Why ESPN's Actions over Lin Headline Do More Harm Than Good
Anthony Federico had a career he was proud of, but with one misguided headline he was fired by ESPN.
After Jeremy Lin committed nine turnovers against the New Orleans Hornets on Friday night, Federico used the headline, "Chink in the Armor: Jeremy Lin's 9 Turnovers Cost Knicks in Streak-Stopping Loss to Hornets."
The 28-year-old's headline appeared on ESPN's mobile website at 2:30 a.m. EST on Saturday. By 3:05 a.m., the headline had caused an uproar because of Lin's heritage as an Asian-American and was pulled by ESPN. On Sunday, Federico was fired by the network.
But firing Federico is taking the easy way out. Although his headline was certainly a firable offense, what does anyone gain by Federico's firing?
Federico told the New York Daily News:
""This had nothing to do with me being cute or punny.
"I'm so sorry that I offended people. I'm so sorry if I offended Jeremy."
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Federico also said he had used the phrase "at least 100 times" in headlines over the years and didn't think anything of it when he placed it on the Lin story.
ESPN anchor Max Bretos was also suspended 30 days by ESPN for using the phrase on the air last week while referencing Lin. Bretos' wife is Asian.
Bretos tweeted on Saturday:
""My wife is Asian, would never intentionally say anything to disrespect her and that community. Despite intention, phrase was inappropriate in this context.
"I have learned from this will make every effort to avoid something similar happening again."
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I honestly think both Federico and Bretos simply made stupid mistakes. "Chink in the armor" is a regular saying in this country. Unfortunately, it can also be seen as a racial slur in this context.
It's hard to look at Federico's headline and not be angry. When I first saw it, I was shocked. At the same time, while it's only natural to think it was on purpose, I don't believe it was. It was just an extremely bad choice of words.
Federico wouldn't risk his career just to create traffic. That makes no sense. He's 28 years old and was apparently happy at ESPN, where he had worked since 2006.
Federico told the Daily News, "I had a career that I was proud of. I'm devastated that I caused a firestorm."
I believe Federico should have been suspended. Firing him doesn't allow him to grow from his mistakes.
It also doesn't address the core issue: being sensitive to all races. I find it hard to believe Federico will make this same mistake. In that sense, this could actually be looked at as a learning experience for everyone, Federico included. Pointing fingers never does anyone any good. It only adds to the destruction.
Imagine if Federico went on with ESPN, learning from his experience, and made the network proud. It would be a success story, not a catastrophe.
We all need to stick with each other. The hate thrown around in this country can be overwhelming sometimes.
Federico made an honest mistake and he truly regrets it. Who knows what he could have done with ESPN if he was allowed to grow from his mistake instead of being called a failure from the start.
"Being called a failure from the start."
Sounds similar to how Lin's NBA career began.
