Pat McAfee Lands In Hot Water For His NSFW Comments On Caitlin Clark
Pat McAfee put both feet in his mouth with his comment about Caitlin Clark on the June 3 episode of his eponymous show. As shared by TMZ, the sports analyst tried to defend the Indiana Fever player and shared, "What the WNBA currently has is what we like to describe as a cash cow." Referring to the body check Clark received by Chennedy Carter on June 1, which is one of the obstacles she's faced in the WNBA, McAfee continued, "There is a superstar and we're not saying that the players on the court need to act any differently ... the athletes are going to do what the athletes are going to do." He then stated, "I would like the media people that continue to say, 'This rookie class, this rookie class, this rookie class.' Nah, just call it for what it is, there's one white b**** for the Indiana team who is a superstar."
Following McAfee's description, sports journalist Shukri Wrights wrote on X, formerly Twitter, "Pat McAfee referring to Caitlin Clark as 'That White b****' just ain't it. It's gross, it's wrong, and the men who didn't step in to correct him in that moment were just as wrong in not checking him on air." Radio host Nick Hamilton tweeted, "This utterly disrespectful to Caitlin Clark and the rest of the players in the #WNBA." Amid the backlash, McAfee backtracked on his description of the Indiana Fever player and told fans all was good between him and Clark.
Pat McAfee issued a mea culpa for what he called Caitlin Clark
After feeling the wrath of social media users, Pat McAfee took to X to write, "I shouldn't have used 'white b***' as a descriptor of Caitlin Clark. No matter the context.. even if we're talking about race being a reason for some of the stuff happening.. I have way too much respect for her and women to put that into the universe." He added, "My intentions when saying it were complimentary just like the entire segment but, a lot of folks are saying that it certainly wasn't at all. That's 100% on me and for that, I apologize... I have sent an apology to Caitlin as well."
The next day, the host explained further on "The Pat McAfee Show" that the phrase was meant to convey how much Clark has done for the WNBA and women's basketball. McAfee told viewers, "I did reach out to Caitlin Clark through the Fever PR, sent an apology, and then got a message back. She said it was all good, no blood, we move forward." He went on to say that he learned from this experience and reiterated that calling Clark a "b****" was a sign of respect, as he often uses derogatory phrases to describe athletes he admires. Moving forward, he vowed to call female athletes "women" only. Despite his apologies, many still think McAfee was overtly disrespectful and are calling for him to be fired from ESPN.
A women's rights group demands Pat McAfee be taken off the air
Pat McAfee, and supposedly Caitlin Clark, are ready to move on from the controversial drama but many others have yet to forgive him. As reported by Total Pro Sports, the women's movement group UltraViolet stated, "Pat McAfee's apology for his racist and sexist comments about Caitlin Clark and other WNBA players is insufficient. The simple reality is that even if McAfee meant what he said as a compliment — he should know that referring to any professional athlete with a misogynistic or racial epithet is never a compliment and shouldn't be done." UltraViolet called McAfee's comments not just misogynistic but racist toward the Black WNBA players who have contributed greatly to the league, as well as Clark. "We urge ESPN and Disney to fire Pat McAfee and take action to clean up its [newsroom]and frankly do a better job of covering women's sports in an unbiased way," the statement concluded.
UltraViolet wasn't the only one demanding McAfee be axed. ESPN is getting calls from viewers who want the pundit either suspended or fired, per MSN. The network has yet to comment on McAfee's latest ESPN scandal as of yet, and Clark has remained quiet thus far on the matter as well.