While in the United States the journalist Craig James is fired Having made a homophobic speech in the past, the Brazilian sporting scene is also experiencing a similar situation.
This involves the dismissal of journalist Flávio Gomes, from ESPN Brasil, who was involved in a controversy with Grêmio fans last weekend.
On Saturday, Grêmio was playing against Portuguesa, the journalist's favorite team, when the referee awarded a dubious penalty to the team from Rio Grande do Sul. Outraged, Flávio Gomes began making aggressive comments towards Grêmio fans on his Twitter profile.
"Tramp judge, scumbag guy since 1903. There are a lot of males in the South, but they love to give ass," he wrote.
Then, the journalist stated that Grêmio fans are “frantic little animals”. "Little Grêmio animals are all crazy in TL. Wow, chickens. They're going to be skewered today," he said. In another discussion, Flávio Gomes said: "Are you sad? Stick the chimarrão bomb in your ass and it will get better."
Outraged, Grêmio fans began to protest on social media against the journalist's stance. The following day, the president of Grêmio, Fábio Koff, released a statement condemning the episode.
"It is revolting and unacceptable that professionals from the Brazilian press can, without pointing out any evidence, by mere fanciful creation, cast doubt on the honesty and suitability of the club, its professionals, its president and other directors, the people of Rio Grande do Sul, as well as of the Brazilian Football Confederation and its Arbitration Commission", alleged Koff.
Faced with the repercussions, ESPN decided to fire the journalist. The channel's director of Journalism and Programming in Brazil, João Palomino, stated that "[Flávio Gomes'] opinions do not reflect in any way the thinking of ESPN Channels" and that "there is internal guidance for the good use of social networks".
"Internal measures are already being taken to prevent other episodes like this from happening," Palomino said in a statement.
In his defense, journalist Flávio Gomes says he regrets the comments. "It had a serious consequence for me. If I had known I would lose my job because of it, I wouldn't have written anything. But from a personal point of view, I don't regret going to Twitter and playing with football", said the commentator in an interview.
"I regret that football fun is in danger of ending because of these reactions. I have already made several jokes that were very well received", he added.
On social media the discussion still continues. Many consider ESPN's stance in firing the journalist who used his personal Twitter account to post comments classified as homophobic to be unfair. And do you agree with the broadcaster’s position?
