In 2004, Kirk Reynolds, then-public relations director for the 49ers, put together a training video for the football team, which was shown during training camp in August. The initial reason behind the video was to provide the team with additional diversity training, after a player made an anti-homosexual comment. The video was a compilation of different “scenes” or “situations” the players might find themselves in around the diverse communities of San Francisco. These included off-color racial jokes, lesbian porn, a spoof on gay marriage and a trio of buxom, topless blondes frolicking with Reynolds.
This video was shown to only players as an example of “how to deal with the media.” However, in January of 2005, 49ers general manager Terry Donahue showed a portion of the tape to 49ers owners, John York and Denise DeBartolo York. In March of that year, the Yorks instructed Donahue to send the full 15-minute video to the NFL offices in New York. The video sat at NFL headquarters for several months, until June of 2005. It was then sent, anonymously, to the San Francisco Chronicle, who reported the details of the “training” film, causing a crisis in the San Francisco 49ers organization.
The implications to restore or repair images vary for both the team and several of the individuals involved. The team’s image was tarnished initially, but with the corrective actions of the upper management, their image was restored, to a degree, with the help of apologies and special meetings with the different diverse groups in San Francisco. For the individuals in this crisis who lost their jobs, there are still some negative ties to them since blame was placed on them.
Due to the graphic nature of the video, I couldn’t download it. However, I included a link for those who want to see it. It is about 14 1/2 minutes in length, and please be warned, there is nudity, racial slurs, and other offensive statements/actions. View at your own risk.
JOUR 840: Crisis / Image Management 
I’m at a loss for words. That video is beyond irresponsible. I could more easily understand such offensive and misogynistic material had a sports organization developed this footage in the early- to mid-eighties, at the latest. But in 2004? That’s unbelievable!
At any rate, the ‘fortunate’ thing for the 49ers, especially since the mid-nineties, is that the NFL is king in this country. It can virtually do no wrong. During the PED (performance enhancing drugs) hearings with Congress in early 2008 (http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/23282216/), MLB was raked over the proverbial coals for issues of steroids and HGH in their game. And since that time, MLB is still widely scrutinized for not having baseball as clean as the United States government believes it should be. The fascinating juxtaposition here is that the NFL, having shown similar signs of impurity in their respective game, was, and has since been, barely slapped on the wrist. Why is that? Is it because everyone loves football? I imagine that this is the reason.
And for that, I believe that every team under the NFL umbrella, including the San Francisco 49ers, skate over thin ice without hardly a crack in the surface. Add to the fact that the 49ers have a proud and winning tradition – complete contrasts of their silver and black neighbors across the Golden Gate, the Oakland Raiders, who are known much more for their colorful players and off-the-field antics. Bottom line: it does not surprise me in the least bit that the 49ers suffered only minor repercussions from this crisis. If the Cincinnati Bengals can operate without a hiccup (http://larrybrownsports.com/football/ranking-the-cincinnati-bengals-arrests/612), then San Francisco needn’t worry about their media misfortune.
By: Darius on June 29, 2010
at 2:25 am