Looking at the WWE Bullying Scandal

Unfortunately, the biggest story in professional wrestling right now is the very real situation involving WWE commentators John (JBL) Layfield and Mauro Ranallo. It’s been reported by several news outlets that Ranallo, who suffers from mental illness, was bullied by JBL to the point where he was off TV for several weeks and is not expected to return to the company.

JBL is known for being a bully within the industry with reports going back over a decade. Several former WWE wrestlers have spoken out about JBL’s antics in light of the news. Coincidently, former WWE ring announcer Justin Roberts released his new book, which chronicles his time in WWE including several instances where he was bullied by JBL.

While many have called for the Texan’s resignation, his termination won’t fix the problem. Ribbing, hazing, and bullying has always been a part of wrestling and is ingrained in WWE’s corporate culture.

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The Raw Deal is Back

The Raw Deal is back from a long hiatus to breakdown all of the hot topics in the world of professional wrestling. This week, Frank Dee and Atlee Greene discuss

• JBL/Mauro Ranallo Bullying Scandal
• WWE Superstar Shake Up:
• Who benefited the most?
• Who got the short end of the stick?
• Looking back at the Undertaker’s career and retirement
• Why WWE wants nothing to do with Ken Shamrock
• Wrestling being “Restricted” on YouTube

Raw Deal contains some Language not suitable for all audiences Listener Discretion is advised.

If you have questions for the Raw Deal Podcast send them to Gerweckreport@gmail.com

Follow Atlee Greene on Twitter @AtleeGreene
Follow the Gerweck Report Podcast on Twitter @GerweckReport

WWE’s Be a Star gimmick is a joke.

-WWE’s Be a Star gimmick is a joke.

Last Monday on Raw, we saw movie stars and wrestlers at the kick off party for the WWE’s anti bullying campaign “Be a Star”. Watching this segment, I realized that the purpose of the party was simply to promote their new movie, “That’s What I Am”, as opposed to raising awareness about bullying. In these cases, the company is often a wolf in sheep’s clothing looking to attach their name to a worthy cause in order to improve public perception. It’s well known among hardcore fans that the WWE turns a blind eye towards bullying in their own locker room. Many in the business cover this up saying they are simply “ribbing” someone in order to have a little bit of fun to break the stress of a long hard road schedule. Some even say this ribbing is a method used to determine if someone has what it takes to make it. Sometimes this is true, sometimes it’s not.

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