Announcer sues ESPN

[Anonymous]

This is the kind of politically correct crap that infuriates many of us.
This announcer was using a well known term - at least, well known by true tennis enthusiasts.
But the brass at ESPN are not as enlightened.

A veteran ESPN announcer sued the sports network Monday for firing him during the Australian Open over accusations that he had used an ethnic slur against tennis superstar Venus Williams.

Doug Adler, who began working for ESPN in 2008 covering the world’s biggest tennis matches, came under fire for a comment on Jan. 18 when he said Williams used “the guerrilla effect.” The comment went viral because it was pushed along by the New York Times on twitter labeling it as the “appalling” term “gorilla,” which “ignited the flames of anger and hatred” against Adler, the lawsuit said.

Adler was fired two days later.

He claims he was using a well-known term to describe aggressive play yet ESPN has destroyed his career.

“By the way ESPN chose to handle this non-issue, they effectively branded me, my character and my reputation for the rest of my life,” Adler told FoxNews.com.

Apparently the world “guerilla” has been used for decades in the tennis world. The complaint mentions “Guerilla Tennis,” the name of a famous 1995 Nike television ad campaign featuring superstars Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras setting up an impromptu tennis match in the middle of a busy city intersection. The ad ran during the US Open and was profiled again in a 2015 Vanity Fair article after the tennis stars reunited for a similar rematch in the streets of New York.

The term is also used as the name of a Twitter account called Guerilla Tennis started in 2014 by a tennis enthusiast.

“The irony is that Adler called everything correctly and in a professional manner, whereas ESPN did not – they recklessly made the wrong call,” said Adler’s attorney, David Ring, in a statement. “It was not only political correctness gone overboard, but also a cowardly move that ruined a good man’s career.”

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2017/02/15/espn-sued-for-wrongful-termination-by-announcer-after-venus-williams-match-call.html

[Anonymous]

The Sampras Agassi ad was "guerrilla" in the sense of guerrilla marketing --- it refers to the fact that they are setting up a match on the street, the the same way that guerrilla marketers have used spray paint and other unconventional (and illegal) avenues for advertising. It has nothing to do with the style of play.

This was an appalling lapse in judgement by Adler.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Sampras Agassi ad was "guerrilla" in the sense of guerrilla marketing --- it refers to the fact that they are setting up a match on the street, the the same way that guerrilla marketers have used spray paint and other unconventional (and illegal) avenues for advertising. It has nothing to do with the style of play.

This was an appalling lapse in judgement by Adler.

Oh, please. Listen to his comment. There is no way anyone with logic could think he was comparing her to a gorilla.

[Anonymous]

He's right that he wasn't using a slur but he should have used better judgement knowing this could be an issue.

[Anonymous]

It reminds me of that DC government employee who was fired for using the term "niggardly"!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It reminds me of that DC government employee who was fired for using the term "niggardly"!

Exactly. Such an overreaction to a perfectly fine comment. Some would even consider this sportscasters comment as complimentary - Venus is definitely a tough competitor.
It’s becoming ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It reminds me of that DC government employee who was fired for using the term "niggardly"![/quote

I was just thinking the same thing! It's dangerous to be intelligent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It reminds me of that DC government employee who was fired for using the term "niggardly"!

What do the quotations around the word represent?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It reminds me of that DC government employee who was fired for using the term "niggardly"!

What do the quotations around the word represent?

Don’t be obtuse, you know what the PP meant by it. This isn’t english class.

[Anonymous]

Adler clearly compared her to a gorilla (the animal), in his description of her charging toward the serve. If someone thinks that he was comparing her to a guerilla fighter, I would be interested to understand how that applies here, because she is not a player that pops up here and there unexpectedly or surprises you. She is the number one player in the world, the greatest player ever. She serves harder than anyone. There is nothing guerilla about her or her style of play.

And this was not a guerilla tennis match. It was the Australian Open. Everyone expects tennis there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It reminds me of that DC government employee who was fired for using the term "niggardly"!

It IS rather like that. I would say that employee also had an appalling lapse of judgement.

I have known the word "niggardly" since I was a small child, but as a child of the segregated South, I have had better sense than to ever once use it in the 50 years since I learned it. Likewise, I have never referred to doing something "like a Christian" (which was very common in the early 1800s) or complimented a courteous action by saying "that's mighty white of you" (which was very common when I was a kid). Similarly, I have not used the word "Oriental" as an adjective in at least 30 years or the term "thug" in the past 10.

This is not difficult.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Adler clearly compared her to a gorilla (the animal), in his description of her charging toward the serve. If someone thinks that he was comparing her to a guerilla fighter, I would be interested to understand how that applies here, because she is not a player that pops up here and there unexpectedly or surprises you. She is the number one player in the world, the greatest player ever. She serves harder than anyone. There is nothing guerilla about her or her style of play.

And this was not a guerilla tennis match. It was the Australian Open. Everyone expects tennis there.

You can't even keep track of which Williams sister is being discussed! Venus is not number one, nor is she the greatest player ever.

No credibility, you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Adler clearly compared her to a gorilla (the animal), in his description of her charging toward the serve. If someone thinks that he was comparing her to a guerilla fighter, I would be interested to understand how that applies here, because she is not a player that pops up here and there unexpectedly or surprises you. She is the number one player in the world, the greatest player ever. She serves harder than anyone. There is nothing guerilla about her or her style of play.

And this was not a guerilla tennis match. It was the Australian Open. Everyone expects tennis there.

You can't even keep track of which Williams sister is being discussed! Venus is not number one, nor is she the greatest player ever.

No credibility, you.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Adler clearly compared her to a gorilla (the animal), in his description of her charging toward the serve. If someone thinks that he was comparing her to a guerilla fighter, I would be interested to understand how that applies here, because she is not a player that pops up here and there unexpectedly or surprises you. She is the number one player in the world, the greatest player ever. She serves harder than anyone. There is nothing guerilla about her or her style of play.

And this was not a guerilla tennis match. It was the Australian Open. Everyone expects tennis there.

You can't even keep track of which Williams sister is being discussed! Venus is not number one, nor is she the greatest player ever.

No credibility, you.

+1

So it was Venus and not Serena. That doesn't make it any less racist. My inability to pay attention to which sister it was doesn't make a difference here. Listen to what was said, that is what matters. Or try to explain how Venus play tennis like a freedom fighter, because I would love to hear that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Adler clearly compared her to a gorilla (the animal), in his description of her charging toward the serve. If someone thinks that he was comparing her to a guerilla fighter, I would be interested to understand how that applies here, because she is not a player that pops up here and there unexpectedly or surprises you. She is the number one player in the world, the greatest player ever. She serves harder than anyone. There is nothing guerilla about her or her style of play.

And this was not a guerilla tennis match. It was the Australian Open. Everyone expects tennis there.

You can't even keep track of which Williams sister is being discussed! Venus is not number one, nor is she the greatest player ever.

No credibility, you.

So it was Venus and not Serena. That doesn't make it any less racist. My inability to pay attention to which sister it was doesn't make a difference here. Listen to what was said, that is what matters. Or try to explain how Venus play tennis like a freedom fighter, because I would love to hear that.

So are you saying you are got them confused because they all look alike? That is worse than the guerrilla comment.