USA Today Sports MLB columnist Bob Nightengale recently made an important announcement regarding the baseball team known as the Atlanta Br*ves:
MLB, club won't budge on Atlanta baseball team's nickname, but here's why I won't use it. https://t.co/gfe5ugwRpn
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) October 28, 2021
While I can’t stop the tomahawk chop or make Atlanta change its name, what I can do is not acknowledge the nickname.
In recent years, I have tried to avoid using Atlanta’s nickname in columns.
I find it offensive, and after talking and listening to Native American leaders, friends and associates, it only fortifies my belief.
Bob Nightengale has held this conviction for a long time now, you see.
He literally used it 5 days ago. pic.twitter.com/q2kZDoQVHG
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) October 28, 2021
Must’ve just been an oversight. Someone as committed as Bob to not condoning racism would never slip up like that.
Well, 5 days ago, things were really quite different. https://t.co/vutFqbhlPu
— Fusilli Spock (@awstar11) October 28, 2021
We’re sure there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation.
Lol he edited the article to replace Braves with just Atlanta. https://t.co/kMaI8UdpVB
— Squiggly Cow (@SquigglyC) October 28, 2021
He wrote a column on Oct. 18 with multiple references to the "Braves". On Oct. 25, someone scrubbed all those words and changed them to "Atlanta". pic.twitter.com/20jDNeMClp
— Scot Bertram (@ScotBertram) October 28, 2021
OK, that’s a little strange. What gives, Bob?
Maybe this’ll explain it:
Copy editors have occasionally changed it in my copy because until now this has been my private stance.
Several readers picked up on the name appearing in my articles during Atlanta’s World Series run, and after talking it over with my editors, I have decided to explain my stance here and make more of a concerted effort to keep the name out of my columns.
It probably would’ve saved Bob a lot of time if he’d just written “After concluding that calling Atlanta’s baseball team racist can boost my woke cred, I have concluded that Atlanta’s baseball team is racist.”
"I'm very offended all of the sudden." – @BNightengale
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) October 28, 2021
"the zeal of the recent convert" has new applicability these days
— Greg Linaman (@GregLinaman) October 28, 2021
He suddenly realized he can get himself engagement…
— Go Forth Brandon (@NathanWurtzel) October 28, 2021
Exactly.
This kind of behavior is a big driver of why everything is getting worse. @BNightengale isn't addressing an injustice, he's ginning one up he himself didn't believe existed 5 days ago. https://t.co/CFsNuepIIz
— Foster (@foster_type) October 28, 2021
Clickbait at the speed of woke. pic.twitter.com/uFaIb3c8D0
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) October 28, 2021
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