Thread by @DanielConnolly

THREAD: I was one of the reporters working on the massive stories this week related to sexual abuse in the world of cheerleading, and I’d like to share a bit of the background of how they came about. 1/24

I’m an investigative reporter with the main newspaper in Memphis, @memphisnews and I contribute to USA TODAY. In early August, my editor in Memphis asked if I would help @USATODAY with a national project on cheerleading. 2/24

I said yes. I knew a bit about cheerleading because in 2008, I had interviewed Jeff Webb, founder of the Memphis-based company Varsity Spirit, which created modern competitive cheerleading. 3/24

In that 2008 interview I learned that today’s cheerleading goes far beyond simple waving of pom-poms – modern competitive cheerleaders are skilled athletes, performing complex stunts and difficult gymnastics. Huge competitions at Disney World draw thousands of participants. 4/24

Competitive cheerleading is also a lucrative business – at the time, Webb told me Varsity Spirit had about $300 million in annual sales from its cheer camps, clothing sales and competitions. 5/24

Anyway, when I joined the USA TODAY project in August, I spoke on a video call with a team that included investigative reporters Marisa Kwiatkowski and Tricia L. Naldony. 6/24

Both of these reporters have extensive experience in investigating difficult topics, including sexual abuse. Remember Dr. Larry Nassar, the physician with USA Gymnastics who sexually assaulted hundreds of women and girls? 7/24

Marisa played a pivotal role in exposing him. There’s a documentary movie about this: 8/24

On the video call a few weeks ago, Marisa and Tricia said they’d been working on the cheerleading project for some time already. They told me their findings so far, and I was stunned. 9/24

They had already discovered about 180 people associated with cheerleading who had been criminally charged with sexual abuse of minors – in many cases even convicted - but had not been banned from cheerleading. 10/24

My initial reaction was something along the lines of, "This is astounding. It sounds like you have this under control. What do you need me for?" 11/24

Because I live in Memphis, the USA TODAY team asked me to help them sort out the connections between Varsity Spirit, the for-profit company, and the Memphis-based sanctioning bodies that govern cheerleading. 12/24

Tricia already had found a crucial document from a California lawsuit. Executives with nonprofit sanctioning body USA Cheer stated that they're actually paid by Varsity Spirit. 13/24

And so we worked together on the project for several weeks. One of the most bizarre moments came when Marisa Kwiatkowski tried to interview Mishelle Robinson, a cheer gym owner who had a prior sex offense conviction. 14/24

Marisa walked into the Mishelle Robinson's Ohio cheer gym with photographer @SandyHooper , unannounced. Can you guess what happened next?
No “no comment.” No “go away!” The cheer gym owner granted them an on-camera interview! 15/24

Marisa and Sandy also traveled to Texas to interview twin 14-year-old boys who said celebrity cheerleader Jerry Harris had demanded sexually explicit photos from them. 16/24

This journalistic investigation went through many other twists and turns. On Monday, Marisa and Sandy were at the scene in Illinois as FBI agents searched a home in the Jerry Harris case. 17/24
usatoday.com/in-depth/news/…

On Thursday, we covered the arrest and initial court appearance of Jerry Harris. You can read about that here: 18/24 usatoday.com/story/entertai…

And today, we released two additional articles. The first one focuses on the dozens of sex offenders who aren’t on the cheerleading sanctioning bodies’ banned lists. You can read that one here: 19/24
usatoday.com/in-depth/news/…

The second article today focuses on the links between for-profit Varsity Spirit and the cheerleading sanctioning bodies. You can read it here: 20/24
commercialappeal.com/in-depth/news/…

This project has already made a huge impact on the cheer world. The project was featured this morning on Good Morning America. 21/24
app.criticalmention.com/app/#clip/view…

The investigation into sexual abuse in cheerleading continues. If you are an athlete, parent, coach, gym owner or someone else with a connection to cheer, we want to hear your story. We will not share your name or information without your permission. 22/24 usatoday.com/storytelling/m…

My role focuses on legal and corporate matters. For tips on that, email [e-mail], call 901-529-5296. For anonymous tips, the postal service works: Daniel Connolly / The Commercial Appeal. 119 S. Main, Suite 300, Memphis, TN 38103. DMs are open. 23/24

I’m as impressed with @IndyMarisaK and @TriciaNadolny's work as I was when I first joined the project. They’re making a difference and I’m glad to be part of it. Thanks also to the team of many other people at USA TODAY who helped produce this project. 24/24

#JerryHarris #cheer #cheerleader #cheernetflix #Netflix