Oakland A's broadcaster Glen Kuiper fired for using racial slur on-air
Oakland Athletics broadcaster Glen Kuiper has been fired by NBC Sports California after using a racial slur during a telecast on May 5.
The network suspended Kuiper after the slur aired during a pregame segment ahead of Oakland’s road tilt against the Kansas City Royals. Kuiper, alongside colleague Dallas Braden, discussed a trip the two made earlier that day to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. The 60-year-old seemingly mispronounced “Negro,” with the word instead sounding like a racial slur.
NBC Sports California reviewed the incident, and came to its decision Monday.
“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 Monday, per the Associated Press. “We thank Glen for his dedication to Bay Area baseball over the years.”
Kuiper, who first began appearing on Athletics broadcasts in 2004 and became the primary announcer in 2006, apologized on air, saying he said something that “didn’t come out quite the way I wanted it to.”
Bob Kendrick, president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, later commented on the matter.
“I’m aware of the unfortunate slur made by Glen Kuiper,” Kendrick wrote on Twitter. “I welcomed Glen to the NLBM yesterday and know he was genuinely excited to be here. The word is painful and has no place in our society. And while I don’t pretend to know Glen’s heart I do know that my heart is one of forgiveness. I hope all of you will find it in yourselves to do the same!”
Dallas Braden explains lack of reaction to Glen Kuiper using racial slur on MLB broadcast
In the video, Braden doesn’t react to Kuiper using the slur. Amid fans questioning his lack of response, Braden took to Twitter to explain his side of the incident. Braden explained he had a producer in his ear whom he was listening to at the time. This kept his focus and made him miss the slur.
“At the time of the incident, I was not aware that anything in the broadcast was amiss,” Braden wrote. “The nuances of live television mean that sometimes we, as broadcasters, miss some of what you, our audiences, hear. We have producers speaking in our ears about what is next, we are formulating our words to articulate our thoughts, we are moving direction from camera to camera, we are waiting for cues, we are checking sound.
“We have lots going on that is not always visible to our audience. In that moment, I missed the comment and was not aware of it until the sixth inning when Glen Kuiper made an apology.”