Enter ESPN’s response to the death of former Cuban president Fidel Castro.
Forbes contributor Alex Reimer wrote:
Fidel Castro was a tyrant whose oppressive regime killed thousands of Cubans and forced millions more to leave the small island nation during a refugee crisis that’s lasted more than a half-century. But in ESPN’s tone-deaf remembrance piece, Castro’s atrocities are glossed over. Instead, the WorldWide Leader focuses its efforts on glorifying the dictator’s love of sport.
ESPN’s piece—titled, “Fidel Castro, 90, fused sports into Cuba’s national identity”—provides PR pros with an idea of what overreaching to jump on a trending topic looks like. The article reads, in part:
Soon after coming to power, Castro recognized the potential benefits of national excellence in athletics and Cuba eventually became one of the strongest sporting nations in the world -- despite a population only slightly greater than New York City's.
At the Olympics, Castro's athletes were at their best. Cuba won no gold medals at any Games from 1906 to 1968, but all of that changed beginning in 1972. In Munich, then in Montreal and then in Moscow -- Games the United States boycotted -- Cuba was an Olympic force. Heavyweight boxer Teofilo Stevenson won three consecutive gold medals and Alberto Juantorena became the first man to win both the 400- and 800-meter races.
Cuban sport was back in the international spotlight in 1991 as the nation hosted the Pan-Am Games, which, more than any athlete, Castro dominated. He seemed to be at every venue, cheering every heat and every Cuban athlete.
The following year, Cuba returned to the Olympic fold just in time to win the first Olympic baseball championship, defeating the U.S. and delighting Castro. Soon thereafter, many of its top players started defecting to the United States, where, instead of earning the equivalent of a thousand dollars a year, they could sign contracts worth millions of dollars.
Reimer wrote:
There’s no mention of the firing squads that killed political rivals or forced labor camps that housed gay people. Nearly the final third of the piece is spent documenting Castro’s unwavering support for athletics. In the accompanying video, narrator Jeremy Schaap says Castro “loved sports the way he loved his Cohibas” –– a Cuban cigar brand.
He wasn’t the only critic of the piece. Here are some of readers’ reactions, via Twitter:
Leave it to @espn to write a piece glorifying Fidel Castro after his death. He was only responsible for tens of thousands of murders.
— Brandon Johnson (@Brandon_USMC86) November 26, 2016
ESPN is the only network, hopefully ever, that broadcasts a segment honoring Fidel Castro.
— Jon (@Jon_Emmerling) November 26, 2016
"Fidel Castro loved sports so obviously he was good because that's how we value people here at ESPN"
— } (@ViralDonutz) November 26, 2016
Fidel Castro died. why is @espn doing a feature on how much he loved sports? The amount of backlash will be insane, bad move on their part.
— Scott Martinez (@the_smartinez) November 26, 2016
Very confused on why @ESPN is romanticizing Fidel Castro a man who is responsible for thousands of deaths
— Tommy Corchiani (@Treyphanatic13) November 27, 2016
ESPN putting a breaking news bottom line of Fidel Castro dying is what's wrong with ESPN. I'm here for sports, not politics.
— Garrett Otto (@gmanotto) November 26, 2016
Reimer reported that ESPN declined to comment.
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