David Scott of Scott’s Shots reports You Tube has removed the Casey Kasem-esque Chris Berman meltdown clips that have entertained persons of all ages the past few weeks, citing ESPN’s claims of copyright violations. Scott was lucky enough to receive the following correspondence from Bristol :
œThe off air videos are now nearly a decade old and do not reflect his typical workplace demeanor, his relationships with co-workers, nor the contributions he has made to ESPN over many years, said ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz in an e-mail exchange with Shots. œChris has a tremendous connection with sports fans and his body of work should not be judged by a few minutes of unguarded language uttered years ago.
Krulewitz did admit Brownie Berman™s word-choice is not tolerated at the Worldwide Leader.
œWe aren™t excusing the language used, he said, œand will be emphasizing to our workforce the importance of using appropriate language in the workplace.
Scott muses “Krulewitz appeared to be indicating that because ‘unguarded’ moments were captured in 2000, they are somehow less indicative of what Berman is like now. Seems like a disconnect there,” adding “If he was that unbearable in 2000, how incredibly difficult must he be to deal with today in the likely twilight of his ESPN career?”
I can’t answer the above question, but I’m certain there are for time-wasters web surfers across the country who are praying there’s similar footage of Non-Metallic K.O. flipping his lid.