Did Blackhawks owner get reporter fired after ‘tremendous amount of sex’ flub?
Susannah Collins of CSN Chicago had perhaps the reporting gaffe of the NHL season when she mistakenly said the Chicago Blackhawks had “a tremendous amount of sex” instead of “success” before Game 1 of the Western Conference quarterfinal.
(Like, as in a verbal mistake. Factually, we can neither confirm nor deny that the Blackhawks have had a tremendous amount of sex this season, although we have our suspicions.)
The clip became an Internet sensation. That same Internet was outraged on Friday when it was reported that Collins had been fired from CSN Chicago.
The incident, as a refresher:
From the Chicago Tribune:
"Due to circumstances unrelated to her on-air remarks Tuesday night, Susannah Collins and Comcast SportsNet Chicago have parted ways," Phil Bedella, vice president and general manager of CSN Chicago said in a statement. "We appreciate everything Susannah has contributed to our network over the past year and wish her the best in her future endeavors."
The “circumstances unrelated to her on-air remarks” were allegedly a series of videos Collins made called “Sports Nutz”, which you know were extreme because the name ended with a ‘Z’. The videos featured lowbrow comedy and explicit jokes, ranging from “graphic sexual exploits of pro athletes to the dearth of Jewish baseball players,” according to the Tribune.
(Alas, nothing on the graphic sexual exploits of Jewish baseball players. You’re safe, Scott Schoeneweis. For now …)
Didn’t CSN know about the videos before she was hired in September? Why would they become an issue now after a silly slip of the lip?
One theory: The Blackhawks forced her out.
According to Robert Channick of the Chicago Tribune, Blackhawks Chairman Rocky Wirtz sent a letter to Comcast SportsNet execs and the team’s other owners partnering in the network on Wednesday.
Via the Tribune:
Wirtz sent a letter to Phil Bedella, vice president and general manager of CSN Chicago, which the Tribune obtained, addressing his concerns about the Sports Nutz videos.
"In my opinion and those of others, (the videos) are incredibly offensive to a number of audiences, going well beyond professional athletes," Wirtz said. "Had we known of this earlier, we would have raised the issue immediately."
The letter went on to ask CSN to "remove her from our broadcast immediately."
Guess the Blackhawks saw this a time-bomb, ticking until someone dug up an off-color joke she told, playing the role of someone telling off-color jokes on a digital sports show, and decided to … what, somehow embarrass the hockey team with it?
There’s really only one word for this myopic reaction to Collins’ former job in sports broadcasting: "Wirtzian."
