🏈 "MSESPN Pulls Asian Announcer Named Robert Lee Off UVa Game To Avoid Offending Idiots.

[PurlJam]

ESPN has journalistic standards?

Mike Wise is a repeat offender, why is he still employed in the industry? He should be fired immediately for this in my opinion.

In the wake of the events in Charlottesville, Va., ESPN decided to pull one of its announcers from calling a University of Virginia football game -- because his name is Robert Lee.

Lee, an Asian-American sportscaster who started with the network in 2016, was moved to a different game "simply because of the coincidence of his name," ESPN said, referencing the Confederate general Robert E. Lee.

Probably not, but it's the effort that counts, right? Got to be honest.... this gave me a "you got to be shitting me" moment. :bandhead:

 

[TUSKtimes]

So it's inconceivable on the part of the media to believe that the average person can comprehend that an Asian American isn't the second coming of THE southern general of the Confederacy? Just reminds me of the constant tradeoffs people and businesses have to continue to make to look politically correct. Apparently, the biggest tradeoff is taking leave of good sense.

 

[rick4bama]

Alabama Crimson Tide football Nick Saban Jedrick Wills Matt Womack Ross Pierschbacher Jonah Williams

He look a lot like the real Robert Lee doesn't he? You will need to click on the link to read because it has a lot of Twitter.

 

[bama alum]

PC bull$hit is unreal...ESPN (and the NFL...) are really going to make me miss Verne Lundequist. At least his stupidity was genuine.

 

[BAMANEWSBOT]

By trying to avoid an embarrassing ordeal, ESPN has embarrassed itself.
On Tuesday night, the network confirmed that its management moved an Asian-American announcer, Robert Lee, off the University of Virginia's home opener football game "simply because of the coincidence of his name."


Earlier Tuesday, a source had told CNN that Lee was abruptly switched to the Youngstown versus Pitt game. He had recently been promoted by ESPN, so the switch was a sensitive matter.

News of the decision follows the violence that broke out earlier this month at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, protesting plans to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. The night before the deadly violence, white nationalists marched across the UVA campus, carrying torches and chanting racist slogans.

Now, UVA is preparing for the start of a new school year. The opening home game -- against William and Mary -- is on September 2, the same day as Youngstown versus Pitt.

Both games are slated to be live-streamed on ESPN's digital networks, not on television. But if ESPN thought this was a minor change, it was quickly proven wrong when word leaked out on Tuesday.

The website Outkick the Coverage broke the story -- with a headline invoking a popular conservative nickname for ESPN, "MSESPN," which derides the network as the sports equivalent of the liberal talk shows on MSNBC.

The headline said, "MSESPN Pulls Asian Announcer Named Robert Lee Off UVa Game To Avoid Offending Idiots." The story was so popular that the site's servers were overloaded on Tuesday evening.

ESPN subsequently said in a statement that its executives "collectively made the decision with Robert to switch games as the tragic events in Charlottesville were unfolding."

"In that moment it felt right to all parties," the network said. "It's a shame that this is even a topic of conversation and we regret that who calls play-by-play for a football game has become an issue."

From ESPN's perspective, the executives were trying to guard against Lee becoming a punchline, given that he shares a name with a Confederate general.

They foresaw memes and headlines "Robert Lee marches into Charlottesville." Moving Lee to a different game was seen as a way to support him.

But many commenters on social media said ESPN overreacted. The story lit up Twitter and Facebook on Tuesday. Two of the prime time shows on Fox News mocked ESPN for the decision. A banner on screen called it "pathetic."

"ESPN did this out of fear of the yowling mob. And is part of it now," John Podhoretz, the editor of Commentary, wrote on Twitter.

Well-known ESPN anchor Bob Ley also weighed in and made light of his last name: "Rather worried my employee ID/pass may not admit me in the AM. Life, as scripted by @OnionSports."

The criticism didn't let up on Wednesday morning. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee shared a series of tweets mocking ESPN's trigger-happy decision-making.

"ESPN will not broadcast games of any kind from Jackson, MS for fear it might honor Stonewall or Andrew Jackson and trigger someone," he wrote.

And: "ESPN will no longer air football games on TV as referees are dressed in black and white and that could be viewed as binary racism."

ESPN has been strongly criticized -- primarily in conservative circles -- for injecting political issues into sports coverage and for allegedly taking sides in various controversies.

The network recently commissioned a study that found political polarization has not had a big effect on viewership.

Robert Lee: ESPN under fire for taking announcer off UVA game

 

[BAMANEWSBOT]

UPDATE: ESPN ISSUES OFFICIAL STATEMENT ON MOVING ROBERT LEE FROM VIRGINIA GAME:

“We collectively made the decision with Robert to switch games as the tragic events in Charlottesville were unfolding, simply because of the coincidence of his name. In that moment it felt right to all parties. It’s a shame that this is even a topic of conversation and we regret that who calls play by play for a football game has become an issue.”

Additionally, I had a conversation with a senior employee at ESPN who wanted to make it clear that this was not a mandate or a demand from the company, that it was a people first decision and that assignments are switched all the time.

…

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.

Did I mention that Robert Lee is Asian?

Is this even real life anymore? This might even be worse than MSESPN apologizing for the fantasy football slave draft a couple of weeks ago.

To avoid offending left wing idiots Robert Lee, the Asian college football announcer, not the Confederate General who died in 1870 and shares a name with him, was switched to the Youngstown State at Pittsburgh game and Dave Weekley will now call the William and Mary at University of Virginia game.

Unless someone tries to take down Dave Weekley statues between now and kickoff.

In which case ESPN will be royally fucked.

But, seriously, is there anything more pathetic than ESPN believing people would be offended by an Asian guy named Robert Lee sharing a name with Robert E. Lee and calling a football game? Aside from some hysterical photoshops and Internet memes which would make everyone with a functional brain laugh — Robert E. Lee pulling out all the stops to stay in Charlottesville now! — what was the big fear here? Does ESPN really believe people are this dumb or that having an Asian announcer named Robert Lee is too offensive for the average TV viewer to handle?

Yes, yes they do.

I’m sorry you work for such an idiotic company, Robert Lee.

But just to make it clear for everyone out there, the Asian man on the right is not long deceased Confederate General Robert E. Lee. He’s a different person entirely, one that is still alive and did not fight in the Civil War.

View image on Twitter

https://twitter.com/RobertLeePXP



And this is Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

They are not the same person.

Every time I think MSESPN can’t possibly get dumber, they get dumber.

God save us all.

MSESPN Pulls Asian Announcer Named Robert Lee Off UVa Game To Avoid Offending Idiots

 

[alabama mike]

ESPN is taking the removal of an announcer off the Virginia game too far. Who cares if the announcer is Robert Lee. He had nothing to do with the Civil War, hate groups or the tragic events in Charlottesville. Let the guy call the game for goodness sake's! Common sense, its not that common.

 

[OldPlayer]

Two words: MO RONS

 

[rick4bama]

I think some one is really enjoying what is in that pot! I could understand if he was name after him or was his great -grandson or something like that? But you can see he not!

 

[sean]

Spoiler

 

[BAMAneck]

What are our nations' leaders thinking ? Surely they see everything I see . This world can't turn to shit fast enough for them . . I worry so much for my teenaged kids and what this country , this world will become ... How can God keep allowing all this hate , ignorance , and thinking man knows better than he keep going , before a reset .

 

[TUSKtimes]

What are our nations' leaders thinking ? Surely they see everything I see . This world can't turn to **** fast enough for them . . I worry so much for my teenaged kids and what this country , this world will become ... How can God keep allowing all this hate , ignorance , and thinking man knows better than he keep going , before a reset .

Rule or ruin. Unfortunately, an age old love story.

 

[JoshB]

An ESPN executive:

 

[TUSKtimes]

OK ESPN, think about it, if Robert Lee was going to get Meme/jokes because of his handle, what does ESPN think he's going to get now that he's famous? The answer, probably just a lot of media attention, it's still painfully obvious to the masses, even in Virginia, he's still very much Asian. Which was the correct answer to begin with.

 

[BAMAneck]

ESPN Decision making is horrible. Not just this decision, this is just the latest of many .

 

[PurlJam]

Guess I need to pull my resume for a job at ESPN......my real name is Martin Luther King George III. :devil:

 

[ColAngus]

An ESPN executive:

Sounds reasonable to me. And sounds like people making way more out of something than need be. This is a non-story meant to work people up, and apparently, it worked.

 

[BamaFan334]

Sounds reasonable to me. And sounds like people making way more out of something than need be. This is a non-story meant to work people up, and apparently, it worked.

Sounds reasonable? So now being offended by someone's name can fuck that person over for life? The guy's name isn't Adolf Hitler or something along those lines. To me it's discrimination to the highest degree. I'd sue the shit out of ESPN, and if the ACLU and Civil Liberties folks don't get on it it'll clearly show the corruption of everything media related. And also, the way the media is reporting is that Robert E. Lee is a figure they are bothered with on a daily basis, so technically this poor guy can never go on the air again because he may offend some poor soul out there as it may bring about PTSD.

 

[TerryP]

The website Outkick the Coverage broke the story -- with a headline invoking a popular conservative nickname for ESPN, "MSESPN," which derides the network as the sports equivalent of the liberal talk shows on MSNBC.

Sounds reasonable to me. And sounds like people making way more out of something than need be. This is a non-story meant to work people up, and apparently, it worked.

Sounds reasonable?

Considering who broke the story, the network he's also covering college football for, and some of the statement? Yah, part of it is reasonable.
While it's perfectly logical to question the motives behind the decision, it's also perfectly logical Travis caught this and made it into the spectacle it is...purely because he works for the rival network.

 

[BAMAneck]

United States of the offended.