When screwing up on the Internet, you don’t want to take chances with anything. If you mess up the story about someone’s death, you might find yourself on the wrong side of the coin. Unfortunately for TMZ, they learned this lesson the hard way on Tuesday. The publication incorrectly used a photo of Dean Smith instead of Denny Crum in a story about Crum’s passing.
Crum, a Louisville Cardinals basketball legend, passed away at 86. Crum coached at the program from 1971-2001. He led Louisville to 12 Metro Conference regular-season championships, 11 Metro tournament titles, and three Missouri Valley titles. Crum brought the Cards to the Final Four six times and won two National Championships in 1980 and 1986. In 1994, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006. Suffice it to say; he’s one of the best college basketball coaches ever.
Which makes what TMZ did all the more embarrassing. They posted a story about Crum’s passing but used the wrong photo. Instead of Crum, legendary North Carolina Tar Heels coach Dean Smith was featured. Their tweet was deleted, but a screenshot was grabbed.
Smith passed away back in 2015, which perhaps adds even more flack to the incident.
Look, mistakes happen and all that; it was probably highly embarrassing. But you cannot make that mistake. You will hear about it.
Throw everyone from TMZ in jail. https://t.co/CqiB8XlsFi
— Mike Rutherford (@CardChronicle) May 9, 2023
[Photo Credit: Twitter]
About Chris Novak
Chris Novak has been talking and writing about sports ever since he can remember. Previously, Novak wrote for and managed sites in the SB Nation network for nearly a decade from 2013-2022