All things considered, Ryan Clark’s interview with Bill Belichick on The Pivot came and went without generating much buzz.
The same, however, can’t be said about the aftermath of the conversation, which is continuing to generate headlines more than a week after the episode was first released.
On Tuesday’s episode of The Pivot, co-host Channing Crowder publicly apologized to Belichick for comments he made on his personal radio show in which he indicated that the North Carolina head coach’s girlfriend, Jordon Hudson, was heavily involved behind the scenes of the shoot. Clark also denied Crowder’s initial claim that Hudson had “choreographed” the open of the interview, while providing more insight into the podcast’s production process.
In a story on ProFootballTalk.com, Mike Florio called attention to several aspects of Crowder and Clark’s comments, including their apparent desire to portray Belichick and Hudson a certain way and the existence of an interview featuring Clark, Belichick and Hudson that the podcast opted not to release. Florio also questioned why The Pivot seems to be prioritizing serving its guests over its audience, as well as why the interview featuring the 24-year-old Hudson — which would have marked her first on-record comments since entering the public spotlight — wasn’t published.
“It wasn’t ‘choreography’ in the literal sense,” Florio wrote. “It was (apparently) extensive control over the process of conducting, editing, and presenting the interview in the practical sense.
“And it worked, until Crowder blew it up by being honest.”
On Wednesday, Clark took to X to respond to Florio’s commentary. In doing so, the former NFL safety provided even more insight into The Pivot‘s production process while simultaneously defending his show’s deference to its guests.
“Well Mike. It wasn’t a pre show meeting. Both Channing & Fred were on the same flight delayed from Miami. I was already in NY. So I was there first,” Clark wrote, clarifying the context of his pre-show conversation with Belichick and Hudson.
“As for serving the viewers we will not do that at the expense of people who volunteer to give us their time. We have had various reasons for edits, & exemptions. From contractual agreements, second thoughts, or just not liking how it felt.
“Moving slimy in the name of clicks is not worth the integrity of our show. Jordon was not contacted nor involved in any conversation about the timing in which what we documented could be released. That conversation took place between Bill & I.”
While the idea of prioritizing integrity over clicks is certainly noble, it’s also fair to question how transparent The Pivot is being with its audience here. If interviews are being executed under a contract, that changes the context of the conversation, as does Clark’s admission that Belichick had at least some level of control over how the interview would be released.
How much say was Belichick given in his interview and how much control are guests on The Pivot typically granted? These are valid questions. And the answers could go a long way toward shaping how the show is perceived in the wake of Belichick’s high profile appearance and Clark’s own recent controversies.