WSJ: The relationship between Under Armor's CEO and MSNBC's anchor causes backlash



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The Journal cited a number of anonymous sources, including what he described as current and former leaders, as well as "other people familiar with the case".

The newspaper reported that Plank had followed Ruhle's advice, rather than those of Under Armor, on how to handle customers' reactions to a basketball star's version of basketball star Stephen Curry in 2016. She Plank also advised on how to treat President Donald Trump in 2017, according to the newspaper. l & # 39; section. Plank and other prominent business leaders left Trump's board of manufacturers the following year, after it failed to convict the white nationalists in Charlottesville, in Virginia.

"Past and present leaders said Plank's use of the plane and his relationship with Ms. Ruhle were among the many ways the CEO has blurred the lines between his personal activities and Under Armor" , the newspaper reported.

Under Armor & # 39; s (UAA) The board of directors has reviewed e-mails between the last two years and asked Plank about the relationship and "whether the company's assets were being used," according to the newspaper. Plank told them that none of the company 's funds had been spent. The Journal could not determine if the board had taken any further action.

In a statement to CNN Business, a spokesman for Under Armor said that "Mr. Plank is fully focused on Under Armor and its success."

Kelley McCormick, Under Armor's vice president of communications, told the paper that Plank and Ruhle "are friends".

"The idea that Mr. Plank only listens to an individual is absurd," she told the newspaper, adding that Plank had many friends who were giving him advice, but that the management team was taking his own decisions.

A spokesman for MSNBC declined to comment on behalf of the company. Ruhle also declined to comment.

Plank's activities and the culture of the Under Armor workplace have been questioned in the past.

In November, the Journal reported that executives and employees, including Plank, had frequented strip clubs with athletes and colleagues over the years.

Under Armor: The new report on the culture of society was hard to read & # 39;

In a letter to employees at the time, Plank and his president, Patrik Frisk, explained to employees that the newspaper's story was "hard to read".

"This is not the culture we envision for Under Armor," they wrote. "Inappropriate behaviors that challenge our values ​​or violate our policies are the activities of unaccepPlank and the culture of the workplace of Under Armor has been questioned in the past.

In November, the Journal reported that executives and employees, including Plank, had frequented strip clubs with athletes and colleagues over the years.

table – and will not be tolerated. "

Plank founded Under Armor in 1996. It holds majority control of the company through a two-class stock model and is able to control the election of board members. 39; administration.

Charles Elson, director of the Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware, said that these types of governance structures lead to insufficient oversight as board members can be easily replaced.

"The board has very little power in this kind of business to do anything," Elson said. "It's a killer of responsibility."

Correction: An earlier version of the story had incorrectly characterized previous reports on Plank and the company culture.

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