UPDATE: Beadle said the following to Brandon Robinson.
“I sped through a Nuggets question. And my vowels got all f*****. Then those two turds lost it. And we laughed through the entire Denver segment. And will probably do so now for the rest of the season. I imagine an edited version is going around. Not showing the real time viewing. And making it seem like an actual n word and no response. Which I can’t control!”
Brandon Robinson on X.
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Veteran sports reporter and host Michelle Beadle had an unfortunate slip of the tongue Friday during her Run It Back show on FanDuel TV.
Alongside NBA analysts Lou Williams and Chandler Parsons, Beadle began to tee up a segment about the Denver Nuggets, but instead seemingly referred to the team as the n-word.
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— No Context NBA (@NoContext_NBA_) November 9, 2024
“Michael Porter Jr. recently said — aw I don’t like this — that if the [n-word], the Nuggets don’t win this,” Beadle began, immediately realizing her slip up and looking towards her co-hosts. “Don’t try to get me on that,” Beadle said before attempting to jump back into the segment.
This wouldn’t be a moment that would just slide by for Williams and Parsons, however. As Beadle tried to continue, Williams, in complete disbelief, put his head on the desk. “I’m buying. Beadle gonna be in trouble today,” Williams said. “That’s not fair!” Beadle snapped back. “That’s not even a thing, it’s not even a word,” Beadle continued.
“You covered in the cloth, I got you,” Williams assured Beadle. “Ain’t nobody gonna say nothing.”
It was a mistake Beadle immediately regretted and tried to play off. When the word came out of her mouth, it seemed that she was almost as surprised as her colleagues on the show.
And to their credit, Williams and Parsons showed some grace by trying to move past the moment as well. But for about a minute, the pair were too shocked at what had just happened to proceed as normal.
There have been recent incidents in which commentators have lost their job over accidental use of the racial slur. Oakland A’s play-by-play announcer Glen Kuiper was fired last year for a similar mistake.
Friday’s slip up seemed to be a genuine blunder, but in today’s social media environment, it’s unlikely to go unnoticed. It’ll be interesting to see if FanDuel TV issues any response to the incident.
