ESPN Fumbles Big Time With Announcer Switch

 It had to be a hoax. Had to be.

 There is no way that something this ridiculous could be real. Maybe it was an Onion story -- that would at least make sense.

 Mind you, ESPN has made some questionable programming decisions over the years -- televising poker, turning SportsCenter into an unwatchable open mic night, giving Skip Bayless a forum -- but this one might just top them all.

ESPN's Robert Lee (left)

 In case you have been living in an underground shelter, preparing for the big one to hit, you might not have seen the decision by the Worldwide Leader to remove a broadcaster from a college football game. Probably not a big deal most of the time, things happen, broadcasters get switched around. It's part of the business.

 This one stands out because ESPN removed a gentleman named Robert Lee -- who is of Asian descent -- from its Sept. 2 broadcast of Virginia/William and Mary. A release said that it was due to an "unfortunate coincidence" of names Lee shared with a former Confederate army general. The recent violence in Charlottesville, Va., was referenced, and the network said it for Lee's own safety that the parties mutually agreed to have him switch to the Pittsburgh/Youngstown State contest that same day. By "mutually agreed" ESPN means it told Lee it was having him switch games.

 ESPN also said, "it's a shame that this is even a topic of conversation." Well, guys, you're the ones who made it so. It's a guarantee that no one would have given a second of thought to the topic on game day had you not brought it into the open.

 The network said that it was worried about Lee's safety -- ? -- as well as his name or image being turned into a joke or into memes.

 An ESPN exec emailed New York Magazine, stating “This wasn’t about offending anyone. It was about the reasonable possibility that because of his name he would be subjected to memes and jokes and who knows what else,” wrote the unnamed executive, who claimed the negative coverage of ESPN’s decision is “reasonable proof that the meme/joke possibility was real.”

 Really, ESPN? This is what you worry about? Someone being upset by a meme?

 Look, there are plenty of things to be concerned about these days, plenty of things that can be politicized -- anthem protests, players wearing BLM shirts, what have you. Someone having a name that is the same as a Confederate icon is not among the things that should keep the suits awake at night, but apparently it is. So does this mean that if an announcer is named James Longstreet or Thomas Jackson or Nathan Forrest, he will also be removed from a broadcast in the south, for safety reasons?

 The lunacy of this decision is mind-boggling. Sure, it won't affect the outcome of the game, and in the long run likely won't affect people watching the contest. But that this is an issue, even in this day and age of rampant PC, is ridiculous.

 Fake news? It would have made perfect sense, especially in this current climate.

 Too bad it was real. And too bad that Mr. Lee became an unwilling part of Internet scorn, because it certainly isn't his fault.

 No, the blame here lies squarely with the Mothership.

 On a sports network that has made a sport of televising silliness, this one takes the cake.