ESPN Apologizes for “Slave Auction” Segment

RUSH: I’m trying to figure out what would be the best way to go here to start to illustrate what I think demonstrates the shift that has taken place. And I think one of the best places to start here is actually ESPN.

ESPN has a nationwide fantasy football opportunity, and they’ve had it for quite a while, and you can play it any number of different levels. But this week they had their draft. And you know ESPN’s well-intentioned. I mean, you know there’s no racism there, right? And there’s no bigotry at ESPN. I mean, ESPN is clean and pure as the wind-driven snow, correct?

Well, ESPN has had to apologize because they didn’t call their draft a draft; they called it an auction. And that wouldn’t have been so bad except since 75% of the players in the NFL are black, they were auctioning black players as their draft in fantasy football.

“ESPN2’s approach to auctioning players as part of its Fantasy Sports Marathon on Monday night drew criticism from some on social media, who said it resembled a slave auction. While white players were part of the draft, the footage of an auctioneer ‘selling’ New York Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr. led to some on Twitter to voice their outrage,” including Odell Beckham Jr.

The U.K. Daily Mail has the story here. “New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. said he was left ‘speechless’ after seeing the clip of his face on a stick being auctioned off to a mostly white crowd.

“Former Giants defensive lineman Dominique Hamilton tweeted the ESPN clip at Beckham saying: ‘Ummm @OBJ_3 what’s sup with this racist sketch?’ [sic] That sparked Beckham to respond that he was left stunned by what he saw. Viewers were also upset at the visual of black players being sold to mostly white owners…” That’s what you call yourself if you play fantasy football: You own your team. So they were “mostly white owners during the segment that aired Monday night on ESPN2.

As well as black players, there were some white players involved in the auction, including Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots. But viewers were upset at the visual of black players being sold to a mostly white crowd. One commentator…” Not everybody was disturbed, by the way. One commentator. Did anybody ever play fantasy football? They have an auction draft’ ESPN just did a live version of it. “Not everything’s racist”? Oh, yes, it is! This is the point. Everything is racist and you are automatically guilty unless you prove your innocence.

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