ESPN response to UFC champ’s vile anti-LGBTQ attack disgracefully weak

ESPN desires to make some huge cash. Many individuals do. It’s the compromise half that’s generally tough. It’s when one thing so terrible happens that in whole, coldblooded, unyielding pursuit of the money you ignore that horrible factor. Simply act prefer it didn’t occur. Not your accountability. Simply seize the massive verify and run.

That’s what ESPN is doing now with regards to the ugly, despicable, bigoted case of UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland, who this week, whereas chatting with the media previous to Saturday’s UFC 297, went on an anti-LGBTQ rant after a reporter requested about his earlier claims that having a homosexual son meant he failed as a father.

“You ask me some silly sh*t like that? Go f*ck your self.”

Sean Strickland went off on a reporter who pressed him on previous feedback in regards to the LGBTQ neighborhood at #UFC297 media day. pic.twitter.com/wyTEcUZLbv

— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) January 17, 2024

What Strickland mentioned was clearly fallacious (extra on what that was precisely in a second). What’s most surprising isn’t that there are anti-gay and anti-trans bigots on the planet. We all know these individuals are on the market. Small, insecure, bullies and tiny, tiny individuals. What’s extra surprising was ESPN’s response to it. Let me clarify.

After studying about what Strickland mentioned, I despatched an e mail to one of many ESPN PR representatives who works with the UFC. I requested a easy query: Would ESPN be placing out any sort of assertion denouncing what Strickland mentioned?

The response: “I’d recommend you communicate with UFC since Strickland is a UFC worker and so they deal with athlete relations.”

Huh?

Did you hear that sound?

That was ESPN washing its arms of this sordid mess.

Sean Strickland at UFC 297 media day.

ESPN can’t have it a number of methods. The community can’t generate income off promoting income from its seven-year contract with the UFC value about $300 million per 12 months, after which when an athlete does what Strickland did, bury its head in that money. With that cash comes some semblance of accountability.

All ESPN has to say is it doesn’t condone that sort of habits and language. It’s that straightforward.

Consider it this manner: What do you assume would occur if a white NFL participant, simply days earlier than he and his group had been set to play on ESPN’s Monday evening broadcast, repeatedly referred to as Black Individuals racial slurs throughout a press convention? The community would deal with it in quite a few methods. They’d by no means let it go unmentioned. Varied ESPN properties would obliterate that participant.

However a UFC bully assaults a marginalized neighborhood and there’s principally crickets from ESPN.

I don’t anticipate the UFC to do the proper factor. However doesn’t ESPN have a better commonplace? Why is a media superpower so afraid to blast this sort of hatred?

And I perceive it’s not ESPN’s obligation to touch upon each comment each athlete that seems on its air makes. However there are specific moments when that’s certainly required, and that is one among them. ESPN is companions with the UFC, and the combat this weekend isn’t just a few small occasion. It’s an enormous deal.

I’ve made errors and mentioned dumb issues, but when I ever went on any sort of rant like that, quite a few information organizations and different journalists would condemn it. It wouldn’t matter if we labored on the identical locations or not.

What precisely did Strickland say? Amongst different issues, in what was goon-like habits in opposition to a journalist who requested about Strickland’s previous anti-trans assaults, Strickland criticized the UFC for partnering with Bud Gentle. Extremists launched an anti-trans boycott of the beermaker.

“Right here’s the factor about Bud Gentle, 10 years in the past, to be trans was a psychological (expletive) sickness,” Strickland mentioned. “And now, rapidly, individuals like you’ve got (expletive) weaseled your method on the planet. You’re an an infection. You’re the definition of weak spot. Every part that’s fallacious with the world is due to (expletive) you.”

He added: “And one of the best factor is the world’s not shopping for it. The world’s not shopping for your (expletive)…you’re (expletive) peddling. The world just isn’t saying, ‘You realize what? You’re proper. (Expletive) chicks have (expletive).’ The world’s not saying that. The world’s saying, ‘No, there are two genders. I don’t need my youngsters being taught about who they may (expletive) in class. I don’t need my youngsters being taught about their sexual choice.’”

All ESPN has to say is: that is horrible. We don’t condone it.

However they gained’t as a result of the cash’s too good.