Sports have hairy, nude female sex videosalways been political—but ESPN hasn't.
That tension, which has existed quietly for years at the sports-media giant, has turned into an outright controversy that reached a new height on Friday when President Donald Trump targeted the company via his Twitter account.
ESPN, long a neutral space for sports, now finds itself the frontline for America's politico-culture war.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
The tweet comes after ESPN has been criticized by the right and the left over its handling of Jemele Hill, a TV personality who called Trump a white supremacist in a tweet.
That immediately kickstarted a controversy, with plenty of Trump supporters calling for Hill to be fired. ESPN put out a statement saying Hill's comments did not represent the company's views, and that the company had spoken to Hill, who "recognizes her actions were inappropriate."
Hill released a statement in which she did not back down, but expressed regret about the impact her comments had on ESPN. That didn't stop Trump press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders from taking the rather unprecedented stand that she should still be fired. The entire situation has fueled the notion among those on the right that ESPN has become a left-leaning institution.
Meanwhile, ESPN has also been criticized by those on the left who believe the company has not done enough to support Hill—and are ready to turn on ESPN if it chooses to remove Hill (which, according to at least one report, it did try to do).
"If ESPN eventually caves to Trump’s pressure, it will be party to shutting down not only a vital cultural voice, but a growing consciousness among athletes, commenters and viewers about racial inequality in America, at the behest of an administration more comfortable building walls than bridges," wrote Nationsports editor Dave Zirin, one of the foremost progressive sports journalists, in a Washington Post column.
For years, ESPN existed mostly outside of politics. There were still politics in sports, but those issues were fodder for publications like The Nationor more recently blogs like Deadspin. ESPN remained a nearly pure-sports outlet, a place where it was just about athletics and athletes.
That is still mostly true. Though ESPN has gone through changes, politics—up until very recently—remained a mostly untouched subject in an explicit manner. The notion that ESPN has gotten more political on its own has merit. The company's elevation of people, such as Bomani Jones and Mina Kimes, who are not shy about discussing the politics of sports has led to an overall increase in the discussion of topics that might have once seemed more appropriate on CNN.
But in the current atmosphere, even implicit changes are seen through a political lens. As Hill recently said during a public appearance, the company has been called liberal just for elevating the voices of women and minorities.
"I just noticed the correlation between us being called more liberal as you see more women in a position on our network in terms of driving content, as you see more ethnic diversity, that all of sudden ESPN is too liberal. So I wonder when people say that what they're really saying," she said.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Hill then added an important point: "The athletes are dragging us here."
There have been politically active athletes for decades, but not like now. As Hill pointed out, the protests of former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick have become a major story, but he's far from the only person. Hardly a day goes by without a major athlete expressing a political opinion in public.
That puts ESPN in a new and uncomfortable position, particularly as the left and right are holding individuals and institutions to higher standards as far as drawing lines on where they stand on these issues.
It also puts ESPN in a rather important place in the current politico-culture battle. The traditional places in which political and cultural clashes occurred have become siloed. Fracturing of the news media has left few shared spaces for these conflicts to play out.
Sports remains one of the few remaining spaces outside ideological bubbles, with ESPN its town square. Whether right or left, people still want to watch the game, as Hill said in the video above. And with politics an unremovable part of the current sports scene, people who might otherwise not be exposed to the other side find themselves forced to stomach it.
This leaves ESPN in a tough spot. It has spent years cultivating a brand that is welcoming to all. The company is sometimes colloquially referred to as Every Person's Sports Network (it's actually Entertainment and Sports Programming Network). That brand helped the company become one of the most successful media companies in the world.
Now, the company is having to learn quickly how it will play this newfound role. For now, it's trying to remain neutral. The company is sticking by its rules that limits employees from making political statements that could be seen as endorsed by ESPN. It has previously parted ways with employees for that kind of thing, firing Curt Schilling in 2015 for ignoring several warnings.
Whether it can remain neutral... that's another issue. Both the left and the right have become impatient with institutions that have declined to take a stand. If Hill or someone like her forces ESPN's hand, it may have to make a decision—one that could have serious repercussions for a company already struggling with declining subscriber numbers.
With sports only getting more political, it may only be a matter of time until ESPN is, too.
Lying in StateUnnamed and UnsurveilledMister Politician ManAgainst VirtuosityMister Politician ManLying in StateEmpathy for the DevilSpeed FreaksJet Age Capitalism ReduxSpeed FreaksMoney Is an Iron: Oscar Movies, 2020The Baffler Welcomes Fiction Editor J. W. McCormackMaking WavesSo Long, Parchment BarriersThe VanishingThe Times Takes to TVReactionary GIFsMoney Is an Iron: Oscar Movies, 2020Certain Unflattering TruthsThe Poet of Infinite Longing I desperately tried to make friends with Jake Gyllenhaal at Cannes Ryan Adams is announcing tour dates with a 'Lord of the Rings' tribute Social media threats made Warriors player fear for his children PayPal files lawsuit against Pandora for mimicking its 'iconic logo' 'Red Dead Redemption 2' delayed, but we get new screenshots Katy Perry brings the Taylor Swift feud to Carpool Karaoke because nowhere is safe Activists staged a 'big gay wedding' outside parliament to protest same Ariana Grande shares heartbreaking message on social media after tragic concert Katy Perry's album trailer feels like a weird online dating profile Microsoft unveils a Surface Pro 4 successor, and it’s not the Pro 5 EU to tech companies: You're going to have to start taking responsibility for hate speech Researchers develop a way to take pictures through walls using Wi Instagram update adds location and hashtag Stories We're getting 11 beautiful 'Overwatch' hero skins Hey kids, just say no to 'Twin Peaks' fan theories Microsoft: USB Drones could deliver a literal ton of stuff to remote villages 'Far Cry 5' will take place in an unsettling version of Montana Recently fired woman lectures new grads on how to hold a job This epic boxing KO will give you a concussion just from watching
2.8036s , 8611.6953125 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【hairy, nude female sex videos】,Pursuit Information Network