Popular Radio Host Thinks On Air Revelation May Have Cost Him Job

For the second time in three months, Dan Scott, who has been a staple of sports talk radio in the Upstate, is out of a job.

And while he said he's plenty satisfied with the way his latest employer handled the dismissal, Scott admitted he believes it was an on-air revelation last November that cost him his previous job.

Scott, who was fired in January from 104.9 WCCP, Clemson University's flagship station, transitioned to the . He confirmed this week that had once again, he had been given bad news.

"The Score was sold last week and, as happens in this or any other business, they want to move in a different direction," Scott said. "So while I'm exploring other radio possibilities, at the moment I'm putting most of my efforts into getting the Every Day Foundation up and running."

Scott, who is the voice of the Furman Paladins' athletic teams, founded the Every Day Foundation to help children who have been physically, sexually or mentally abused. The nascent organization was the natural offshoot of a revelation he made last year, at the height of the controversy over alleged sexual and at Penn State University.

On Nov. 17, Scott admitted to his listeners that he too had , at the hands of older boys, while he was a child growing up in rural West Virginia.

For Scott, his latest rocky relationship with sports radio only furthers his belief that becoming an advocate for abused children is in his future.

"It seems every sign is pointing to the foundation as my future, and it's time I started paying attention to them," Scott said.

Still, Scott admits, it is his personal feeling that his passion for advocacy may have cost him his job. In a letter soliciting funds for his new foundation, Scott hints at the timeline of events that led to his firing from WCCP.

In the middle of the media firestorm over sexual abuse of children on college campuses, Scott admitted to his own family for the first time that he had been a victim himself.

"The next day, against the wishes of our station's general manager, I
spoke publicly about it during the last segment of my show," Scott writes. "I decided that if by coming forward I could help others who had been abused begin the road to recovery, it would be worth telling my story."

"The decision likely contributed to me getting fired two months later," he added. "But it was the only decision that could be made, because the reaction from my listeners was overwhelming."

Scott said dozens of people responded, telling him they, too, had been sexually abused.

"And more importantly, at least six people who emailed saying they had never told anyone about their abuse until writing me," Scott said.

Chris Downey, the general manager at WCCP, declined to comment on the situation, but wished Scott well.

"We wish Dan the best in whatever he may decide to do, and we thank him for his many years of doing his show on WCCP," Downey told Patch.

On Jan. 23 - soon after Scott was fired - he released a statement addressing Scott's dismissal.

"It is hard to explain to you the 'why' we made this decision, so I am not going to try," Downey said. "I will tell you that it was a hard decision and one of the hardest decisions to make."

In the statement, Downey stood by the manner in which the station handled Scott's dismissal. Scott said he was never forbidden by management to go forward with the segment.

"He never told me not to do it, but he did tell me he didn't want me to do it, and wasn't in favor of it," Scott said. "(He) said 'we weren't the Oprah Winfrey show.' When I told him I felt its something I had to do, he said 'OK,' but made it clear he wasn't on board with the decision."

Regardless of how he got to this point, Scott now finds himself putting much of his time and focus on how to provide help to children who need it most.

Those interested in contributing to Scott's new foundation, can contact him at writerdan33@aol.com or (864) 903-1324.

A launch party for the organization is planned for June 1.