MSG had already toed the line of racism when they showed a picture (or fan’s sign) of Jeremy Lin’s face above a fortune cookie Wednesday. ESPN has gone clear past that line and straight into the offensive with the above headline seen on their mobile website late Friday/early Saturday (click twice to enlarge the image).
That’s right, some person either wasn’t thinking, or was trying to be blatantly racist, and called the Knicks’ 89-85 home loss to the Hornets a “Chink in the armor.”
Chink of course is a derogatory term for a Chinese or Asian person. Jeremy Lin is of Taiwanese descent, and the Knicks lost for the first time with him as their starting point guard.
There is no way around this headline. I checked ESPN’s website from my Android phone and saw it too. Someone is definitely going to be reprimanded for the horribly offensive headline. Not even Floyd Mayweather would have said something that offensive (at least we hope not).
Here’s another look at the headline as it appeared on an iPhone:
The headline was up on ESPN’s mobile website at least 10-15 minutes before it was updated. The new headline became “All Good Things …” but the same picture remained.
UPDATE: As expected, ESPN has issued an apology for the insensitive headline. You can read the statement they posted on their media website here.
Photos via Myles Brown
