Sport pundits racial sensitivity

by Mentalacrobatics on February 4, 2005 · 5 comments

in Old Blog Posts

Sports pundits seem to live in a parallel world where political correctness, racial sensitivity and basic decency are just rumours. Football pundit Ron Atkinson lost his job as a match commentator for ITV and columnist for the Guardian following his racist comments live on air about Chelsea defender Marcel Desailly. Last week Sky Sports sacked their football pundit Rodney Marsh for making a tasteless joke about the Asia tsunami disaster on a phone-in show. In the states they’re at it as well with Rush Limbaugh losing his slot on ESPN for comments he made about Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb.

{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Mshairi February 7, 2005 at 1:20 pm

It almost looks like political incorrectness, racial insensitivity and a lack of basic decency are prerequisite qualities for sports pundits.

2 Mentalacrobatics February 10, 2005 at 1:12 am

well they gotta wake up now that they are losing their jobs.

3 Magaidi February 16, 2005 at 8:05 pm

I support measures being taken by stations and the media to ensure discrimination in the sports world ends. My worry though is that we become so overly sensitive that good-natured humor is taken to mean something totally different. E.G if some dude on the radio comments, ‘If I see a linebacker coming at me from the side, i’d run like a black man from the police’ – this, in all good nature will be turned into something of a statement ridiculing African Americans or blacks in general. What do you think?

4 Mshairi February 16, 2005 at 8:28 pm

The example you give Magaidi is very different from what that the two fellows mentioned above said.

5 Magaidi February 17, 2005 at 8:35 pm

Mshairi..i’m not questioning what they said.I’m just saying blind justice often overrides good natured spirit which is what these games ought to foster – not tension.

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