In Cleveland, TN, Gary Ownbey has been suspended after stumbling over players names during a High School Football game carried by 103.1 The Buzz. Here’s what Ownbey said that got him into trouble. “I don’t know where they’re getting these foreigners from.”
In a joint statement with the Bradley County School District, station owner Steve Hartline said, “The comments made during Thursday night’s game do not in any way reflect the culture nor views of the station. We respect our student-athletes, and their families and are proud to showcase their accomplishments on and off the field.”
Owneby, called “the sportscaster in question” in the joint statement has been restricted from all school-related activities such as broadcasting and the coaching show.
Read the full joint statement HERE
I in no way defend this broadcaster’s remarks, but, as part of a high school broadcasting team, it would be great if team rosters would provide phonetic spellings/pronunciation aids for their players. No one wants to pronounce a player’s name incorrectly, because Facebook, Twitter and so on, along with the crowd, will let you know, and not in favorable terms.