Steve Gleason Accepts Apologies From Fired Radio Hosts

Steve Gleason accepted apologies from three fired radio hosts for their stunt on an AM radio show making fun of his ALS. Gleason is a former safety who played for the New Orleans Saints.

But Gleason was diagnosed with ALS, also commonly called Lou Gehrig’s disease, in 2011. Along with accepting the apologies of the three Atlanta radio hosts, Gleason also thanked the public for their support.

The comments were made on the Facebook page for Team Gleason, the former football player’s non-profit organization that works to spread awareness about ALS. Steve Gleason wrote:

“‘Defend Team Gleason’ now has been officially redefined. Additionally, the DJs have provided genuine apology. Received and accepted. We have all made mistakes in this life. How we learn from our mistakes is the measure of who we are.”

Three radio hosts from 790 The Zone in Atlanta were fired after a segment on Monday morning. Two of the hosts took a call from a third DJ pretending to be Gleason. “Gleason” used a voice that sounded automated, much like Stephen Hawking, another ALS patient.

The hosts, Nick Cellini, Steak Shapiro, and Chris Dimino, were fired for the stunt. All three of them took to Twitter on Monday night to publicly apologize to Steve Gleason and their fans who criticized the less than tasteful segment.

Steve Gleason’s ALS is advanced, and the former Saints safety has lost the ability to move, speak, and eat. He uses technology that tracks eye movements and translates them into the written word. Using this technology, Gleason wrote an article for SI.com on Monday that talks about his life with the disease.

In his statement on his organization’s Facebook page, Gleason explained he wanted to use the experience to help people learn more about ALS. He wrote:

“It’s clear to me that, on a national & global scale, ALS is not understood, which is part of why its under funded and largely ignored … Let’s talk about this … There are zero treatments for ALS. If you take any action as a result of this event, I prefer it to be action to end ALS.”

Were you glad to see Steve Gleason accept the apologies of the fired Atlanta radio hosts?

[Image via Facebook]