CBS Analyst Apologizes For Saying He Was There To Give ‘White Man’s Perspective’
CBS analyst Doug Gottlieb has apologized for a strange remark he made about adding diversity to a pre-game show where his three fellow co-hosts were black.
Gottlieb was covering the 2013 NCAA Tournament on the CBS pregame show Thursday night. Appearing alongside Greg Gumbel, Greg Anthony, Kenny Smith, and Charles Barkley, Gottlieb told viewers he was there to “give kind of the white man’s perspective.”
“I don’t know why you guys ask me, I’m just here to bring diversity to this set, give kind of the white man’s perspective,” the CBS analyst said during the show.
The remark caused fellow analyst Greg Anthony to make a face, and Kenny Smith said he had “jumped right into it.”
The joke didn’t go quite the way the CBS analyst envisioned. Almost immediately after he made the comments, confused viewers questioned it on Twitter and basketball message boards.
Charles Barkley said that the other analysts in the studio understood that Gottlieb was just trying to make a joke.
“He made a joke earlier tonight,” Barkley said. “All those people on Twitter who are going crazy, which I would never ever do, listen me Kenny, Greg Anthony, and Greg Gumbel didn’t take that personally so all you people at home who’ve got no life who are talking bad about Doug Gottlieb get a life. It’s no big deal.”
Some went much further in their criticism, like ESPN college football analyst Mark May, who said CBS should fire Gottlieb.
After Doug Gottlieb’s ignorant comment on CBS he should be canned
— Mark May (@mark_may) March 29, 2013
That type of comment is ment for a bar not a national stage.Nice job Gottlieb I hope all the kids 12 and under didn’t hear it !
— Mark May (@mark_may) March 29, 2013
Though Gottlieb continued working throughout the night, the CBS analyst apologized through a written statement.
“It was not a smart thing to say and I apologize,” Gottlieb said through CBS.
Apparently the network has accept the CBS analyst’s apology. Gottlieb is set to go back to work covering the NCAA Tournament.
