Agent at centre of text scandal says Mackay’s not racist
The football agent who was the victim of racial abuse in the Cardiff City text message scandal has told Jewish News he doesn’t believe either Malkay Mackay or Iain Moody are anti-Semitic.
Phil Smith was the victim of one of the offensive texts exchanged between Cardiff’s former manager and head of recruitment, which read: “Go on, fat Phil. Nothing like a Jew that sees money slipping through his fingers”.
However, Smith doesn’t believe either man is racist. He said: “I don’t think they are and I’m not going to cast any judgement on them whatsoever, that’s a bit unfair. They’ve made life very uncomfortable for themselves, without me adding to it.
“What’s irresponsible is for something like that to find its way out and the only thing they could have done to prevent it coming out was not to say it in the first place. Whether they meant to say it or not, it came out, you just hope they didn’t mean it, and I don’t think they did, but only they can answer that.”
While the two are now the subject of a Football Association, Smith says he won’t be looking to take the matter any further. “I’m not demanding action be taken against them, it really has nothing to do with me,” he says. “I just believe we have to be very responsible in today’s society with all the different discrimination around, the last thing we need is to have figureheads spouting their opinions.”
Adding neither had been in touch with him to apologise – and that he doesn’t expect them to, he said: “I don’t even know which one it was. I presume it’s Iain Moody as Malky doesn’t know me well enough to say something like that. If he did I really wouldn’t have appreciated it, joking or not.
“It wasn’t so much what was said or that I haven’t had an apology, I don’t care about that, I’m too thick-skinned for that. I think what really annoyed me was how they tried to pass it of as banter.”
Admitting he did feel ‘disappointed, angry and hacked off’ by the messages at first, he said: “I thought initially I’d ride it out, but then the PC brigade got hold of it – and rightly so.
“Most times when someone calls you a Jew it’s out of ignorance and with all that’s going on around the world with the anti-Semitic slants, I just felt it was irresponsible that something which might have been said out of jest had got out. It started to make me angry.
“Football’s so big and has to be seen as setting an example. This type of stuff can have an effect on the man on the street and the last thing we need is to have this type of talk perpetrated by people who should know better.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
