ESPN NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski is apologizing after an email he sent in response to Senator Josh Hawley was made public by the official.
What’s Happening:
- This morning, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley sent a letter to the NBA inquiring about their league’s plans to allow players to wear jerseys displaying messages in support of social issues when games resume at Walt Disney World later this month.
- In his letter, Hawley asked whether approved saying could include such options as “Back the Blue,” “God Bless America,” or “Support Our Troops” if they wanted to. The Senator also asked if messages critical of the Chinese Communist Party would be allowed.
- Responding to an emailed press release announcing Hawley’s letter, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski wrote “F*** you.”
- In turn, Hawley shared a screenshot of the response on his Twitter account (note: strong language).
- Now, Wojnarowski has apologized for the incident, writing in a statement posted to Twitter, “I was disrespectful and I made a regrettable mistake. I am sorry for the way I handled myself and I am reaching out immediately to Senator Hawley to apologize directly.”
- Wojnarowski continued, “I also need to apologize to my ESPN colleagues because I know my actions were unacceptable and should now reflect on any of them.”
- ESPN has also issued a statement, saying they do not condone Wojnarowski’s actions and are addressing them internally.
What they’re saying:
- ESPN in a statement on Wojnarowski’s response to Senator Hawley: “This is completely unacceptable behavior and we do not condone it. It is inexcusable for anyone working for ESPN to respond in the way Adrian did to Senator Hawley. We are addressing it directly with Adrian and specifics of those conversations will remain internal.”
- Senator Josh Hawley in an interview with OutKick the Coverage: “No, I don’t want an apology. I want ESPN to ask the NBA why they won’t let players stand up for America and be able to criticize China’s actions, But maybe ESPN won’t say anything because they benefit from the NBA’s global presence. Until ESPN speaks out, all they are really doing is enabling the Chinese Communist Party to stifle free speech in America.”