Liberal Twitter Goes to Bat for Suspended ESPN Host Jemele Hill

Getty Mpu Dinani
Getty Images/Mpu Dinani
Warner Todd Huston

Liberals sports writers and others in the entertainment and media business, wasted no time in voicing their support for suspended anti-Trump ESPN host Jemele Hill. ESPN suspended Hill for two weeks, after she violated the company’s social media policy for the second time.

A growing list of users with verified Twitter accounts jumped to Hill’s support after she posted a series of tweets that were essentially a call to boycott the Dallas Cowboys, the richest franchise in the NFL and an incredibly important franchise to ESPN.

In short order, ESPN suspended the host and issued a statement saying the following:

Jemele Hill has been suspended for two weeks for a second violation of our social media guidelines. She previously acknowledged letting her colleagues and company down with an impulsive tweet. 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.

As the news spread, many liberals immediately jumped to Hill’s support.

Liberal sports site Deadspin, for instance, insisted there was “no good reason” to suspend the offending host:

The Bleacher Report’s Ryan McCrystal essentially accused ESPN of protecting racists, with their suspension of Hill:

So did the so-called “real journalist” site the Palmer Report:

CNN host Brian Stelter posted a quote from a CNN contributor who wondered how ESPN could be upset that it had hired an outspoken host.

“Doesn’t she get paid to be a strong woman with strong opinions?” asked CNN’s Brooke Baldwin.

One could point out that neither Brooke Baldwin nor CNN were seen coming to the support of the “strong” ESPN hosts like Curt Schilling, Craig James, and Mike Ditka who ESPN fired for having strong conservative opinions.

Others had responses that were just as strong.

Left-wing journalist Andrew Jerell uproariously claimed that Hill was being held to a higher standard than others:

https://twitter.com/sluggahjells/status/917481965229572097

Again, one is tempted to ask the conservatives ESPN fired about that line of reasoning.

HuffPost writer Tony Posnanski‏ attempted to make Hill’s violation of her company’s Twitter policy an example of ESPN’s hypocrisy:

Sports Nation writer Alex Kirshner‏ tried to make Hill’s suspension all Donald Trump’s fault.

https://twitter.com/alex_kirshner/status/917472246150696960

Others agreed with that assessment and it was a common opinion among liberals today:

Purported movie director and writer Spooky X scolded those who were until now talking about free speech:

The Root insisted that Hill doesn’t even need ESPN:

I’d guess Hill’s financial planner would have something to say about that.

LGBTQ activist Amy Siskind‏ urged a boycott of ESPN unless Hill is returned to the air:

Someone should inform Siskind that the sports network is already losing millions of viewers a month as it is.

Richard Deitsch, a writer for Sports Illustrated, tweeted about how other African American ESPN hosts were taking this news.

Black Sports Online founder Robert Littal‏ wondered where people sticking up for female journalists are on this story:

Even MSNBC rabble rouser Al Sharpton jumped into the game calling Hill’s suspension an “outrage.”

There were many thousands more, of course, but these give a good series of examples of how leftists on Twitter have responded to ESPN’s decision to finally hold Jemele Hill accountable. Even if it’s about a month late.

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.

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