MSG troubles

Madison Square Gardens, the Knicks, and Isiah Thomas settled the sexual harassment case against them for $11.5 million. This amount is $100,000 less than the punitive damage claim awarded against the defendants. The defendants are claiming that they wanted to get the incident behind them so they could focus on basketball operations, but they probably realized that they would not be successful in overturning the award and that a court would probably not reduce the award for being excessive. While I am glad that the victim will be compensated, I am also concerned about the future of women in the sport industry. The good old boys network has not changed for years. Yes, more women are getting into sports and are advancing into the management realm. However, the industry suffers from many stereotypes about women in sports and when women fight back, as in this case, it sometimes retrenches some of the same discriminatory habits in the industry. I hope the fear of facing similar claims will not deter other sport organizations from hiring and promoting qualified candidates.
Gil-