A CBS affiliate said that it fired an employee who was responsible for a graphic shown on air that labeled the New England Patriots quarterback a “Known Cheater.”
The graphic was shown on KDKA, a Pittsburgh affiliate, during the 4 p.m. newscast on Jan. 28.
“While fans are entitled to have personal opinions, we have a journalistic responsibility to provide unbiased reporting,” KDKA said in a statement obtained by SI.com.
“The graphic that appeared Monday violated our news standards. The individual who created the graphic no longer works for KDKA-TV.”
@KDKA throwing the shade at Brady ???? pic.twitter.com/ZPs7gLU8Lf
— Noah M. Vereb (@nvereb) January 28, 2019
The incident came just days before the Feb. 3 Super Bowl matchup between the Patriots and Los Angeles Rams.
Super Bowl LIII will take place in Atlanta, Georgia, and kick off at 6:30 p.m. ET. It will air on CBS.
The 53 in LIII.
Meet the #LARams #SuperBowl roster ???? » https://t.co/MnJ2O9aqKk pic.twitter.com/oWEP1YI58a
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) January 30, 2019
ESPN Shows Fake Instagram Post
Just a day after the graphic went viral, ESPN showed a fake Instagram post before later admitting that it was duped.
Following the Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Lakers game on Tuesday night, ESPN anchor Neil Everett showed an Instagram post by New Orleans Pelicans star Anthony Davis.
The post by Davis, who recently requested a trade—setting off intense speculation about where he’d be traded to—was real, but a comment allegedly from Lakers star James was fake.
Twitter user Sreekyshooter, a photographer, made a fake screenshot that showed James commenting: “SHEESH that sweater is [fire emojis]!!! You’re killing it bro anyway cya laker oops that was a typo I meant cya later.”
SportsCenter really just aired this fake screenshot that I made as an obvious joke hahahahaha I love #content https://t.co/NL9n1l6R9L
— sreekar (@sreekyshooter) January 30, 2019
Ladies and gentlemen…we got him pic.twitter.com/YvyIrfDORW
— sreekar (@sreekyshooter) January 30, 2019
I’d rather have too much time on my hands so I can take 3 minutes to make a joke on twitter than have such little time on my hands that I don’t bother to verify the veracity of a ridiculous instagram screenshot because I’m desperate for content https://t.co/6D03kCTZr6
— sreekar (@sreekyshooter) January 30, 2019
Everett, who believed the comment was real, said during the broadcast, “Look what we found on Insta-face: LeBron James giving thumbs up to Anthony Davis’s wardrobe, and at the same time James basically giving the middle finger to the NBA. Sheesh!”
Everett later admitted that the comment was fake, saying that it was the work of “some kid with way too much time on his hands.”
Responding, the photographer who created the fake screenshot said: “I’d rather have too much time on my hands so I can take 3 minutes to make a joke on twitter than have such little time on my hands that I don’t bother to verify the veracity of a ridiculous Instagram screenshot because I’m desperate for content”
