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ESPN has issued a statement regarding a question posed by Tom Jackson of Sunday NFL Countdown to colleague Michael Irvin.
Asked Jackson after Irvin concluded another bout with verbal diarrhea: "Are you ********?"
Said ESPN in response to an e-mail inquiry from PFT regarding the incident:
"In a free-flowing debate with his co-analysts on Sunday NFL Countdown, Tom Jackson referred to one of his colleagues using a term that might have offended some of our viewers. ESPN does not endorse the use of this term. Tom has expressed regrets for any offense."
Said Jackson in the ESPN statement: "During a heated debate on our show earlier today, I used an offensive term and immediately regretted it. I apologize to those I offended."
From our perspective, we think that Jackson's apology is sufficient, though it probably should be repeated during next Sunday's show and (as much as it hurts us to say this) Jackson probably should apologize directly to Irvin.
We're still very interested to see what, if anything, former ESPN employee Rush Limbaugh will have to say about this, given that Jackson was harshly critical of Limbaugh a week after his fateful comments regarding the media's alleged desire to see a black quarterback succeed.
Look, we know that there's a huge difference between racial discrimination and pulling a Napoleon Dynamite. But both Limbaugh's and Jackson's statements were objectively offensive; the only difference is that Jackson has admitted it.
And given Jackson's long tenure with ESPN, no further action is required, in our view. Limbaugh was essentially in his "probationary period" in Bristol, on the job for less than a month. If he had called Irvin "********," Limbaugh likely would have been forcibly removed from the set -- or Irvin would have simply whupped his butt on the air.
Asked Jackson after Irvin concluded another bout with verbal diarrhea: "Are you ********?"
Said ESPN in response to an e-mail inquiry from PFT regarding the incident:
"In a free-flowing debate with his co-analysts on Sunday NFL Countdown, Tom Jackson referred to one of his colleagues using a term that might have offended some of our viewers. ESPN does not endorse the use of this term. Tom has expressed regrets for any offense."
Said Jackson in the ESPN statement: "During a heated debate on our show earlier today, I used an offensive term and immediately regretted it. I apologize to those I offended."
From our perspective, we think that Jackson's apology is sufficient, though it probably should be repeated during next Sunday's show and (as much as it hurts us to say this) Jackson probably should apologize directly to Irvin.
We're still very interested to see what, if anything, former ESPN employee Rush Limbaugh will have to say about this, given that Jackson was harshly critical of Limbaugh a week after his fateful comments regarding the media's alleged desire to see a black quarterback succeed.
Look, we know that there's a huge difference between racial discrimination and pulling a Napoleon Dynamite. But both Limbaugh's and Jackson's statements were objectively offensive; the only difference is that Jackson has admitted it.
And given Jackson's long tenure with ESPN, no further action is required, in our view. Limbaugh was essentially in his "probationary period" in Bristol, on the job for less than a month. If he had called Irvin "********," Limbaugh likely would have been forcibly removed from the set -- or Irvin would have simply whupped his butt on the air.
