HBOs Gumbel: Lack of Blacks Makes Olympics Look Like a GOP Convention
Dave Pierre, NewsBusters.com, Feb. 16, 2006
There were some eye-opening remarks from Bryant Gumbel on the most recent episode of HBOs Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel. According to a transcript posted by a television columnist named Seth Frelich, Gumbel said the following in his closing monologue last week (emphasis mine):
Finally, tonight, the Winter Games. Count me among those who dont like them and wont watch them . . . Because theyre so trying, maybe over the next three weeks we should all try too. Like, try not to be incredulous when someone attempts to link these games to those of the ancient Greeks who never heard of skating or skiing. So try not to laugh when someone says these are the worlds greatest athletes, despite a paucity of blacks that makes the Winter Games look like a GOP convention. Try not to point out that somethings not really a sport if a pseudo-athlete waits in whats called a kiss-and-cry area, while some panel of subjective judges decides who won . . . So if only to hasten the arrival of the day theyre done, when we can move on to March Madnessfor Gods sake, let the games begin.
Video clip (31 secs), from the Real Sports originally aired February 7, as provided by the MRCs Brent Baker: Real (665 KB), Windows Media (1 MB) or MP3 audio (185 KB).
The comments have received scant coverage, with the San Francisco Chronicle (in a betting column) and The Columbus Dispatch (in a People in the News column) among the few outlets that have even mentioned the episode.
Kudos to radio talk-show host Larry Elder for highlighting the remarks.
Gumbels remarks have been followed by many angry posts at HBOs Real Sports Bulletin Boards. The story was also picked up at Free Republic, where one poster wrote, Remember what they did to Rush over the McNabb remark. I will contact HBO.
Youd think these remarks would have received more attention than they have. (Well, maybe not.) Its just hard to imagine a Bill OReilly or Sean Hannity getting a pass on something like this. Dontcha think?
Flashback: MRC: Bryant Gumbel: Liberal Activist Masquerading as Impartial Journalist