Now It's ESPN's Turn to Sack the Cowboys For Having Merch Made in Cambodian Sweatshops

In October we noted a report from Pittsburgh-based Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights that said the Dallas Cowboys are having team-branded clothing made in "gross sweatshop conditions at the Style Avenue factory in El Salvador" -- which Cowboys Merchandise Ltd. chief operating officer Bill Priakos denied in a...

By Robert Wilonsky

January 6, 2012

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In October we noted a report from Pittsburgh-based Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights that said the Dallas Cowboys are having team-branded clothing made in "gross sweatshop conditions at the Style Avenue factory in El Salvador" -- which Cowboys Merchandise Ltd. chief operating officer Bill Priakos denied in a statement provided to Unfair Park. On Sunday, ESPN's Outside the Lines picks up the story -- this time at two Cambodian factories, where workers are paid 29 cents an hour to make goods for Jerry Jones and the 'Boys.

What you see above is a sneak-peek at that piece, done by Mark Fainaru-Wada, one of the two San Francisco Chronicle reporters threatened with jail time for not revealing sources after breaking the Barry Bonds-BALCO story. He too gets a quote from Priakos, seen at the end of the piece but not mentioned by name. Says the merch-maker, according to ESPN: "Clearly, these are important issues. But I can go into any restaurant and find a roach. I can go into any hotel and find a fire hazard. We just need to keep our head down and try to improve."

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