Last month, the Cincinnati Reds pulled sports broadcaster Thom Brennaman from their game after he used a homophobic slur on air.
Video of the incident went viral and Brennaman, 56, was placed on indefinite suspension.
Thom Brennamann likely ends his Reds career tonight LIVE on the air pic.twitter.com/EDzSICgVmx
— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) August 19, 2020
Now he’s speaking for the first time, embarking on an apology tour that draws into question his level of sincerity.
“Believe me, I know there are a lot of people who are still very angry and I understand that,” Brennaman told The New York Post.
How about we take this to the next level?
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He arranged a lunch meeting with Evan Millward, a gay Cincinnati newscaster, who told the Post, “It was pretty clear to me early on that he was not using me.”
Reflecting on the experience, Brennaman said:
“Everything happened so fast. And I’m watching literally everything fall apart at the seams while trying to announce a baseball game.
“I couldn’t even tell you what happened, where it came from. … Look, I said it is all that matters. The rest of it is irrelevant. I said it. And I own it. And I’m the one who has to live with it.”
But Brennaman may have taken his remorse act a bit too far when he added, “I have never used that word (before) in my life.”
Ryan Messer, an LGBTQ activist in Cincinnati, isn’t buying that part. Nor should anyone with half a brain. But still, Messer sees more value in opening a conversation with Brennaman than simply hitting the “cancel” button.
“If he used it then, he used it before,” Messer said. But “if we don’t open the dialogue to help explain (the meaning behind the word), how do we learn and grow from it? And that’s where my whole perspective comes, and I’m willing to make sure he understands that, which is why he is coming to my house Saturday to meet my family, my husband and four kids.”
“If I get another chance, someone will be hiring a better person than the person who walked out the door that night on Aug. 19,” Brennaman insists.
dhmonarch89
I get opening a dialog, BUT- It’s been a career killer for the last 10+ years- surely he should have been aware of that unless his head’s been in the sand all that time. I NEVER buy the heat of the moment argument either- in the heat of the moment, you go to your wheel house, you don’t pull words you’ve never used or lapse into a foreign language.
Martin Spikes
Gays are demons, he did nothing wrong.
Cam
@Martin Spikes
You searched the internet, found an LGBTQ blog, and registered for an account all so you could attack “Gays”.
Oh honey, we know EXACTLY what you are. (Closet case says what?)
Essie
I’m all for giving a person a second chance but he blew that chance when he lied and said he had never said that word before. There is no way he never used that word. It just flowed out of his mouth like it was a part of him. I hate a liar. If you’re doing a “forgive me tour” you should try not to tell a lie. Go away Thom.
Martin Spikes
QUEERTY I DARE U TO MODERATE MY COMMENT Y’ALL AT QUEERTY ARE HETEROPHOBES AND STRAIGHTPHOBES! DOWN WITTH YOUR DISGUSTING SEXUAL IMMORAL COMMUNITY!
Cam
@Martin Spikes
Sweetie we know you’re a self hating closet case. Searching out LGBTQ blogs, signing up, coming in here to comment. Oh you aren’t fooling anybody gurl.
ScottOnEarth
Seriously, who cares? Something like this should not end someone’s career. One word. We ALL say things that are not politically-correct and he happened to say it on the air. I’m not saying it was great but this world has somehow gotten so sensitive that we must destroy (cancel) anyone who appears less than perfect in public. He said it. He made a mistake. He accepts responsibility. He apologized. Move on.
Inspector 57
ScoottOnEarth… So if I murdered someone and said to his family, “Gee. So sorry,” would that make me innocent?!
Inspector 57
Not buying it. Not buying it AT ALL.
Just as with Kevin Hart, you CANNOT be an adult and NOT know how disrespectful and hateful that term is.
Brennaman needs to be sh*t-canned NOW.
And Messer needs to let this go, as opposed to using it as an opportunity to advance his career.
dave1000
Inspector 57: So you equate murder with using a slur? And he didn’t say Mr. Brennaman was innocent. Are you telling me that you have never used an insult in your whole life? Should you be shit-canned for it? I’m not saying there shouldn’t be consequences, but let the punishment fit the crime.
Jack Meoff
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks. He won’t actually change his thinking he will just be more careful not to f#$k up in future.
Cam
They always go to far in their defense. Apologize, reach out, I get that. But claiming you’ve never said a word that fell off your lips that easily. It makes the entire apology seem disingenuous.
montegutdude
Well I don’t buy the remorse act but I get why you’d try to save your career. It’s just not a good look. The word itself is denigrating enough in this usage but in context it goes beyond that to harboring ill-will toward entire groups of people. People like me. It’s not about being perfect or never making a mistake. I have serious issues with cancel culture. But if Thom Brennaman really thinks that lowly of gay folks, I’m surely not going to be too sad if he’s not flashing his pearly whites on TV while harboring his anti-gay views either.
BaltoSteve
Let’s face the truth here, what he said is part of his active vocabulary. I don’t buy the stressful utterance bs. When stressed about something.. I don’t suddenly start using all those old and middle English words that I learned in high school English. I say the most common words that are in my ACTIVE vocabulary. He is sorry (he got caught). He doesn’t say that word (on an open mic). He knows why it’s wrong and opening a dialog is just a smoke screen to try and save his pathetic homophobic ass.
sillyme
Or there are more so called human beings in the world that can forgive if a person can grow and learn from a mistake to become better and not to use it in the same way or context on air or such than there are in the comment area of this section of hate filled people that have never done 1 thing wrong in their entire life at all, and I bet that would include telling a lie to cover an error or make a mistake at school where you learn more from teachers or your peer groups about “good behaviour” than you might think. NO we can’t forgive anyone for anything is a crock of shit. Stand up and count yourself lucky that we have the ability to forgive someone or get the hell out of this area and go live like a hermit off all types of grids and don’t bother anyone or shut the hell up with your hate you goons.
BaltoSteve
I see that you are of the “Do What I Say Not As I Do” Camp. Good to know.
amanwithanedge
did you notice those stretch marks around her mouth.
jckfmsincty
He seems sincerely sorry that he was caught.
Thad
So what’s he gonna do for the rest of his life? Probably get a similar job in another market. At least he’s getting a good schooling and just might be more respectful in his next job.
Hockey’s Mike Milbury and Jeremy Roenick are on hiatus for inappropriate comments as well (not antigay, but still).