Longtime announcer for the Oakland Athletics was fired this month for dropping a word that will land you a pink slip. It wasn’t intentional, but the word tumbled out all the same on live television, and the damage was done. Glen Kuiper, who has been with the Athletics since 2006, was fired by NBC Sports California for dropping the n-word during a pregame show before the A’s played the Kansas City Royals on May 5. He was discussing his visit to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum but got tripped up in the first word of that location. He apologized but was suspended for the oversight and later fired (via ESPN):
"Following an internal review, the decision has been made for NBC Sports California to end its relationship with Glen Kuiper, effective immediately," the network said in a statement on Monday. "We thank Glen for his dedication to Bay Area baseball over the years."
A person familiar with the investigation told the Associated Press that "the decision was based on a variety of factors, including information uncovered in the internal review." The person spoke on condition of anonymity and didn't divulge specific details because the network had not publicly disclosed the results of the investigation.
Kuiper apologized on the air later in that game without getting into specifics, saying he said something that "didn't come out quite the way I wanted it to." He later issued a statement through the network when he was suspended, saying: "I could not be more sorry and horrified by what I said. I hope you will accept my sincerest apologies."
He reiterated that apology as part of another statement released Monday night, taking full responsibility for what he called "a terrible but honest mispronunciation" during his excitement to talk about his trip to the museum earlier that day.
"Please know racism is in no way a part of me; it never has been and it never will be," he said. "I appreciate the Negro League Museum president Bob Kendrick and Oakland A's great Dave Stewart's public support of me in light of this. I am an honest, caring, kind, honorable, respectful husband and father who would never utter a disparaging word about anybody. Those who know me best know this about me.
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A's manager Mark Kotsay said the decision wasn't made by the team and that he sympathizes with Kuiper.
"I can't imagine being in his shoes right now," Kotsay said. "I think, personally, we missed an opportunity here maybe to use this as an educational platform. But as you said, I don't make decisions, and this isn't a decision I was involved in and nor was the organization, really. This was a decision made by NBC."
I think this was an honest mistake, but those errors can get you fired, especially with that word and how the media reacts to anything racially charged. The same goes for other forms of strong language. Charles Rocket infamously blurted out the F-word when he was on Saturday Night Live in the 1980s. He was fired over the incident, though other contributing factors led to a casting overhaul. Still, there’s no beating around the bush here. Kuiper said the word, and there’s no going back from that.
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