Doug Adler, an ESPN tennis announcer and analyst who has been with the company since 2008, is suing ESPN for firing him over accusations that he used a racial slur aimed at Venus Williams during the Australian Open.
Adler had said that Venus was using a "guerilla effect" during her matches, which is apparently a term that has been used for decades in the tennis world to describe aggressive play.
However, according to Adler's lawsuit, The New York Times asserted that he was using the term “gorilla” to describe Venus, which “ignited the flames of anger and hatred” against Adler.
He was fired two days later.
Per FoxNews:
“By the way ESPN chose to handle this non-issue, they effectively branded me, my character and my reputation for the rest of my life,” Adler told FoxNews.com.
"Adler “has lost future opportunities in the sporting and business worlds because no one will hire a ‘racist,’” the lawsuit said. “He has suffered serious emotional distress and harm because he has been falsely accused of being the worst thing imaginable, and something he clearly isn’t and never has been, all over the use of the word ‘guerilla,’ a word that is commonly used in tennis.”"
Additionally, Adler claims that ESPN knew he was using the term "guerilla" not "gorilla," but they fired him anyway due to the mounting pressure from people on twitter.
“The irony is that Adler called everything correctly and in a professional manner, whereas ESPN did not – they recklessly made the wrong call,” said Adler’s attorney, David Ring, in a statement. “It was not only political correctness gone overboard, but also a cowardly move that ruined a good man’s career.”