ESPN's morning show "First Take" serves as talk show and debate forum of sorts for network personalities, usually Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith, allowing them to say things to stir up chatter and argue about the point for an hour back and forth.
Things took a bad turn for the show on Thursday, as commentator Rob Parker made some racially charged comments about Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III. ESPN took action on Friday, suspending Parker for his comments and saying that the network will hold a full review of the situation.
ESPN spokesperson Josh Krulewitz said on Friday: "Following yesterday's comments, Rob Parker has been suspended until further notice. We are conducting a full review."
The comments Parker made occurred when he was asked about Griffin's role as a black quarterback in the NFL, after which he questioned the players "blackness."
"Is he a brother or a cornball brother?" said Parker, who is also black, according to ESPN.com.
Later in the show he elaborated on the comments and said that he would like to find out more about Griffin and his relationship to other African-American teammates and people in Washington.
"We all know he has a white fiancee," Parker said. "There was all this talk about he's a Republican, which, there's no information [about that] at all. I'm just trying to dig deeper as to why he has an issue. Because we did find out with Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods was like I've got black skin but don't call me black. So people got to wondering about Tiger Woods early on."
Skip Bayless was on the show and helped to stoke the debate, asking Parker about Griffin's braids, saying, "What do RG3's braids say to you?"
"To me, that's very urban," Parker said, possibly not realizing how his remarks sounded. "It makes you feel like ... I think he would have a clean cut if he were more straight-laced or not ... wearing braids is ... you're a brother. You're a brother. If you've got braids on."
Parker took a lot of heat for the comments on social media and Twitter and responded later, saying his critics were "uneducated" and "silly." He later stopped using Twitter and hasn't written anything since Thursday. Despite the comments, Parker still has some fans on Twitter.
"First Take" on Friday did not address the incident and had panelists Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith talk about the NFL slate of games this weekend.
Following the comments, Robert Griffin II, the quarterback's father, spoke with USA Today Sports:
"He needs to define what 'one of us' is. That guy needs to define that I wouldn't say it's racism. I would just say some people put things out there about people so they can stir things up."
DeMaurice Smith, executive director of the NFL Players Association, commented to the Washington Post on Friday in an email.
"Robert can certainly take care of himself. Nonetheless, I hope that our men and for that matter, my own kids, will never beg for authenticity from someone who can only talk about the things that other people have the courage to do. People need to be held accountable for the offensive things that they say."
Griffin has been one of the best rookies and quarterbacks in the league this season, throwing for 2,902 yards and 18 touchdowns with just four interceptions. He is completing over 66 percent of his passes and has rushed for 748 yards and six touchdowns.
While playing quarterback at Baylor last season he won the Heisman trophy and was the second-overall pick in the draft behind Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck.
Parker has dealt with other incidents in the past, according to Yahoo Sports. He made a false claim about Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins in 2008, saying that he was involved with a fight at a party, which turned out to not be true.
"I was wrong. I apologize," Parker said later on, after first trying to defend his report. "I have reached out to the student-athlete's family and apologized. They have accepted. I also apologize to the Michigan State community."
There also was another incident when Parker was with the Detroit News that forced him to leave the paper in 2009. He asked Lions head coach Rod Marinelli following the team's 0-16 season "if he had wished his daughter married a better defensive coordinator," referring to Joe Barry, Marinelli's son-in-law.
"Anytime you attack my daughter, I've got a problem with that," Marinelli said at the time, according to ESPN.com.
These issues are notable considering what Parker said and while it isn't exactly the same, it relates to another incident from years ago when ESPN brought conservative, right-winger Rush Limbaugh to their Sunday NFL show. Limbaugh made disparaging and racist comments about Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb and resigned soon after.
"Sorry to say this, I don't think he's been that good from the get-go. I think what we've had here is a little social concern in the NFL. The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well. There is a little hope invested in McNabb, and he got a lot of credit for the performance of this team that he didn't deserve. The defense carried this team."
Here is a transcript of the incident on First Take with Parker:
Rob Parker: "But my question, which is just a straight, honest question, is: Is he a brother or is he a cornball brother?"
Cari Champion: "What does that mean?"
Skip Bayless: "Explain that."
Parker: "He's not real. OK, he's black, he kind of does the thing, but he's not really down with the cause. He's not one of us. He's kind of black but he's not really, like, the guy you want to hang out with because he's off to something else.
Champion: "Why is that your question?"
Parker: "Well because that's just how I want to find out about him. I don't know because I keep hearing these things. We all know he has a white fiancée. There was all this talk about how he's a Republican, which, I don't really care, there's no information at all. I'm just trying to dig deeper into why he has an issue. Because we did find out with Tiger Woods. Tiger Woods was like, I've got black skin but don't call me black."
