Oh how quickly they turn on you.
When Jeremy Lin was basking in the height of his new found spotlight for the Knicks, droppin’ buckets and winning games, the Lin-punned headlines were at an all time high. But when the Knicks suffered defeat on Friday night the headlines went from fun-pun to insensitive racism.
STORY: Presidential Approval! Obama Impressed With Jeremy Lin!
ESPN ran an article about Lin’s game and titled the article “Chink In The Armor.”
The sports website quickly caught backfire for the headline and released a half ass apology for the racist word.
The New York Post Reports:
ESPN used a shockingly racist headline “Chink in the Armor” for the Knicks’ loss Friday night, along with a picture of Jeremy Lin, who is an Asian-American. The headline was eventually removed, and ESPN issued an apology late this morning.
“Last night, ESPN.com’s mobile web site posted an offensive headline referencing Jeremy Lin at 2:30 am ET. The headline was removed at 3:05 am ET. We are conducting a complete review of our cross-platform editorial procedures and are determining appropriate disciplinary action to ensure this does not happen again. We regret and apologize for this mistake.”
According to reports, the writer who penned the headline is was released from ESPN’s company. A second apology was also given to Lin and the entire Asian community.
We again apologize, especially to Mr. Lin. His accomplishments are a source of great pride to the Asian-American community, including the Asian-American employees at ESPN. Through self-examination, improved editorial practices and controls, and response to constructive criticism, we will be better in the future.
Now, lets try to concentrate on his basketball skills and not on how many racist puns his three letter last name can be worked in to.
