In the hours after he said a homophobic slur in front of a hot mic, play-by-play announcer Thom Brennaman was quickly suspended by the Cincinnati Reds and now FOX Sports, from his scheduled NFL broadcasts for the upcoming season.
“FOX Sports is extremely disappointed with Thom Brennaman’s remarks during Wednesday’s Cincinnati Reds telecast,” FOX said in a statement Thursday. “The language used was abhorrent, unacceptable, and not representative of the values of FOX Sports.”
Brennaman has been a national announcer with FOX for decades, calling NFL games since 1994 and MLB games from 1996-2014. Last season, Brennaman was part of FOX’s No. 3 broadcast team, alongside analyst Chris Spielman and field reporter Shannon Spake. In 2006, Brennaman joined the Reds as a play-by-play announcer, the organization where his father Marty Brennaman worked as their radio voice from 1974-2019.
The disgraced broadcaster is now in crisis mode, offering a second apology in an op-ed for The Cincinnati Inquirer on Thursday as he attempts to express remorse and a commitment to understanding LGBTQ+ issues.
“To the LGBTQ+ community – I am truly and deeply sorry,” Brennaman wrote. “You should never be denigrated with crude and hateful language. I failed you, and I cannot say enough how sorry I am.”
The longtime Cincinnati Reds and FOX announcer went on to state the steps he’s taking to become more informed.
“I have spoken at length with Billy Bean, vice president and special assistant to the commissioner of baseball and an openly gay man, and Evan Millward, WCPO-TV anchorman, who have been generous with their time and patience to help me understand the impact of my actions and provided me with resources to educate myself and work to become a more informed person.
“With their help, I am going to start improving my understanding of LGBTQ+ issues and not in a way to simply check a box to keep my job, but to sincerely have an impact and change. I immediately plan to participate in diversity, equity and inclusion training and have reached out to PFLAG for resources and guidance.”
Two hours after uttering the slur during a live broadcast, Brennaman realized his career was in jeopardy, but a statement by GLAAD said his first apology was “incredibly weak and not enough,” also “demanding full accountability” from the Reds, Major League Baseball and FOX.
“I don’t know if I’m going to be putting on this headset again,” Brennaman said before exiting the Reds broadcast Wednesday night in the fifth inning. If he does get the opportunity to put the headset on again, it certainly won’t be any time soon.
