Mort's credit report, and his retorts

The Big Lead (linked here) gives props to ESPN's Chris Mortensen for his honesty during an online chat on ESPN (linked here) after someone named "Ken from Tarzana" hit him with this question:

"What are your thoughts on ESPN not giving credit to reporters who break stories? Instead giving credit to ESPN reporters who confirm stories. I'll give you mucho credit if you actually answer this question."

Said Mort:
"Wow, I was looking for that credit. Look, our business has changed dramatically with the immediacy of everything. Sometimes, we'll get something out over the airwaves first before we ever get it posted on the website. Plus, we don't have automatic email lists that goes out to different blog sites but there are a lot of good reporters out there doing excellent work. The best thing any reporter can do though is to stick (to) the standards - it is better to get beat on a story than to compromise the standard. We have worked hard at giving credit when credit is due."

Replies Big Lead:
"Five years ago, can you imagine anyone even dreaming up this question? Five years ago, the sports blogs were few, Yahoo and Fox weren't online powerhouses, and it's not like the media care about such trivial matters."

And one reply to the Big Lead story that makes the most sense:
"The issue is that ESPN will say, "Chris Mortensen is reporting...," rather than, "Fox Sports' Jay Glazer reports..." I think there's a huge difference and one makes ESPN look like they're the only ones on top of things when they're not. In other news, the general public doesn't care about this stuff."