ESPN pulls Williams from MNF opening

[spacedoodoopistol]

The article, and the comments, are all about the amazing and widening polarization in our political environment. Not only do you have a guy comparing Obama (a very mild political leader, if nothing else) to Hitler (an extreme murderous revolutionary), which should be ridiculous no matter how you feel about the guy, you actually have people defending the comment out of pure party loyalty......THEN acting like Disney is just doing this because they have liberal sympathies. Its like people just assume conspiracy at this point, the internet is making people into paranoid loons who think the other side is like some other species.

Look, Disney is solely in this for the money. They make a decision like this based on pure economic considerations, nothing to do with right vs. left or liberal bias. They play everything as straight down the middle as they can, they are not in the business of being controversial. If they think there's one dollar to be made canning this fool, they'll do it, nevermind who said what about which party.

 

[spacedoodoopistol]

I have a feeling if he said this about Bush, ABC does nothing.

Ask the Dixie Chicks how that all works.

 

[Mozart'sGhost]

Ask the Dixie Chicks how that all works.

The Dixie Chicks were stupid. Their audience are redneck hillbilly bible thumper types. Just the kind that love Mr. Bush. That was just dumb.

 

[Mozart'sGhost]

Me scared or ABC?

ABC

 

[Kinzu]

Ok some of the references brought up on here were good reasons for people losing jobs or being taking off the air or losing sponsors. I mean Tiger Woods was a cancer to sponsors during the divorce. Imus made a horrible racial comment for no reason and with no context. These are actions that shed negative light on the person making them.

Williams on the other hand simply made a legit statement. It was not a hate filled comment because of Obama's color or anything. He is not happy with the President and there is nothing wrong with him saying it. It's like others on here have said, Bush got called all kinds of things by the media during his last years in office. Keith Olbermann made a career on MSNBC out of bashing President Bush on a nightly basis.

Also celebrities take political sides all the time especially during campaign years. Who else remembers all the celebrities campaigning for Obama? Did that hurt their star power? Did they lose sponsors? I'm sure their views turned some people off to them, but the majority of this country is not extreme enough to shun them for it or boycott a TV show or movie they are in.

Also, I'm pretty sure it would be a wrongful termination if you were fired over your political views. That would classify as discrimination.

 

[sayheykid1]

Alienate a large portion of our customers? While people might not agree with his comments, doesn't ABC have people on their channels that debate politics? Do they not ridicule the presidents. I remember all the Bush hate on their channels. They invite those people on. But if somebody says it on a competing network, they cancel his song? Just wondering why ABC would invite people to bash on one president, but if somebody says something like this about Obama, it is a big deal. Bush was called Hitler everyday.

Apples and Oranges. ESPN doesn't pay Williams to debate politics or be controversial. ABC pays plenty of political commentators to bash Obama.

Who called Bush Hitlter and what relevance does it have to the HW and ESPN situation?

 

[clyde_carbon]

You said Netanyahu to hitler was a better comparison. Netanyahu is the Prime minister of Israel. He is Jewish. Hitler tried to kill all the Jews. That is why I was confused on the Hitler to netanyahu comment.

Obviously. I was just saying that he and Hitler are more comparable than Obama and Hitler. I didn't say they were the same person.

 

[deep9er]

only a 49er loss gets more action than a political topic??!!

allow me one last comment..........Disney has free speech rights too don't they? so they said take Williams off MY property, whats to argue over?

 

[sayheykid1]

Nobody called him Hitler.

Was Boehner Hitler and Obama Netanyahu? You don't think the fact that he is paralleling Adolf Hitler's possible relationship with an Israeli head of state to a US Speaker of the House's relationship with the POTUS to be moronic?

 

[sayheykid1]

and what the fuck does Obama being black have to do with anything. I am tired of that bull shit. He sucks ass no matter what color he might be.

I was noting the weirdness of calling either a Jew or a Black dude Hitler.

 

[sayheykid1]

I don't get why he is being punished? He said that he didn't like those two playing golf together. He said they are polar opposites and that is why he used the Hitler Netanyahu comparison. He said it might be extreme but he was trying to make a point. He din't call Obama Hitler. People are so damn over the top.

The point that Hank Williams is an ignorant buffoon was made crystal clear.

 

[luckyluke22]

Ok some of the references brought up on here were good reasons for people losing jobs or being taking off the air or losing sponsors. I mean Tiger Woods was a cancer to sponsors during the divorce. Imus made a horrible racial comment for no reason and with no context. These are actions that shed negative light on the person making them.

Williams on the other hand simply made a legit statement. It was not a hate filled comment because of Obama's color or anything. He is not happy with the President and there is nothing wrong with him saying it. It's like others on here have said, Bush got called all kinds of things by the media during his last years in office. Keith Olbermann made a career on MSNBC out of bashing President Bush on a nightly basis.

Also celebrities take political sides all the time especially during campaign years. Who else remembers all the celebrities campaigning for Obama? Did that hurt their star power? Did they lose sponsors? I'm sure their views turned some people off to them, but the majority of this country is not extreme enough to shun them for it or boycott a TV show or movie they are in.

Also, I'm pretty sure it would be a wrongful termination if you were fired over your political views. That would classify as discrimination.

There's nothing wrong with taking a political side. But if you chose to express those views, then you are accountable for your verbal actions and the perception they carry.

In this case, he called the President the enemy. Compared him to modern history's greatest murderous villain, and clearly intended to make a negative statement regarding this countries highest office.

Now if you call your boss an asshole, he can fire you. Ask Charlie Sheen.

If Disney/ESPN cares to no longer associate themselves with a singer's controversial statements they are perfectly within their rights. It's not a first amendment violation.

 

[yehyeh]

. I have a feeling if he said this about Bush, ABC does nothing.

Man, you're all over the place in this thread and you are completely wrong with this statement. ABC does not like controversy at all and if you want an example, look up why they fired Bill Maher. He said the terrorists weren't cowards on 9/11 and was canned immediately. If you say or do something that can bring controversy to Disney they will dump you. They have an innocent image to protect.

 

[MHSL82]

Didn't Madonna call Bush Hitler and now she's going to be in the Superbowl Halftime show? Not trying to jump into the debate, but that's what I heard.

Also, the Dixie Chicks get called freedom of speech heroes for criticizing Bush and when someone makes an analogy he's evil. I'm not conservative, I just got annoyed how much the Dixie Chicks ran with it. I get that they were threatened but they acted like they were tortured and maimed and stood by their rights to save babies from Africa when all they did was say they hated their president. Maybe I saw too much tv at the time, but it ticked me off after the first ten times I heard about them standing strong.

I am not an Obama supporter either, but I wouldn't say something against him and be pounding my chest about it. (Not a Bush supporter either but wouldn't congratulate myself on saying it.) I tend to figure that the world if given a choice would be against us and not with us, so I will defend whoever is president with a foreigner and with a citizen I'd be open for debate but not public negative comments. At the end of the day, I don't see my words/opinion meaning a whole lot in the political world.

 

[Rvnight18]

For fuck sakes people read the damn article. He never called Obama Hitler! Man this is annoying. He said Obama and Beohner golfing together would be like Hitler and Netanyahu golfing together. He used it to show that Hitler and Netanyahu would never golf together so why are Obama and Boehner? You can say I was over the top, which I agree with, but damn people he never called him Hitler.

 

[Rvnight18]

It should say "you can say it was over the top". Not " you can say I was over the top". Darn iPhone.

 

[Mozart'sGhost]

Man, you're all over the place in this thread and you are completely wrong with this statement. ABC does not like controversy at all and if you want an example, look up why they fired Bill Maher. He said the terrorists weren't cowards on 9/11 and was canned immediately. If you say or do something that can bring controversy to Disney they will dump you. They have an innocent image to protect.

Maher was right. It takes balls to fly a plane into a building creating a fiery inferno in which you die a horrible death. Now lobbing cruise missles from a submarine 100 miles out in the middle of the ocean, that does seem more cowardly.

 

[Mozart'sGhost]

For fuck sakes people read the damn article. He never called Obama Hitler! Man this is annoying. He said Obama and Beohner golfing together would be like Hitler and Netanyahu golfing together. He used it to show that Hitler and Netanyahu would never golf together so why are Obama and Boehner? You can say I was over the top, which I agree with, but damn people he never called him Hitler.

Exactly! Why can't people who seem to understand the English language in all other topics comprehend this?

 

[Arete Tzu]

For fuck sakes people read the damn article. He never called Obama Hitler! Man this is annoying. He said Obama and Beohner golfing together would be like Hitler and Netanyahu golfing together. He used it to show that Hitler and Netanyahu would never golf together so why are Obama and Boehner? You can say I was over the top, which I agree with, but damn people he never called him Hitler.

Still a stupid comment. Obama and Boehner aren't that level of enemies. Is there really something wrong with a conservative, and liberal coming together to do something? Obama and Boehner playing golf together shouldn't be a controversy, it shouldn't be politicized, it's something no one should give a fuck about. It's a fuckin golf game. It's extremely insignificant. It just hows how deep into the bullshit people really are. We look for any excuse we could possibly find to divide people.

Then to compare it to one of the worst moments in earth's history, is purely idiotic. This hitler shit needs to die already, It's pathetic seeing both sides bring it up over every fuckin issue, then crying like little girls "but the side did it" seriously? Like that justifies it? IT'S STUPID WHEN BOTH SIDES DO IT! Our politics keep devolving deeper into childish bullshit.

I'm so sick of it. Fuck Hank Williams and anyone like him on either side.

 

[mufasa76]

Hate to break it to you but ESPN is owned by Disney, and Disney is very conservative.

Finally - thank you!