Funny, he was certainly black enough for ESPN when he was breaking down racial barriers in a predominantly white sport and earning networks and fellow pro golfers record amounts of money.
Max Kellerman and Stephen A. Smith, co-hosts of “First Take” on ESPN, hammered Tiger Woods for the crime of telling people that no matter who is in the White House, the office of the presidency should be respected.
“He’s the President of the United States. You have to respect the office. No matter who is in the office, you may like, dislike personality or the politics, but we all must respect the office,” Woods dared to suggest.
For that, Kellerman questioned Tiger’s intelligence while Smith declared the only time he was really black was when he was arrested.
“Tiger Woods … is being slick,” Kellerman claimed, adding that he viewed the golfer’s statement to be thoughtless. “We must respect the office therefore that confers respect to the occupant. Tiger, is that is what you are saying? If that is what you are saying, that is a stupid comment.”
Whoa, whoa, whoa there friend. It is generally understood that questioning one’s intelligence, as per Maxine Waters, is racist. And Kellerman just told a prominent African-American that he has no right to an opinion, is dumb, and essentially needs to shut up and golf. Why is he still employed by the network? Why have his advertisers not been relentlessly hounded?
Tiger Woods’ ‘respect the office’ statement about Trump blasted by ESPN host Max Kellerman https://t.co/SY3SQG545C
— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 28, 2018
Had this been a conservative, say somebody like Curt Schilling questioning the intellect of a black athlete, his desk would have already been cleared off.
But then, maybe that’s not what happened after all. Smith went on to explain that … meh, maybe, just maybe, Tiger isn’t really black.
“I don’t even know if he believes that’s what he’s saying,” Kellerman said, exasperated.
“Well, first of all, we don’t know what Tiger Woods believes. He’s Cablinasian. He’s not black,” responded Smith. “When he got arrested, he was black. He was listed black on the report.”
In less than 20 seconds on @FirstTake, @stephenasmith and @maxkellerman completely insult Tiger Woods’s intelligence and then race card him because he said that he respects Donald Trump, or whoever is in office. @ClayTravis pic.twitter.com/AaYCEo7mWV
— Ryan Moses (@RMoses10) August 27, 2018
It’s safe to assume neither of these gentlemen should be calling out anyone based on their perceived lack of intelligence. Smith and Kellerman are two of the more rabidly unintelligent men on television, let alone in sports media.
It speaks to a major problem that ESPN has and why they are constantly canceling shows, rotating hosts, or flat out firing people in droves.
These are the kinds of hosts they want on the air. They intentionally try to stir up controversy. Whether it’s Smith, or Kellerman, Jemele Hill, or Colin Cowherd, they either play the social justice warrior shtick, the far-left shtick, or they intentionally take the opposite side of popular opinion on every topic.
And if you’re intentionally taking the opposite side on everything, you’re really nothing more than a one-dimensional soap opera character. They don’t have minds of their own, they are simply paid to play a role and try and bring in ratings. As a result, it makes for some pretty unintelligent commentary and programming.
Sigh. Utterly predictable. Tiger Woods said he respects the office of the president & @espn called him stupid for it. https://t.co/craCGhnXMI
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) August 27, 2018
It should be noted that Kellerman is a former rapper (guess that makes him guilty of cultural appropriation as well) and was once suspended from ESPN for an admission of domestic violence toward his then-girlfriend and future wife.
Smith has been critical of Trump in the past, particularly pertaining to his feud with Lebron James, but has also raised eyebrows when suggesting the black community should vote Republican.
Maybe stick to sports, fellas.
