What To Know About The Extremely Stupid Controversy Over ESPN Announcer Robert Lee
On Tuesday, ESPN reassigned a sports announcer by the name of Robert Lee from calling a football game at University of Virginia on September 2. (Lee was reassigned to cover a game in Pittsburgh on the ACC Network Extra channel.)
The decision stemmed from the fact that Lee's name resembles that of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, a statue of whom was the rally point of white supremacist protestors who incited violence in Charlottesville — the home of the University of Virginia — earlier this month.
For everything you need to know about the extremely dumb fallout from ESPN's decision, read on.
The Assignment Change Was First Reported By A Conservative Blogger
Blogger Clay Travis incredulously reported on ESPN's decision to pull Lee from the University of Virginia game on Tuesday, attributing it to ESPN's fear that having Lee call the game would "offend idiots."
In a story that seems made for The Onion, but is actually true, according to multiple Outkick fans inside ESPN MSESPN decided to pull an Asian college football announcer named Robert Lee off the William and Mary at University of Virginia college football game because they were concerned that having an ASIAN FOOTBALL ANNOUNCER NAMED ROBERT LEE would be offensive to some viewers.
The Story Was Covered on Breitbart And Fox News As An Example Of Political Correctness Gone Amok
After Travis' post about ESPN's decision was published, conservative outlets like Breitbart and The Washington Times picked up the story. By Wednesday night, Fox News' Tucker Carlson devoted a whole segment to ESPN's decision.
ESPN Quickly Moved To Control The Fallout, To Little Avail
On Tuesday night, an ESPN spokesperson released a statement emphasizing that the decision had been made with Lee and that "In the moment it felt right to all parties."
An email sent to a reporter by an unnamed ESPN executive expanded on ESPN's thinking, claiming that they were "Just trying to be supportive of a young guy who felt it best to avoid the potential zoo."
On Wednesday, ESPN president John Skipper sent a memo to his staff further explaining ESPN's rationale in removing Lee from the University of Virginia game. The memo was promptly leaked to Deadspin and other outlets. It claims that the decision was not made out of fear that Lee's name would offend delicate viewers, but rather out of concern that Lee might be subjected to online trolling.
There was never any concern — by anyone, at any level — that Robert Lee's name would offend anyone watching the Charlottesville game.
Among our Charlotte production staff there was a question as to whether — in these divisive times — Robert's assignment might create a distraction, or even worse, expose him to social hectoring and trolling. Since Robert was their primary concern, they consulted with him directly. He expressed some personal trepidation about the assignment and, when offered the chance to do the Youngstown State/Pitt game instead, opted for that game — in part because he lives in Albany and would be able to get home to his family on Saturday evening.
I'm disappointed that the good intentions of our Charlotte colleagues have been intentionally hijacked by someone with a personal agenda, and sincerely appreciate Robert's personal input and professionalism throughout this episode.
[via Deadspin]
All along, ESPN has claimed that the decision was partially or even mostly Lee's, but Lee himself has not been heard from.
According to an ESPN executive, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation, ESPN asked Lee if he would be more comfortable calling another game but gave him the option to stay. Lee chose to switch assignments, and ESPN accommodated him.
Most People Across The Political Spectrum Seems To Agree ESPN's Decision Was Dumb
Although there are some people who think ESPN did the right thing, most commentators seem to think the network would have been better off letting Lee call the game and dealing with a little online ribbing than preemptively pulling him and triggering this big, dumb controversy.
Even if you believe ESPN on face here about protecting a broadcaster, it's still a self-inflicted wound and a decision made out of fear of negative press. The company would have been far better served with Lee doing the game and dealing with the one-day fallout (if you can call it that) of jokes and snickers. This is obviously easy for me to say in hindsight, given I'm not the one dealing with it.
Lee has not responded to an interview request from Sports Illustrated and until he speaks, we can't get any kind of clarity on how much he initiated this versus ESPN.
Deadspin's Barry Petchesky attributed the decision to corporate cowardice and a total misunderstanding of why people are protesting against Confederate monuments.
I think ESPN deserves all the scorn it's going to receive. This decision, at whatever level it was made, betrays total contempt for and condescension toward the movement against Confederate monuments. This decision is that of someone who can't possibly begin to grasp what the movement is actually about, or why so many people are offended and willing to march in the streets. It's the decision of someone who doesn't have a strong opinion about Confederate monuments, but wants to put on a show of understanding that some do.
[Deadspin]
The Asian American Journalists Association pointed out the irony that in trying to avoid reminding viewers of a man who fought for white supremacy, ESPN ended up hurting an Asian-American man.
In an email to The Post on Wednesday, the Asian American Journalists Association said "it is unfortunate that someone's name, particularly a last name that is common among Asian Americans, can be a potential liability."
"We do not, however, believe this decision was motivated by race," the organization added.
As The New York Times put it, "conservatives found new ballast while liberals bemoaned what they characterized as a silly pre-emptive capitulation to unlikely or marginal offense." In other words, in trying to forestall any potential controversy, ESPN managed to upset both sides. Great job, ESPN.