James Dolan got a reporter kicked out of his own band's concert
James Dolan, owner of the New York Knicks and CEO of the Madison Square Garden Company, is a walking punchline who enjoys running the Knicks into the ground and kicking people out of venues that he owns. But it seems we’ve started a new chapter in the “James Dolan is an Insecure and Power-Hungry Weirdo” saga.
The latest ejection incident doesn’t actually involve a sports team Dolan owns. It doesn’t even involve Madison Square Garden. Dolan got a reporter kicked out of a Long Island venue where he and his band were playing.
Polly Mosendz, a reporter for Businessweek, went to see Dolan’s band (JD & the Straight Shot) play on a directive from her editor. Mosendz was writing about Dolan’s time as owner of the Knicks, a story Dolan had declined to participate in. As Mosendz tells it in her Businesweek article, her editor wanted her to add something about “the lesser-known” side of Dolan, which involves him playing guitar in a band.
So Mosendz bought a ticket for $38 to see JD & the Straight Shot at the Paramount in Long Island, a venue Dolan does not own. The concert was open to the public, and even though Mosendz had only expected to see him playing music on stage, she saw him milling around before the show and introduced herself.
Would it surprise you to find out that Dolan wasn’t happy that a reporter had bought a ticket to his band’s show? Considering that this is the man who kicked Charles Oakley out of Madison Square Garden, it shouldn’t. From Businessweek:
[Dolan] said he hadn’t authorized an interview and that I wasn’t allowed to be there—despite this being a public show in a public venue—and repeatedly insisted that his music was not about him and therefore should not be mentioned in the article (an article about a CEO whose company happens to run one of the world’s most significant music venues). At one point, he flipped my notebook closed. Finally he stormed off and summoned security guards to make me leave.
One of the security guards offered Mosendz cash to cover the price of her ticket, which she declined. The security guard also told her that ejecting reporters isn’t the venue’s policy, but Dolan could make that request because he was a “headliner.” When Mosendz reached out to Madison Square Garden for comment, this is what she got:
“The reporter was there to write a story about the Knicks. The Knicks were not playing that evening.”
You could say that Dolan’s favorite hobby is running the Knicks into the ground in the most embarrassing fashion, or even playing with his band. But you’d be wrong. His favorite hobby is obviously getting people kicked out of places at his directive.
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