Mark Madden: Situations with Brett Favre, Jared Porter show cancel culture is applied unevenly - TribLIVE

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Jared Porter got dismissed from his job as the New York Mets’ general manager because he sent a torrent of inappropriate texts to a female journalist while he was working for the Chicago Cubs in 2016. Among Porter’s texts: An image of his genitals, as reported by ESPN.

Firing Porter was the right choice, and the only choice.

Should Porter ever work in baseball again? That’s a different debate.

But it’s beyond debate that cancel culture is applied unevenly. Who you are can supersede what you do. A famous example of that occurred in 2008.

Brett Favre, then quarterbacking the New York Jets, allegedly sent Jenn Sterger explicit texts and a lewd photo. Favre admitted leaving solicitous voicemails. Sterger worked for the Jets as a TV host.

The story broke in 2010. The NFL investigated, fining Favre $50,000 for failure to cooperate with the investigation but concluding that it could not be proven that Favre violated the league’s personal conduct policy.

Perhaps that was because Favre didn’t cooperate with the investigation. Or maybe it was because the NFL didn’t want to prove it.

The incident didn’t damage Favre’s career or reputation at all. Favre completed his career with Minnesota in 2010. He got inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016.

Few athletes got more endorsements. Favre has been an influencer on behalf of Nike, Snapper, Remington, Sears, Prilosec, Sensodyne, MasterCard, Wrangler and Hyundai.

Favre’s career and bank account didn’t suffer one iota because of what happened in 2008.

Sterger’s did.

Once a top prospect in sports broadcasting, Sterger currently works for All Elite Wrestling as a backstage interviewer. Her show on Versus (now the NBC Sports Network) got canceled shortly after the Favre story broke. Sterger has done interviews talking about getting a “second chance.”

Sterger shouldn’t have to ask for a second chance. She’s the victim. She didn’t do anything wrong. Favre did. But Sterger will be known in perpetuity as “the Brett Favre girl.”

If Sterger had slept with Favre, where is her career at?

We want women to tell stories like this. But if Sterger hadn’t, where is her career at?

What happened to Sterger (especially compared to what didn’t happen to Favre) is one of sports media’s biggest injustices ever. But few think of the incident in those terms.

That’s because no one wants to tarnish Favre’s legend. If Sterger’s career and reputation get damaged in the process, so be it. Ending Porter’s employment causes no one distress.

Favre’s bobos (media and otherwise) will point to the results of the NFL’s investigation. In that inquiry, Favre confessed to leaving the voicemails. (It’s tough to deny that.) So we’re to believe that Favre was responsible for the voicemails, but not the texts and lewd photo. That’s more than a little difficult to buy.

Stir in that Favre never approached Sterger in person — didn’t meet her even once — and the creep level climbs dramatically. Favre wanted Sterger to deliver herself like a pizza.

Sterger’s career nosedived. She’s the “Brett Favre girl.” She still gets abuse on social media. She originally told her story off the record but was betrayed by Deadspin’s A.J. Daulerio, further proving that Deadspin and journalism are estranged relatives at best.

It’s a stink sandwich, and Favre never had to take a bite. But Sterger had to chew on way too much.

The Mets got it right with Porter. Everybody got it wrong with Favre.

Categories: Mark Madden Columns | MLB | Sports