Jemele Hill (Credit: Twitter)
Jemele Hill, co-host of ESPN’s SportsCenter, called Pres. Donald Trump a white supremacist and a bigot on Twitter. In a number of tweets on Sept. 11, Hill slammed Trump as “unfit, bigoted [and] incompetent.”
ESPN responded with a brief statement shared on Twitter that distanced Hill’s comments from the network. The statement reads, “The comments on Twitter from Jemele Hill regarding the President do not represent the position of ESPN. We have addressed this with Jemele and she recognizes her actions were inappropriate.” iMediaEthics has written to ESPN to ask if Hill was disciplined or instructed on social media policy and if ESPN will require Hill to apologize or remove the tweets, but ESPN only pointed to its statement. We’ve also tweeted Hill to ask if she was disciplined.
Earlier this year, ESPN issued new guidelines for its staff in regards to discussing politics and politicians, as iMediaEthics reported. The guidelines said ESPN employees who work in news can’t tweet or discuss “political or social issues, candidates or office holders,” but staffers who work in opinion or commentary can.
ESPN Statement on Jemele Hill: pic.twitter.com/3kfexjx9zQ
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) September 12, 2017
Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself w/ other white supremacists.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 11, 2017
I hate a lot of things but not enough to jeopardize my fellow citizens with an unfit, bigoted, incompetent moron. But hey, that's just me.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 12, 2017
How is it a "false narrative?" Did he hire and court white supremacists? Answer: YES
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 12, 2017
He is unqualified and unfit to be president. He is not a leader. And if he were not white, he never would have been elected
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 12, 2017
And while you can certainly criticize black ppl for supporting Dems, the other side has done nothing but endorse/promote white supremacy
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 11, 2017
Donald Trump is a bigot. Glad you could live with voting for him. I couldn't, because I cared about more than just myself
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 12, 2017
Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself w/ other white supremacists.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 11, 2017
Hill’s tweets included,
- “Trump is the most ignorant, offensive president of my lifetime. His rise is a direct result of white supremacy. Period.”
- “He is unqualified and unfit to be president. He is not a leader. And if he were not white, he would never have been elected.”
- “Donald Trump is a bigot. Glad you could live with voting for him. I couldn’t, because I cared about more than just myself.”
- “How is it a ‘false narrative?’ Did he hire and court white supremacists? Answer: YES”
- “Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself w/ other white supremacists.”
- “I hate a lot of things but not enough to jeopardize my fellow citizens with an unfit, bigoted, incompetent moron. But hey, that’s just me.”
- “And while you can certainly criticize black ppl for supporting Dems, the other side has done nothing but endorse/promote white supremacy”
ESPN fired Curt Schilling last year after he shared a Facebook post that was transphobic. He had been previously suspended first for posting a picture comparing Muslims to Nazis, and again for complaining about his suspension.
Last month, ESPN apologized after its fantasy football auction prompted complaints it resembled a slave auction.
