NOTE TO OUR MEMBERS
In the spirit of BSJ’s desire to be fully accountable to our valuable members, I wanted to update you on something.
It has come to my attention that one of our freelancers (not a staff member or employee), Mike Loyko, has been accused by an anonymous Twitter user of making abhorrent racist and homophobic statements several years ago. Mike has strenuously denied these allegations to me. BSJ takes this very seriously and obviously finds the alleged comments disgusting and vile with no place in society.
Unfortunately, due to travel and logistics, I can’t give this issue the attention it deserves until the World Series concludes. Until I determine exactly what has gone on, his 20 previous stories have been removed from the site, and he will not be involved with BSJ in any way.
That being said, I have known Mike for many years through his work and obviously find this to be entirely out of character. And as someone who is slandered on social media on an almost daily basis, going off the word of an anonymous Twitter user is extremely dangerous and should not be deemed immediately credible when it comes to someone’s name and reputation. Things are not always what they seem, especially on Twitter, and there should not be a rush to judgment. I would want the same rational due diligence done if my name was at stake, and I’m sure you would too.
Still, I will aggressively investigate this as soon as time permits — I have already been in contact with some sources to begin to verify information — and will make a final determination wherever the facts take me and report back to you.
Thank you for your understanding and support of BSJ.