Portland Trail Blazers dismiss newly hired announcer after racist and sexist tweets surface
The NBA team terminated Braiden Bell hours after announcing his hiring, citing violations of its policies after a reporter found offensive tweets from his teenage years.
The Portland Trail Blazers announced the hiring of play-by-play announcer Braiden Bell on Thursday, describing him as a strong addition to the broadcast team. Later that day, KGW-TV reporter Devon Haskins identified racist and misogynist posts on Bell's Twitter account dating back to 2012 and 2013, when he was a teenager. The team responded by terminating Bell's employment.
"The Portland Trail Blazers have zero tolerance for racist, sexist, or harmful comments. Social media posts made by our recently announced play-by-play broadcaster are in clear violation of team and league policies, as well as our values and expectations. Therefore, we will not be moving forward with this broadcaster," the organization said in a statement released shortly after 8 p.m.
The statement added that the role requires a legacy of excellence both on air and in personal conduct, and the team apologized to fans for not meeting its own standards. No further comment was obtained from the organization on Friday.