ESPN Fires Employee For Jeremy Lin Racist Headline

BRISTOL, Connecticut (AP) — The cable television sports network ESPN fired an employee responsible for an offensive headline about Knicks basketball sensation Jeremy Lin.

The headline Friday on ESPN's mobile website was used for a story about a New York loss in which Lin had nine turnovers. The headline was an idiom that contains a word that also can be used as a slur against Chinese.

"I don't think it was on purpose or whatever, but (at) the same time they have apologized. And so from my end I don't care anymore," Lin said after leading the Knicks to a 104-97 win over Dallas on Sunday. "Have to learn to forgive, and I don't even think that was intentional. Or hopefully not."

Lin is the NBA's first American-born player of Chinese or Taiwanese descent. He captivated fans by leading the Knicks to seven straight wins before Friday's loss.

In a statement Sunday, ESPN apologized for that headline and said it is aware of two other "offensive and inappropriate" comments. An ESPNEWS anchor who used the same phrase was suspended for 30 days. The cable network said a similar reference was made on ESPN Radio New York, but the commentator is not an ESPN employee.

Comments

[joe yeo]

11:48 PM on 03/03/2012

My hats off to Jeremy Lin! - he has shown that Americans of Asian descent can speak unbroken English and have completely assimilated into the American culture. The statement, especially in the eyes of Americans of Asian descent, was clearly derogatorily humorous. I am proud that ESPN fired the employee responsible, it in effect sent a message all of America that such derogatory race-based humor is not welcome in UNITED STATES of AMERICA!

[aristippe]

04:50 PM on 02/28/2012

Obviously inappropriate but funny as all hell.

[jazzman71]

07:28 PM on 02/25/2012

To me this is all a simple ethnic marketing ploy. It's no secret that the NBA is having financial problems. Lin is the perfect choice for rebuiding the coffers and the media goes right along with the league, especially since China is, for the present, a financial power, and a future China tour is likely to make enormous amounts of money. So will shoes, shirts, etc. A Nigerian or Canadian or Spaniard or whatever will simply not generate the same volume of wealth at this point in time as someone who is Chinese. The media is adept at playing the racist card whenever it is beneficial to some vested interest, and even more so at fanning the flames of racial controversy. The bottom line is always the bottom line in the business community. Does anyone remember Tiger what's his name, or all the other "what's their names."

[guydoy]

02:24 PM on 02/21/2012

The so called justification by Max Bretos saying his wife is Asian is a further insult to all Asians and an indication of his ignorance. The "c" word refers only to Chinese and not all Asians. Max Bretos may not realize that there are several Asian races including but not limited to Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Burmese, Indonesian, Tibetan, et., etc. His rational would imply that, as an example, using the "w" word when referring to an Italian is justified because the user's wife is European.

[jh2]

02:00 PM on 02/21/2012

To the person claiming the people who see a comment as racist are the real racists (i.e. lilsebastlan and JaySee5): You are wrong. You need to grow up and understand that being informed about how to not offend others with stereotypes is your responsibility in this civil society. By mouthing off before thinking about what your saying and the way that it might be interpreted by others in a public forum, you are saying that you are uneducated and/or apathetic. I agree people are allowed mistakes, but part of the responsibility of the headline writer and broadcaster is to know what is and is not allowed, and have the common sense to avoid offending your audience, the source of your revenue. To not have that knowledge and ignore the rules of the game is incompetence. It doesn't take a racist to detect racially motivated comments, it just takes an interest in the issue and sometimes personal experience. Having not experienced it, you may not understand its detrimental impact on your relationships. The pervasiveness that it exists in society is not measurable, but it impacts the opportunities for many, and in many more ways behind closed doors and away from the injured than what is blatantly obvious and presented here.

[asantewa3]

11:29 AM on 02/21/2012

The writer clearly didn't think the headline all the way through, nor did he expect for the backlash to be so severe. Does he deserve to get fired? I don't think so. The comment was clearly not made maliciously. Just an unfortunate choice of words.

[Smedley Snodgrass]

01:41 PM on 02/21/2012

How exactly do you know if it was done maliciously or not?

The way I see it - someone either was being malicious, or was seriously asleep at the switch. One or the other... and when you're responsible for content that's released through a major media outlet, either can get you fired. That's just the nature of the work.

[asantewa3]

04:00 PM on 02/21/2012

I think you're right that it was one or the other, but in this case I think it was the latter. I think that whomever edited the piece thought it would sell papers for the headline to be a bit cheeky. It was a very unfortunate choice of words and in very poor taste, but I think a suspension would have been sufficient. And to your second point, is the editor getting fired also? It's a bit unfair for only the subordinate to get chopped. Basically this sets a precedent that any article written about JL cannot use that phrase even if it applies, which is ridiculous. It may have been an inappropriate pun, but it's an idiomatic expression and if people weren't so caught up in him being Asian, this wouldn't have garnered a second look.

[CaligulaPBTH]

07:14 PM on 02/24/2012

The problem is that the truly color blind person is MORE inclined to make this sort of mistake than a racist who would have immediately seen the implication of the wording.

Not that using cliches and slang is good journalism to begin with. I took only one class and I would have never made the mistake of using a non-literal colloquialism in a story. Not only do non-native English speakers have a great trouble with sayings and slang but, as this writer found out, words with hidden meanings being taken the wrong way is an inevitability. Better to just stick to the facts and 9th grade English, and let people do the "color commentary" on their own.

[The Total Truth]

11:28 AM on 02/21/2012

If you don't think like a racists you might not know this remark could be considered offensive. This is PC gone crazy. Lee Corso used the "F" word during a College Game Day broadcast when he slipped out. He made a mistake and apologized and remains at ESPN. Honest mistake.

Th problem with huge companies running the media is they are constantly over reacting. To fire a person and end his career over this mistake he has apologized for sends a message, don't take a chance, be bland, be boring, be afraid.

Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity say shameful things on air every day as does the entire Fox News and they get away with it. No apology even. Shame on you ESPN. Shame on you indeed

[ohaudra]

11:25 AM on 02/21/2012

People are WAY too sensitive about such silly & stupid things. Toughen up!

[StuartReese]

11:04 AM on 02/21/2012

This story's out of steam now. Time to focus on the real culprits: ESPN execs, who fired and suspended two employes without proper grounds. This should not happen in 2012! The fired guy should get himself a good lawyer, and sue - big payday in sight if you ask me.

[fadpjr]

09:43 AM on 02/21/2012

Santorum for President.

[fadpjr]

09:41 AM on 02/21/2012

Tuff up America!

[thefredman63]

08:03 AM on 02/21/2012

Cant "Lin" them all

[LogicIsFun]

04:02 AM on 02/21/2012

People who were actually outraged by this are idiots. The statement was harmless.
It was kind of ironic, but still harmless. No reason to get all butt-hurt about it.

[taatiita]

06:00 AM on 02/21/2012

Sounds like you are the only one butt hurt about it cuz I can sense your anger from your little sentence. If you are not Asian (Chinese, Japanese, Taiwanese, Korean, etc...) or you've never been addressed as that word, then it's senseless & irrational for you to say that, merci.

[Shayan Chowdhury]

09:54 AM on 02/21/2012

Chink In The Armor: To have flaw or problem preventing success.
The editor was referring to the phrase saying they found his weak spot which is why they lost that game. He wasn't being racist it was just, as that other guy said, ironic.

[TheTruth76]

01:54 AM on 02/21/2012

I am about sick of this story!

[simsum]

01:39 AM on 02/21/2012

People who follow bigoted ideas tend not to recognize bigotry when it occurs.

[mi4]

12:07 PM on 02/21/2012

Simsum.. I could not agree with you more.. These racist statements are never a big deal to the people who are never the victim of them. Lin knows if he wants to stay in favor with the "crowd" he will pretend it's no big deal.