Panthers’ Newton loses product deal; reporter under fire as well
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dannon, the maker of Oikos yogurt, said it cut ties with spokesman Cam Newton on Thursday after the company perceived comments the NFL quarterback made to a female reporter as “sexist.”
Company spokesperson Michael Neuwirth released a statement saying it was “shocked and disheartened” at the former league MVP’s behavior and comments toward Jourdan Rodrigue, a Charlotte Observer reporter.
When Rodrigue asked the Carolina Panthers QB about wide receiver Devin Funchess’ route running on Wednesday, Newton laughed.
“It’s funny to hear a female talk about routes. It’s funny,” he said.
The Dannon statement noted the company considers Newton’s comments as “sexist and disparaging to all women. … It’s simply not OK to belittle anyone based on gender. We have shared our concerns with Cam and will no longer work with him.”
Newton, who hasn’t issued an apology, declined comment through the team’s public relations staff. The NFL released a statement Wednesday saying Newton’s response to the question was “just plain wrong and disrespectful to the exceptional female reporters and all journalists who cover our league.”
But it doesn’t appear there will be any punishment handed out to Newton.
“I think there are conversations going on at the club level with the appropriate people, with the Panthers,” NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart said in a conference call Thursday. “I don’t want to anticipate the league stepping in there.”
Panthers coach Ron Rivera addressed the situation briefly during his news conference Thursday, saying, “I think Cam made a mistake. I understand he had a conversation where he pretty much said he shouldn’t have said what he said.”
Rodrigue issued a statement Wednesday evening saying she and Newton did speak after the news conference but that the quarterback didn’t apologize for his remarks. She was back in the locker room Thursday, flanked by Mike Persinger, the executive sports editor of The Charlotte Observer.
She issued an apology herself
on Thursday after coming under fire for using a racial slur in tweets she posted about four years ago. The Twitter posts were first reported by BlackSportsOnline.com.
“I apologize for the offensive tweets from my Twitter account from 4/5 years ago,” Rodrigue wrote on her Twitter account. “There is no excuse for these tweets and the sentiment behind them. I am deeply sorry and apologize.”
Rodrigue was a college student at Arizona State at the time of the tweets. When asked about them, Persinger said “she has owned them and apologized for them.”
It’s been an eventful week for Newton beyond the practice field. Also on Wednesday, a woman accused of stalking him was asked to leave the team facility, according to a Charlotte Mecklenburg police report.
The report listed the 28-yearold Newton as the victim in the complaint. The woman, whose name was not listed on the report, had previously shown up at the Panthers’ stadium and been asked not to return. She was told not to contact Newton in the future.
Protest poll results
WASHINGTON — Most Americans think refusing to stand for the national anthem is disrespectful to the country, the military and the American flag. But most also disapprove of President Donald Trump calling for NFL players to be fired for refusing to stand.
The NFL protests began last season with quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who knelt during the national anthem to bring more attention to the killings of black men by police officers. The protests spread this season after the former San Francisco 49er was unable to sign on with another team, Seattle Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett said he was racially profiled by Las Vegas police and Trump sounded off.
According to a poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 52 percent of Americans disapprove of professional athletes who have protested by refusing to stand during the national anthem, compared to 31 percent who approve. At the same time, 55 percent of Americans disapprove of Trump’s call for firing players who refuse to stand, while 31 percent approve.
The form of the protest seems to matter. The poll found Americans are more likely to approve than disapprove of players who, instead of kneeling, link arms in solidarity during the anthem, 45 percent to 29 percent.
Broken down by race, 55 percent of African-Americans approve of players refusing to stand for the anthem, and 19 percent disapprove, the poll found. Among whites, 62 percent disapprove and 25 percent approve.
Seventy-nine percent of blacks disapprove of Trump’s call for players to be fired, while just 8 percent approve. Among whites, 48 percent disapprove and 38 percent approve.
NFL investigates
WASHINGTON — The NFL is looking into a situation from Monday night’s game at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City during which Washington Redskins wide receiver Terrelle Pryor said he was called racist names and cursed at by a fan.
Pryor posted in an Instagram story on Wednesday that it got so bad during the game against the Chiefs, a league employee had to stand by him from the second quarter on. Pryor apologized to teammates and the organization for “flicking the person off.”
NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart said the league is looking into “all aspects” of Pryor’s claim and will report back when the review is complete. Lockhart added the league has “no tolerance for racial remarks directed at anyone in a stadium” and said those fans are not welcome to come back “this week, next week or any time.”