Just when it seemed like ESPN was moving away from far-left politics and making changes to return to the sports network’s nonpartisan glory days, “First Take” co-host Max Kellerman made headlines by slamming Tiger Woods’ response to questions about President Trump.
ESPN became increasingly liberal under former ESPN President John Skipper, who left the network last year when a drug dealer attempted to extort him by using his cocaine habit against him. New boss Jimmy Pitaro has declared that he wants less politics on his airwaves. “I will tell you I have been very, very clear with employees here that it is not our jobs to cover politics, purely,” Pitaro recently told reporters.
This past weekend, it appeared that Pitaro’s plan was put into action.
Outpoken feminist Michelle Beadle was taken off struggling morning show “Get Up!” and anti-Trump host Jemele Hill reportedly agreed to a buyout of her contract and will exit the network on Friday.
In September 2017, Hill tweeted, “Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has surrounded himself with other white supremacists.” Hill also called Trump a “bigot” and “unqualified and unfit to be president.” She added, “If he were not white, he never would have been elected.”
Hill’s anti-Trump comments caught the attention of the White House and Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, who said she considered the rhetoric a “fireable offense.” Trump even got involved himself, mocking Hill and ESPN’s lackluster ratings.
As for Beadle, she once told white men to “shut up and listen” and recently declared she was done watching football because of the way the NFL and NCAA handled domestic violence issues.
Under Skipper, the network was accused of spending too much time covering Colin Kaepernick’s protests and was criticized for awarding the Arthur Ashe Courage Award to Caitlyn Jenner. Far-left voices were rewarded with high-profile gigs, while conservative personalities such…
