Soccer fans in America lost a funny, insightful voice Friday as radio show World Soccer Daily permanently signed off after pressure, including death threats to friends and family, from a group of Liverpool FC fans. The threats began after co-creator Steven Cohen made a series of controversial and erroneous remarks concerning a 1989 stadium disaster in which 96 Liverpool fans were killed. Cohen issued an on-air apology and backed off his tendency to criticize Liverpool and its fans. That, apparently, was not enough.
While he remained vague on the details, Cohen alluded to the fact that his step-daughters had been contacted and/or directly threatened by people who wanted the show canceled. Likewise, threats were received by Steven's co-host Kenny Hassan, as well as several show sponsors. Much of the hate mail and mongering directed at Steven was also anti-Semitic. The announcement was made at the start of Friday's show and most of the call-in discussion centered on fans' expressions of gratitude, shock, and sorrow.
I know how they feel.
The daily show, which I listened to on podcast most times, had become an entrenched part of my life over the past four years or so. Hearing Steven and Kenny pack it in today was a gut check. After the 2006 World Cup, I realized how much I missed watching soccer, but I knew I was out of the loop. Fishing around for some help, I found WSD. The show brought me up to speed and kept me entertained. Over the past few years, it had gotten even better with the introductions of respected commentators and guests from all over the world. While they remained heavy on the English league, there was a real effort to make the show as all-inclusive as possible. I mean, they had a Turkish league correspondent, for Pete's sake!
What turned me on most about the show, though, was the pure love for the game. Everyone involved was nuts for soccer and they wanted to share that with other people. It didn't matter if you had been a fan for 50 years or five minutes, they would take your call. I can't even remember how many times they asked people for stories about how they became fans. At its core the show was about building up the beautiful game in America, and Steven, Kenny, and the rest did a lot to foster a passionate community, and they did it the right way. Even though they were satellite-based, they kept it family friendly (most of the time); some of their regular callers were from the U-14 set. They also didn't use their broadcast platform to return the hate being directed at them. They could have very easily gone on-air with specifics, called for violent reprisals, made things worse. They didn't. They tried to deflect as much as they could until it simply became too much.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Horace Steenblatter
Cohen never issued a real apology. He'd made plenty of similar comments on Fox Football Fone-In which led to his firing from that show, and each time he'd issue a half-assed apology and make similar comments in the future. I've seen absolutely no proof that any threats toward his children were involved and given his history of attacking Liverpool supporters it would not surprise me in the least if he fabricated those supposed "threats."
2 - Chad
WSD was a shell of its former self and deserved to go. Cohen likes to hide behind the 1st Amendment, yet seems to have a problem with those that disagree with him, exercising that same right to organize boycott. I also find it hilarious that Cohen has the ego to think that this will damage LFC's support in America. Newsflash Cohen, you had a few thousand listeners. You aren't Stern or Carolla. Piss off.
3 - Phil Kirwin
Anti-semitic hate mail? Death threats? Show us the proof! Otherwise you are no better than Cohen.
4 - Peter Small
I've never heard so much rubbish in my life. Cohen is a coward and deserves to be in the gutter.
5 - Rob Hodges
Good riddance. Cohen was a joke who tried to make his name riding off the misfortune of others.
6 - Steve
Cohen was a joke and should be ashamed at expressing his uninformed opinion on matters he knows nothing about. We should all be proud that his voice and the only daily soccer radio show in America has been put to rest. I hope the next person who decides to express their opinion on public radio thinks twice before saying anything inflammatory otherwise they will be shut down as well. Although it's likely there will not be another daily soccer radio show.
7 - Shane Ireland
What an excuse of a human being this guy is, He does not deserve to have a job in broadcasting, poisoning the airwaves like he has. Discrase of a man and Im very happy today that the 96 and their families have a reason to smile today.
8 - Richard Cardiff
Ignorance of the highest order mate ,
Please do some research before you write such drivel on the Internet. The fact remains that Cohen has gone and there is a good reason for that. If he'd kept his mouth shut in the first place none of this would of happened. You have no right to criticise anybody when you insist on calling the game soccer, Its Football.
9 - Richard Cardiff
Cohen Cohen .............GONE!
10 - Leyton
So you think that a guy who told lies to the world about a true tragedy is a funny man? The man is filled with nothing but hateful and hurtful lies towards to people who were there that day and to the people who lost their life's. The guy never issued a real apology and even took his hated remarks so far that his own club Chelsea fc commented on him and distanced themselves from the so called Chelsea fan. The sponsors were right to pull the plug on him and we can only hope he never works in broadcasting again so he can still perpetuate his lies about hillsbrough. Anyone who has any questions or wishes to research Hillsbrough just look at the taylor report which at no point blames Fans for the disaster. The truth will come out when the closed documents by the yorkshire police are opened in the coming months. Justice for the 96 YNWA
EST1892.CO.UK
11 - LFC Canada
This man is the epitome of ignorance & evil.
How you can defend this scum in any way, shape or form is laughable & pathetic.
You clearly have no semblance of an understanding of the beautiful game & its myriad of nuances.
You wouldn't know a fact if it kneed you in the plums. I suggest, to save face, you withdraw this utter pile of drivel from the web.
Cohen is a liar, a mercenary & a Spurs fan at heart so what's all this sycophantic Chelski cak!?
96 dead & never forgotten... one no mark, very much alive, & not forgotten.
Unite to bury this wazzock. Walk On!
[Personal attack deleted by Comments Editor]
12 - Arwel Jones
There is free speech and there is blatant lies about a horrendous tragedy.
Read around the issue before you defend him.
13 - ModByrd
The fact is Steve Cohen brought this upon himself. As Tim Vickery succinctly stated on the BBC World Football Phone-in, (paraphrasing) As a journalist you must have facts that support your opinion before giving it. It is your responsibilty to share these facts and debate them, otherwise you should keep the opinion to yourself. If Steven was trained in journalism, he would have known this, but he is not. Steven even had a chance to learn from his mistakes, because he has stirred this pot before and had to publicy apologise. While I do not condone death threats etc., American listeners can place the ending of the one US based daily football show squarely on the shoulders of one Steven Cohen.
14 - thomas mills
Wow. i have to say i agree with your thoughts. i am not sure the people commenting even read it! sounds to me like you did not agree with cohen's comments on the tragedy but will miss the show and its guests. i have to agree.
he should not have said what he did and his apologies should have been more sincere. however, threatening someone's family crosses the line. after reading the responses to your article i have no doubt that he and his family received death threats. can you imagine the response you would have received if you had defended cohen's postition? pathetic.
15 - John Manchester
Two events
seperated by 4 years
different country and city
135 dead.
Only common thread: Liverpool Football Club and their supporters. You make it sound like the police pushed those fans in there.
16 - Doumbwey
It's kinda of funny to see most of the reactions so far you received condemn you for telling how you will miss a show you enjoyed. They completely overlook the fact that you thought Cohen was wrong in regards to the tragedy and started insulting you for stating your feelings. This my friend is whatthose liverpool fans call peaceful, non-threatening boycott!
17 - Chris
Cohen Lied. Its that simple. He would not know a fact if it walked up to him and hit him in the face. Cohen has refused to show any proof that he has gone to the Authorities with these "threats". Yet the one person who believed he was threatened by Cohen has an FBI file number, the whole shebang.
I respect your opinion on the show - I suppose I would feel the same if match of the day was removed from the schedule over here but you MUST understand something.
Cohen was taking you all for mugs. His "opinion" was at best doggerel and at its worst actionable. Judging by the content of the shows I have listened to (and I have), he believed that you were all so ill informed there was nothing wrong with spouting his own ill informed rubbish and presenting it to you as fact.
Take a look out there - he has "supported" (and you can find it on the internet if you care to) Spurs, Arsenal and Chelsea to my certain knowledge. Your team is sacrosanct - something handed to you by the older generation of your family (generally, and certainly in my case). To go from Spurs to Arsenal simply beggars belief. A TRUE fan of either club could not, WOULD not, do that!
To then go to Chelsea because they happened to be winning stuff is even more incredible. Its like Obama saying "You know what - that Sarah Palin has a point - I'm a Republican!" He did not care for your opinion nor about educating your palate, he cared about Dollars and making himself a personality on the back of a fawning listenership whom he believed knew no better.
I hope you have a superb show come along and fill the gap that WSD has left. I just hope that you have a better informed, more respectful presenter than the vapid ball of Idiocy that was Steve Cohen.
Good luck in the future America. I truly hope this has not spoiled your opinion of this truly beautiful game.
Yrs, A sincere LFC Fan.
18 - Kayleigh
I've been a fan of World Soccer Daily since the its inception 7 years ago. It was entertaining, enlightening, and although I might not have agreed with all the host's comments, I learned a lot completely useless yet interesting information about the world of football.
I think it's a shame that a few narrow-minded people and their complete overreactions brought down such a great show. Steven may have been controversial, but that was part of the fun in listening.
19 - Chris Bancells
Thomas & Doumbwey...thanks.
Was Steven wrong to say what he said? Yes, I think so. Could the apologies have been more sincere? You bet. That, however, does not negate the positives. If all our good deeds were washed out because of a few mistakes, we'd all be in a world of hurt.
20 - Harry
He knowingly spread a pack of lies over the airwaves, infecting the minds of listeners with poison that was hurtful not just to the families of the dead, not just to Liverpool FC and its fans, but also to football as a whole.
What apart from a negative perception of our game do you think listeners got when he deliberately butchered the facts to make 96 tragic deaths seem like just desserts for mindless thugs rather than an unnecessary loss of life as a result of police incompetence?
In his zeal to denegrate Liverpool he denegrated the game as a whole. That he did it to listeners who didn't know how twisted his version of the events was, bordered on criminal. No wonder many Americans view football as a game for thugs.
He showed no remorse for his actions, and, as others have pointed out, his apology was a sham. Then he did it again...
Ours is a beautiful game. It has room for rivalries, and none of us expects human beings to be totally unbiased, but this guy took his personal hatred of Liverpool FC to another level and abused his position as a journalist when he opened his mouth.
He knew what he was doing. He just didn't care.
21 - Henry
Harry's comments are right on and the perfect post to this issue.
A quick scan of the comments posted here show only about 5% in support of Steven Cohen.
Why were some of these comments not allowed on the last show of WSD ? I'm sure many tried to call but were not allowed on. It was almost sickening; the entire last show had only people calling in with their unabashed love for Steven and Kenny; not a negagive comment in the lot !
Almost seems like the "last" show was scripted as well as censored and well planned; not a spur of the moment decision as Steven alluded to made just the night before.
So the freedom of speech in the last WSD was just the unbridled admiration and glorifying of the two hosts; nothing about the incindiary and hateful comments that Steven spouted time and time again; and where no real repentance was ever shown.
I too listened to many of the WSD pods; the lineup of commentators was top quality. But as Harry posted; the beautiful game of Soccer was not well served at all by the constant hatred shown not only to Liverpool FC but also to the city of Liverpool and all of the citizens of Liverpool by the host.
The responsibility he had as a public voice was repeatedly misused; and in the end he was the author of his own demise.
22 - Harry
By the way, the comment made by John Manchester (15th above) is just as ignorant.
Perhaps you should educate yourself about what happened if you don't already know.
But something tells me that you do know, and, just like Mr Cohen, your words have more to do with tribal allegiances than actual appreciation of the facts.
People wave their loved ones goodbye in the morning expecting to see them again in the evening. I hope you never personally experience having someone snatched away from you but, if you are ever unfortunate to lose someone when you least expect it, maybe it will open your eyes.
23 - Harry
The same goes for the person behind post 22.
That some idiots sing about Munich as if its something to celebrate is undeniable. But to suggest that it's almost sanctioned by the club, or that the majority of fans find it acceptable, is a disgusting slur.
I wouldn't suggest that most Manchester United fans enjoyed seeing 96 Liverpool fans die, but there are a minority that do celebrate it. Do I or any sane person assume that they speak for all? Of course not.
Again, blind hatred has no place in our sport. Perhaps, "Liverpool Firing Squad", when you have learnt to deal with your own issues then you will be better qualified to comment on those of others.
As a very wise man said, "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind".
24 - Adrian
The idea Liverpool fans over-reacted is ridiculous. Should we have limited the boycott to just half the advertisers? It was proportional because Cohen's hate and prejudice was sustained. He underestimated the upset and subsequent resolve of Liverpool fans and has paid the price. Here's genuinely hoping a quality North America soccer show fills the vacuum - there's certainly the market. Just hope the presenter's not a lying bigot.
25 - zingzing
"The idea Liverpool fans over-reacted is ridiculous."
i'm pretty sure that the comments on this page disprove that little theory. what a bunch of ninnies. go everton.