The Female Reporter Cam Newton ‘Belittled’ Just Apologized For Her Old Racist Tweets
Cam Newton apologized to a female reporter for comments that "belittled" her, but now she's issuing an apology of her own.
Jourdan Rodrigue covers the Carolina Panthers for the Charlotte Observer and during a press conference on Wednesday, she asked Newton about one of his receivers.
I know you take a lot of pride in seeing your receivers play well. Devin Funchess has seemed to really embrace the physicality of his routes and getting those extra yards. Does that give you a little bit of enjoyment to see him truck-sticking people?
Newton replied to Rodrigue, finding it humorous that a female knew enough about the game to ask a question so specific.
It’s funny to hear a female talk about routes like that. It’s funny.
Not everyone found his observation to be "funny." Many sportswriters came to the defense of Rodrigue, who tweeted that she also didn't appreciate Cam patronizing her.
Rodrigue went on to say that she actually followed Newton after the press conference, but did not receive an apology.
This afternoon, I did my job as an NFL beat writer and asked Cam Newton a question about one of his receivers. I was dismayed by his response, which not only belittled me but countless other women before me and beside me who work in similar jobs. I sought Mr. Newton out as he left the locker room a few minutes later. He did not apologize for his comments.
As pressure mounted on Thursday, Cam seemed like he was sticking to his guns until his sponsorships started to drop. Dannon yogurt dropped Newton, which prompted a swift apology from the Panthers quarterback.
After Newton's apology, Rodrigue found herself having to issue an apology of her own when her racist tweets from 2012-2013 surfaced.
Rodrigue took to Twitter to apologize for her old tweets.
Jourdan's old racist tweets definitely don't justify Cam's sexist comments, but I think we can all agree that neither are OK.
We'll just chalk up this entire story as a teachable moment for everyone.