In recognition of President Barack Obama’s highly controversial trip to Cuba, the first by a U.S. president since Calvin Coolidge, ESPN’s “SportsCenter” posted a message on social media on Sunday touting Fidel Castro’s love of sports, linking to an Outside the Lines report.
“Savior and scourge, Fidel Castro was many things to many people. One thing all can agree on: He loved his sports,” the message read. Here is a screen shot of the tweet:
The tweet was met with a deluge of criticism and was eventually deleted. Although, the report that was linked in the tweet remains up on their website.
The reaction by social media users was summed up best in a comment from an account under the name Jack Tinker: “This is a filthy puff piece on a murderous dictator. Shame on you.”
https://twitter.com/jacktink/status/711672647344644097
It’s enough to make one wonder — what was ESPN thinking? Here are a sampling of other responses from Twitter that capture a similar sentiment:
.@SportsCenter Yay sports! pic.twitter.com/AI9rBuhvRt
— David Burge (@iowahawkblog) March 20, 2016
.@Hermie412 @SportsCenter Go Cuba Sailing Team! pic.twitter.com/pot9Df2PSy
— David Burge (@iowahawkblog) March 20, 2016
“Hitler’s love for sports is too frequently overlooked as historians obsess over some questionable actions.” https://t.co/OljYfzl7aY
— Marcus Hawkins (@HawkinsUSA) March 20, 2016
So did many of the dissidents he had murdered, SportsCenter. https://t.co/pf24wgNVfx
— Logan Dobson (@LoganDobson) March 20, 2016
Dumbest tweet of the day or of all time? https://t.co/RonXSGNhNv
— Jon Ralston (@RalstonReports) March 20, 2016
Then why did so many Cuban athletes risk their lives to defect to freedom? Love of sports persecution for athletes? https://t.co/8DcLCJ80cD
— Glenn Ordway (@GlennDOrdway) March 20, 2016
@SportsCenter “Harsh Communist Dictator…But, he loved his sports! What a guy! Give him an ESPY for courage!” – ESPN
— Bonda (@BenOndaTop) March 20, 2016
No. Just No. No human interest stories on dictators, I don’t care if he liked baseball. #CubaVisit https://t.co/cE5x4oBI8Z
— Andrea Katherine (@STL_Blonde) March 20, 2016
Swimming is Cuba’s number 1 sport https://t.co/WzEcUbWG2k
— Matt Dawson (@SaintRPh) March 20, 2016
I wonder what head at ESPN thought this was a good idea. Might want to reconsider whatever piece you think this is. https://t.co/jpbdybDitP
— Jared Katsoupis (@Jmkatsoupis) March 20, 2016
Really? A communist dictator that killed political opponents and social outcasts and u r giving him props? Disgrace https://t.co/fT7nJG22dR
— Rory Anderson (@holistic_pickle) March 20, 2016
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The longest-tenured writer at BizPac Review, Tom grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills.
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