Online Petition to Boycott ESPN Due To Hiring of Rush Limbaugh
Upadate: My letter is below. Some other "regulars" sent theirs within a day or two. I thought other readers might enjoy them, as well as be able to use them as a "template", so they're reproduced following mine.
I sent the following letter to ESPN, tonight.
http://espn.go.com/sitetools/s/contact/espntv.html
I thought that you should know why I will be actively working to see that your
show, "ESPN's Sunday NFL countdown", will not be watched by a large number of
former viewers until rush limbaugh is removed from ESPN's
payroll.
Allowing more air time, on your network, to the man who *said that the underdog
New England Patriots were "socialists" after their victory in Superbowl XXXVI is
extremely distasteful and utterly disrespectful to a large number of Americans.
Will you please send me a list of the sponsors of ESPN's NFL Sunday so that I
can let them know why I will be working to get those companies on every boycott
list that I can find, in America? If not, I will be forced to watch the show
once, and obtain the sponsor's names that way. It is my belief that they deserve
to know why they will be seeing a drop in sales of their products. I will be
encouraging everyone that I discuss this with to write to your sponsors to let them
know why they don't support your decision, too.
Dignifying Mr. limbaugh, a man who consistently targets dead people, little
girls, and the homeless--none of whom can fight back, by granting him even more
air time is completely unacceptable.
Sincerely,
Timbuk3
(*"Nobody sacrificed anything on the Patriots for the greater good!" exclaimed
Limbaugh in response during yesterday's national broadcast. "That's so close to
the Communist Manifesto, it's frightening. ...
"These are socialists, folks, this is what you have got to understand. To Sen.
Kennedy, the New England Patriots typify socialism. That's what he means when he
talks about a bunch of people sacrificing, believing in each other, working
together for the greater good.")
----------------------------
Dear ESPN,
When I heard the word "ESPN", I used to automatically think Tony Hawk. Young,
cool, attractive, athletic, sexy, NICE.
Now, the word "ESPN" triggers an immediate image of Rush Limbaugh. Old,
has-been, ugly, bloated, repellant, ODIOUS.
Either you aren't interested in viewers with my tastes; or somebody in charge of
your corporate brand needs to lose their job for gross incompetence.
Very Sincerly,
ICD
http://espn.go.com/sitetools/s/contact/espntv.html
(feel free to add this to your page, Tim)
------------------
I am admittedly not a huge sports fan and don't, as a rule, watch
ESPN or "ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown". I do, however, watch the news and was
shocked and dismayed when I heard that Rush Limbaugh would be joining that show
later this year. To put it quite frankly, Mr. Limbaugh is a bigot who targets,
on his radio program, and in the most disgusting terms he can think of, people
who he disagrees with. He has targeted, and defamed, blacks, woman, the
homeless, and many other groups over the years. He has no place on your program,
or on your station.
Because I rarely watch ESPN now, you may not care that I won't because of this.
But you might care if I, and others like me, start to write letters to your
sponsors protesting your employment of Mr. Limbaugh, of one of the most hateful
commentators in radio today, and start boycotting their products because of that
sponsorship. And I will watch your program to get the names of those sponsors,
if I can find them in no other way.
While Mr. Limbaugh is a personality, I don't think he is the type of personality
you want to have associated with either your program, or your station. I suggest
you reconsider having Mr. Limbaugh as part of "ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown".
Sincerely,
ICAROL
(Created Sunday, August 03, 2003, 12:51:53 AM)