Bob Griese's Juan Pablo Montoya Comment Overreaction

The PC police have come out to nail ESPN sports analyst Bob Griese over the comment he made about NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya during the Ohio State-Minnesota college football game. Although he apologized about the Juan Pablo Montoya comment near the end of ESPN's broadcast of the game, ESPN felt it necessary to assure and reassure the public that Bob Griese knew what he had done, apologized for what he had done, that ESPN was also aware of what he had done, spoke to Bob Griese about what he had done, and stated that Bob Griese would apologize again for what he had done. So what had he done? What comment about NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya got the Politically Correct Police in hot pursuit of Bob Griese?

During the Ohio State-Minnesota football game on ESPN Saturday, announcer Chris Spielman asked during a promo for The Chase (NASCAR's playoff system where ten drivers compete for the points championship, the Sprint Cup) where the Top 5 drivers were listed, "Where's Juan Pablo Montoya?"

Bob Griese commented, "He's out having a taco."

As noted, Bob Griese apologized for his wayward comment about the NASCAR driver: "Juan Pablo Montoya, he's one of the best drivers in NASCAR -- just want to apologize for a comment I made earlier in the ballgame."

In today's politically correct and overly sensitive atmosphere, it is true that Bob Griese should have known better. In fact, ESPN, frantically trying to avert yet another scandal (read: Erin Andrews peephole video and the Steve Phillips scandal), jumped on the comment full force, issuing their own statement:

"During today's telecast of the Ohio State-Minnesota college football game on ESPN, analyst Bob Griese made an inappropriate comment when discussing NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya. Bob apologized during the telecast, and plans to apologize again (Saturday night) during ESPN's college football programming after his plane lands. ESPN has spoken to Bob and he understands that his comment was uncalled for."

It should be noted that ESPN wanted the world to know that they had "spoken to Bob and he understands," a comment that not only sounds condescending toward Bob Griese, a 64-year-old man, but reeks of CYA melodrama and needless overreaction. Griese said it, admitted he said it, and apologized.

Apparently that was not enough...

Although it is true that Bob Griese's comment about Juan Pablo Montoya was one rooted in an ethnic stereotype and admittedly inappropriate, has the world come to the point to where an individual can't just apologize and move on without the rest of the world piling on (to use a football comparison)? In a pervasive atmosphere where comedians like Don Rickles and Carlos Mencia are often ridiculed for their ethnicity-based jokes and/or punch lines, has society become too sensitive -- not to the action but to the reaction? Bad enough that something inappropriate was said but was the reaction -- the apology or apologies -- restitution enough?

To break it down: Action: Bob Griese made the off-hand comment that NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya was out having a taco, an ethnic stereotype that lumps Hispanics into a people that only enjoy Mexican or Hispanic foods. Since the culturally ignorant and the ethnocentric-oriented tend to lump all Hispanics into the all-inclusive "Mexicans," making the comment that Juan Pablo Montoya, who is Colombian, was "out having a taco" makes the comment an ethnic slur.

Reaction: Bob Griese, either through notification of what he had said or of his own accord, apologized for the comment roughly two hours after making it. It was the right thing to do and he did it.

Reaction to the reaction: ESPN then felt the need to apparently make certain that 1) the entire world knew that Bob Griese made an ethnic slur, 2) that Bob Griese apologized for the ethnic slur, 3) that ESPN had chastised ("spoken to") Bob Griese about the Juan Pablo Montoya comment, and that 4) Bob Griese would apologize again for the comment.

Overreaction: In their haste to get ahead of what might turn into some sort of politically correct - politically incorrect war of words, ESPN not only brought more attention to an off-the-cuff remark than was necessary, but they overreacted by reassuring the public that the sports analyst had been at least verbally reprimanded by his employer (ESPN) and that he would apologize at least one more time. They did not issue the statement before Bob Griese apologized but afterward.

It seems that ESPN might be a bit punch drunk from the Erin Andrews and Steve Phillips scandals, their attorneys and publicity department perhaps a bit too hyper-vigilant in protecting the company and making certain the public sees a politically correct façade. By calling even more attention to the Bob Griese comment, they made the matter far worse than it ever would have been. By reassuring the public that ESPN would be intolerant of the intolerant, they gave the matter far more attention than it deserved.

Some will maintain that the point is that ESPN shows that they are culturally sensitive. But that is not entirely true. The point is to make certain that ESPN look as good as possible in what could become another scandal.

Now the Bob Griese comment is one of the most searched-for topics on the internet, ranking in the Top 5 of trending subjects on Google. Nothing like damage control...

But there does seem to be one island of reason in the swirling hurricane of political correctness and verbal censorship: Juan Pablo Montoya himself.

Since the comment was made, the apology stated during Saturday's football game, ESPN's assurances to the public that it was aware of and had addressed the issue, and ESPN's added assurance that Bob Griese would again apologize for the inappropriate comment and publicly eat his words, NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya has been the definition of decorum -- without comment.

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Sources:

ESPN Television
SportingNews.com