ESPN suspends Jemele Hill for two weeks
ESPN has suspended 6 p.m. SportsCenter host Jemele Hill for two weeks “for a second violation of our social media guidelines,’’ the company said in a statement on Monday.
“She previously acknowledged letting her colleagues and company down with an impulsive tweet,’’ the statement read. “In the aftermath, all employees were reminded of how individual tweets may reflect negatively on ESPN and that such actions would have consequences. Hence this decision.’’
The tweet in question stems from Cowboys owner Jerry Jones declaring on Sunday that he would not play any player who “disrespects the flag.’’ That came two weeks after the NFL declared it stood behind its players and projected a message of unity in the wake of President Donald Trump calling any player who protested during the national anthem a “son of a bitch.’’
Hill’s tweet on Sunday night suggested if fans feel strongly about Jones’s comments to “boycott his advertisers,’’ while citing another tweet of Cowboys sponsors.
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She posted another tweet on the subject on Monday:
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The suspension comes weeks after Hill called Trump a “white supremacist’’ and “a bigot’’ in a series of tweets. The backlash of her tweets reached the White House, where press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Hill’s comments were a fireable offense.
Hill expressed regret that those tweets on a public platform “painted ESPN in an unfair light. My respect for the company and my colleagues remains unconditional.’’
ESPN referred to those comments as “inappropriate,’’ but accepted Hill’s sentiments.
“Jemele has a right to her personal opinions, but not to publicly share them on a platform that implies that she was in any way speaking on behalf of ESPN,’’ the network said. “She has acknowledged that her tweets crossed that line and has apologized for doing so. We accept her apology.’’
James Miller, an author who wrote the a book on ESPN’s history, “Those Guys Have All The Fun,’’ tweeted Monday that Jones did not ask for Hill to be suspended.
