ESPN Comes Down on Golf Analyst for Criticizing Obama
ESPN has come down on one of its golf analysts for publicly criticizing President Obama.
It all began Thursday when former golf great Paul Azinger tweeted the following:
That was followed by:
According to USA Today, ESPN responded Friday:
On Friday ESPN 'reminded" Azinger his venture into political punditry violates the company's updated social network policy for on-air talent and reporters.
"Paul's tweet was not consistent with our social media policy, and he has been reminded that political commentary is best left to those in that field," spokesman Andy Hall told Game On! in a statement.
Yet ESPN seems to be rather inconsistent about political commentary from its employees. As NewsBusters reported in April 2007:
Even so, it came as something of a shock to observe that one ESPN personality is turning his on-screen appearances into an opportunity to promote the candidacy of a Dem presidential contender. Many sportscasters have their signature calls. From Stuart Scott's "boo-yah!" to Chris Berman's "back-back-back gone!," several of the ESPN announcers utter idiosyncratic phrases to underline signal athletic accomplishments. Fair enough. But watching ESPN's Kenny Mayne over the course of the last few days, I was surprised to notice that he has coined a new call. Home run at a crucial moment? Three-pointer to take the lead in a basketball game? "Obama!", exclaims Mayne.
Mayne has continued making political comments without any rebuke from ESPN as Dana Loesch noted at Big Journalism Friday:
Further making my case for their cherry-picked policy enforcement, check out the Tweets of on-air talent Mayne:
Loesch also noted that another ESPN personality, Adam Shefter, has made numerous political tweets including this one in May:
As Loesch pointed out, it's okay at ESPN to hype Obama since corporate owner Disney gave more of its 2008 campaign dollars to the junior senator from Illinois than anyone or anything else that year.
You just better not say anything bad about him.
Got that, Zinger?
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Comments
Poor Walt. No rest. Spinning, spinning, spinning
Submitted by Red Jeep on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:08pm.
.
What a blazing example of extreme Hipocrisy
Submitted by djwolf12 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:10pm.
They want to be the first network to have the "Breaking News" story.....Obama fills out his NCAA Brackets and holds a press conference.
This country is going to hell on a vespa.
Thou shalt not speak ill of
Submitted by GregE on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:13pm.
Thou shalt not speak ill of the Kim Jong.
Paul Azinger
Submitted by motherbelt on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:19pm.
shall be heretofore known as Paul A. Zinger.
thou shall not
Submitted by ohio granny on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:19pm.
Thou shall not criticize the "Won" even though he is a serial/compulsive liar and a hypocrite. ESPN is also hypocritical. They have not aired the University of Miami scandal but have turned over every little rock and leaf to try to destroy Ohio State. Could it be that the reason is because the Big Ten Network has hurt ESPN's brand and bottom line?
Better get used to it ESPN. Your dominance over college sports has ended. Just like the reign of Obama is about to come to an end. About time in both instances.
LOL - I'm just surprised ESPN didn't give Azinger hell...
Submitted by Dave. on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:19pm.
...for aiming that second tweet at Neal Boortz.
ESPN has become little more than a tool for the left.
I lost all respect for them back when they canned Rush Limbaugh for no reason other than political correctness.
For a so-called "sports" network, they sure seem to have a lot of spineless wussies around.
-Dave
Vote for the American in November
LOL Dave. Yesterday, Mark
Submitted by motherbelt on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:23pm.
LOL Dave. Yesterday, Mark Davis, subbing for Rush, asked: What ever happened to MEN???
mb,
Submitted by Dave. on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 6:40pm.
I have been wondering that for years.
Having come of age in the 1970s and grown up watching guys like Butkus, Matuszak, Alzado and Randy White play NFL football, you really have to wonder where things went wrong.
Hell, even the tennis players back then were tough.
The best match I have ever seen played was Borg and McEnroe in the men's final at Wimbledon in 1980. That was the closest thing to all-out war you will ever see on a tennis court. They still show a rerun of it every now and again, and I still enjoy watching it.
Tennis is now unwatchable for me, and has been for a long time.
I kind of think the wussification of America began in the mid-1980s or so, as that is when I bagan to notice what later would become known as political correctness beginning to creep it's way into our society.
It may have been around before that, but I was oblivious to it if it was.
-Dave
Vote for the American in November
I still remember
Submitted by Rukus on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 11:25pm.
The 1976 Wimbledon between Borg and Nastase, what fun that was. Borg was a tennis beast, his later matches with early McEnroe were good too, and they play pretty good when they're old too!
We don't spike the football, my keister.
Submitted by hbnolikeee on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:31pm.
Why spike it when you will use it for votes. Use the infrastructure that Bush built that led the your 16 hour deliberation as to what to do for your political gains. You must have needed 16 hours to do some polling and see what was best for you!
It must have been tough when
Submitted by ant on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 11:48pm.
It must have been tough when you're senior adviser Iranian Jarrett is screeching, "Nooooo!".
May I never have to hear
Submitted by DWoSD on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:45pm.
May I never have to hear Mayne or Shefter again.
Rush Limbaugh Lest We Forget
Submitted by ItchyZ on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 1:59pm.
Don't forget Rush Limbaugh's comment about sports commentator's obsequiousness regarding black quarterbacks which somehow got morphed into a racist comment about Donovan McNabb. Rush was summarily dismissed after that ridiculous display of polical correctness. ESPN is an extremely wimpy organization. They need to add some Viagra to their company mission statement.
Why?
Submitted by CO2Maker on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:24pm.
To get a rise in their ratings?
What is wrong with sports broadcasting? Brent Musburger, formerly of CBS Sports and now at ABC/ESPN, the epitome of inane and self-important commentators.
Purgatory: Being in an elevator with Dick Vitale.
Hell: Being in an elevator with Dick Vitale and Musburger gets on.
Mushmouth is
Submitted by killa37 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:33pm.
Mushmouth is torturous............and he seems to be everywhere that you DON'T want him to be!!! I still haven't gotten over the time that he was commentating during the World Cup a while ago........it was hideous!!!
You're right
Submitted by Mary Louise Turner on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 1:25pm.
I've seen Musberger on just about anything ABC/ESPN carries, including the Triple Crown (before NBC got the rights) and the Indianapolis 500 (what does he know about auto racing - or horse racing, for that matter?!) These nutworks might be trying to turn him into their version of Bob Costas, but it clearly isn't working...
My friend (who has WAAAY too
Submitted by killa37 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:09pm.
My friend (who has WAAAY too much time on his hands!!) texted me that 'tweet' yesterday while I was working. I read it.....it sounded pretty accurate to me.......one man's opinion and conclusion..........and didn't think too much more about it. Well, I guess it's become some kind of a big deal to the woosies over at ESPN - maybe they ought to ask around the sports business a little deeper - they might really blow their little liberal-infected minds - because I'm sure that there are a LOT of pros out there who can probably say things a lot more harsh about Boy Blah-Blah than Azinger did.
And the next time I see this dork Kenny Mayne on TV............KABOOM.........instant channel change!!!
ESPN has ruined sports for me
Submitted by ConservaSerb on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:33pm.
Every IDIOT wants to be on Sportscenter.
A wise & frugal government, which shall leave men free 2 regulate their own pursuits of industry & improvement, & shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned - this is the sum of good government. T. Jefferson
Not one to tell Azinger what to do...but....
Submitted by OxyCon on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:35pm.
Not one to tell Azinger what to do...but....I think I'd fire off another anti-Obama tweet this week, daring ESPN to give me the Mark Halperin (suspended for Obama criticism at MessNBC) treatment. There sure is demonstrable unfair bias in how his employer treats it's employees and it would be a good thing if this bias were a front page news story.
What do you expect...
Submitted by jdripper on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 2:38pm.
Kenny Mayne was born and raised in Seattle, WA, and got his start in TV on a PBS affiliate. He is a true blue liberal and knows nothing better. Just know that ESPN's ratings are going down.
Jack
ESPN has really gone down the toilet
Submitted by Mary Louise Turner on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 1:26pm.
Ever since Disney took over ABC and ESPN, both networks have really gone down the toilet. ESPN used to be synonymous with quality sports programming. Not anymore...If there is an important sports story and it doesn't involve ESPN/ABC connections, that news is either relegated to the end of the SportsCenter show or doesn't appear at all.
With the Azinger flap, we now know that the nutworks are almost as obnoxious as NBC and BSNBC when it comes to supporting Ears, and no one working for them can dare criticize the Anointed One. But it's OK to blast conservatives, Christians, etc..
Well, ABC is known for it's leanings.
Submitted by UpNorth on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 3:21pm.
It is called the All Barack Corporation for good reason.
I used to watch ESPN, not anymore. If they want to drag politics into sports, I can switch channels. Their ratings will approach 0's approval ratings any day now.
Don't forget the gift that Sports Center gave us
Submitted by CO2Maker on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 5:24pm.
I am referring, of course, to Keith the Sports Boy.
'Nuff said. QED. Sic transit gloria. LS/MFT. Close cover before striking.
Not to mention Stuart Scott
Submitted by azwildcats on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 3:28pm.
He is another idiot. He kept on praising Obama saying he's gonna change the world for the better, etc.
His worst commentary came during the Don Imus situation. He first said that what Imus said was very offensive. Then he said that he would take Pacman Jones' indiscretions over Imus. Pacman was a football player with many run ins with the law, including recently before that when he started a brawl at a strip club that resulted in a policeman becoming paralyzed. Imus should've apologized for what he said, and did. Yet he essentially said a dangerous, career criminal is a better person then him. Idiot.
I remember that article...
Submitted by PJRyan on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 7:51pm.
I fired off a letter to ESPN the Magazine pointing out how stupid the "commentary" was and never picked up their magazine again. From that point forward, I've avoided ESPN as much as possible.
Good for Azinger. Just another reason to admire him. Fire off another. Screw ABC/ESPN/Disney
I didn't know Kenny Mayne was a moron. Used to like him.
The worst lefty at ESPN
Submitted by Radicalrighty on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 7:47am.
is Rick Reilly. He loves him some Dear Leader. Even Bill Simmons. I've stopped reading all of them.
ESPN has been a liberal tool for years!
Submitted by NJRightWinger12 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 7:06pm.
Esp since O'Bozo took office. Im glad for Azinger to make those tweets-it shows not EVERYONE at Lefty ESPN is in the tank for O'Blubber. I knew Mayne was a leftist tool, but didnt know Shefter was, so now I'll make sure to shut his ass off whenever I see him on like 4 times a friggin hour saying the same damn thing! I wish we had a RIGHT-WINGED SPORTS NET, esp one that wouldnt have put such a liberal, racist spin on the innocent remark that Rush said about Donovan, and Im an Eagle fan who saw it LIVE, and he said NOTHING of the kind, but ESPN couldnt WAIT to whack Rush!
Big surprise
Submitted by okie-pastor on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 11:22pm.
I remember when Musberger said during a live college football game about Bush: "we need to get rid of that rascal"
No one said anything.
By the way: Trunka is supposed to be on Sportsman Channel for labor day marathon promoting American made products. And I love the sportsman channel. That ruined it.
Anyone doubt that is all about union promotion? Me neither.
Hell, Okie.........I turned
Submitted by killa37 on Sat, 08/27/2011 - 11:50pm.
Hell, Okie.........I turned on the Little League world series today ( I love watcing the kids!!!) and ol' Mushmouth was the MAIN broadcaster in the game!!! That - and the one-sided score - sort of turned me off. And, you know - there's been regular announcers over there - every day - doing their work. I'm not sure what they think about having Mushburger come in a cherry pick the premier event!!!
Wow. I never knew Kenny Mayne had such an intolerance
Submitted by djwolf12 on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 11:27am.
that he would feel absolute anger to impulsively ram his car with full intent into another car just because someone has different political beliefs than him. But he is a compassionate douchebag that he would only want to hurt the driver if there were no kids in the car. I will never watch him on TV again. If I had known he tweeted this garbage I would definitely responded to him and called him a douchebag.
This is truly hilarious..
Submitted by liberalsarefunny on Sun, 08/28/2011 - 1:02pm.
we already know that ESPN is just a bunch of common liberals in the tank for BO. More and more unwatchable....and unlistenable...