion, but the outcome would affect WWE I would assume.
The guest is also interesting. I will say I’m on the side of Ian Riccobani. I wonder if the interview is live on YouTube just for the comments as I’m doing a beer and pretzel night now.
I didn’t catch the entire segment with the guest and I still am questionable on the booking of them, but from what I did watch John did not let me down in his push-back on certain claims the guest was making. Apologies for being a doubter.
I don’t understand the immediate vitriol from people who haven’t listened. It’s not like they gave a platform to a racist p*dophile or something.
They are journalists interviewing a prominent figure in a current and newsworthy lawsuit. If they don’t hold him accountable to your satisfaction, voice your displeasure then.
It’s a lack of media literacy. Just because you don’t agree with someone doesn’t mean they are to be ignored. Some of the best interviews or conversations come out of disagreement and discussion.
So I’m listening now and I’m not sure how much if a case the Tates have. At worst, Tony was misinformed and it was a misunderstanding, so I don’t know if that is strong enough.
The big thing that I had to look further, that John specifically asked Tony about, was a response where Tony said the Tates had issues with missing shows during the Sinclair era. If that’s the case, than the Tates might be up the river. If Tony was wrong, but they missed shows for Sinclair, he could say he was justified in thinking they were unreliable despite being wrong about that one instance. If you get what I’m saying.
I’m now listening to the Riccobani discussion. I respect John and Brandon holding him to this. Stephen’s defense is rough. Basically, the Tates are the only ones who have a chance if TK lied. Kevin Kelly’s cooked.
