Jon Gruden's emails should be a wake-up call for ESPN
For Gruden to be employed as long as he was at ESPN and be so heavily sought after as a coach speaks poorly not only of the league, but also of the culture at ESPN.
Jon Gruden’s emails, which were revealed in a New York Times report as a result of an investigation the NFL is conducting into the Washington Football Team, determined that the former Monday Night Football color commentator doesn’t particularly care for people of color…or women…or individuals who have a different sexual orientation than his own. He’s also unbothered by the NFL’s concussion issue and thinks athletes who protest police brutality should be out of the league. In the words of one of Gruden’s former players Keyshawn Johnson, “He’s a bad person,” and there’s not much room to critique that point given all the hate that was piled up in the trove of email correspondences between Gruden and then-president of Washington’s football team Bruce Allen.
Gruden resigned from the Las Vegas Raiders late Monday, his only option considering even those whose platforms are dedicated to defending white people who mess up were calling for his ouster. Gruden worked for ESPN from 2009-17, during which time a majority of those emails were reportedly sent. He was one of the most recognizable faces on the network throughout his tenure, partnering with Mike Tirico, and then briefly Sean McDonough, on MNF broadcasts and hosting his own show where he’d mentor top quarterback prospects as they prepared to take the next step into the NFL. He was beloved and entertaining. Privately, he was expressing racist, misogynist and homophobic views, exchanging topless photos of Washington cheerleaders with Allen.
This revelation is an indictment on the culture at ESPN then, as well as now. Its highest-paid front-facing talent is Stephen A. Smith. The day after Gruden’s racist email to DeMaurice Smith was reported by the Wall Street Journal, many TV commentators went through careful lengths to both denounce racism and defend the character of the former ESPN employee. Gruden had stated that he “never had a blade of racism in me,” — which, side note, it’s always amusing to hear what made-up unit of measurement white men accused of racism use. Blade is certainly a new one — and several of his former colleagues took him at his word.
Stephen A. Smith, who was barely punished for recently suggesting Shohei Ohtani couldn’t be the face of the league because he didn’t speak English well enough, said Monday “Not a damn thing” should happen to Gruden. The next morning, following the New York Times report, Smith struck a different chord, claiming Gruden’s “career is over.” The irony is that Smith has his own history of racism, misogyny and homophobia on ESPN’s First Take, spoken out loud instead of through email.
And then there is the case of Sage Steele, a veteran ESPN anchor who went on former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler’s podcast a few weeks ago to spread racist and misogynistic and transphobic views. She was suspended by the network, but, as many pointed out, the statement ESPN released on Steele’s comments were much more forgiving than than a previous remarks on Jemele Hill, whose only sin was speaking out against racism.
To be sure, ESPN still employs plenty of talent who have spoken eloquently on Gruden’s emails, but the network’s insistence on hiring primarily former coaches and players as analysts and holding on to long-time commentators who are out of touch with today’s issues damages the overall brand. There are countless journalists who have departed ESPN in recent years, from Hill to Dan Le Batard, who were extremely well-equipped to provide valuable perspective on why Gruden’s emails are a bad look for a league that claims to be making strides in racial equality and hiring more women to prominent coaching positions. (It’s not going so well!)
The burden shouldn’t fall on someone like Johnson to announce that this is who Gruden was all along after a report like this is released. If the former Raiders and Buccaneers coach was casually tossing around slurs via his work email, he was undoubtedly saying these types of things aloud. For him to remain at ESPN as long as he did, to be as sought after as a head coach as long as he was, should spark further questions about the NFL investigation into the Washington Football Team, as well as its stagnant progress in creating a more inclusive workplace. But it also speaks poorly of the inhibiting culture of ESPN management. Gruden’s career may be over, but he shouldn’t be the only one.