ESPN has become just as “woke” as MSNBC.
The network routinely wades into the political arena.
Now ESPN has egg on its face after propping up one hoax.
The so-called mainstream media is quick to believe any sensationalistic story that feeds into a left-wing narrative.
For example, in 2006, the entire press fell for the Duke lacrosse rape scandal that turned out to be a hoax.
And the media has learned nothing since.
Now Duke volleyball player Rachel Richardson, who is black, claims that a fan hurled racial slurs at her throughout a match against BYU.
Richardson said, “In the fourth set, we went back to that side, and it was almost as if the atmosphere of the student section had changed. Even my Black teammates who were on the bench, who don’t play, they were being called out, pointed at, and it was really confusing as to why. That’s when the racial slurs and heckling just grew more and more intense.”
Stephen A. Smith of ESPN immediately ranted about the incident without knowing all of the facts.
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith responds to Duke volleyball's Rachel Richardson alleging Brigham Young University did not adequately address ongoing racial slurs directed at her during a match:
"BYU, you did it, by allowing this to happen and not addressing it expeditiously." pic.twitter.com/4iLnpd3U9D
— The Recount Alt (@therecountalt) August 29, 2022
However, there’s mounting evidence that suggests the story could be a hoax.
The Cougar Chronicles, a student newspaper at BYU, did some actual journalism and spoke to people who were at the game.
Nobody has corroborated the story that a fan was hurling racial slurs throughout the match.
The supposed fan was not escorted out, nobody spoke up, and nobody recorded the incident on a camera phone, which seems almost impossible in 2022.
BYU banned a fan from attending games, but supposedly he is not the fan in question.
The Cougar Chronicles spoke to a source inside the BYU athletic department who explained, “When a mentally challenged fan approached a Duke player. The Duke team then suddenly recognized the handicapped man’s ‘voice’ as the same one shouting slurs. They never saw or pointed out a face, just a voice. They banned this man. Not for slurs, but for interfering with visiting guests. BYU Athletics staff went through footage of the entire game and the man Duke identified was never seated in the student section. Her story doesn’t add up, BYU banned an innocent man to appease the mob and make their PR mess go away. While I don’t know if Ms. Richardson genuinely misheard something or intentionally made up this story, it certainly does not constitute the criticism BYU has gotten. There is zero evidence of a slur being said. Not a single witness, besides Ms. Richardson, has come forth. Not a single cell phone video or BYUtv’s several camera angles caught a single thing. How unlikely when this person supposedly said a slur during ‘every single serve.’”
If the story is indeed a hoax, the left created the conditions for this with victimhood culture.
It’s the same reason why Hollywood actor Jussie Smollett faked a hate crime in Chicago despite being a series regular on a hit television show.
Victimhood is currency in left-wing culture.
And media outlets like ESPN are responsible.