A veteran television sports reporter was fired by News 12 Connecticut this week after referring to Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) as “Uncle Tom” over his support of Donald Trump.
Scott, the only Black GOP senator, defended Trump’s refusal to disavow white supremacist groups during Tuesday’s presidential debate, theGRIO previously reported.
“I think he misspoke in response to Chris Wallace’s comment. He was asking Chris what he wanted to say. I think he misspoke. I think he should correct it. If he doesn’t correct it, I guess he didn’t misspeak,” Scott said Wednesday.
Reporter Fred Gerteiny, who is white, reacted to Scott’s remarks in a since-deleted tweet, writing “Thanks Uncle Tom.”
Read More: Tim Scott defends Trump’s ‘stand by’ comments: ‘He misspoke’
And with that… Gerteiny was out of a job hours after posting the racially insensitive tweet, The Hill reports.
“After reviewing the incident, the network released sports reporter, Fred Gerteiny, as a result of a racially insensitive comment,” News 12 Connecticut said in a Wednesday statement. “News 12 Networks has a zero tolerance policy for racism or improper conduct based on race, and prides itself on being an objective and unbiased multi-platform news company.”
Amid the backlash over his commnet, Gerteiny returned to Twitter to issue an apology.
“Earlier today, I tweeted a racially insensitive comment, when I referred to @SenatorTimScott as an ‘Uncle Tom,'” Gerteiny tweeted on Wednesday. “I apologize to the Senator, my colleagues @News12CT, and anyone else I may have offended with this deeply offensive tweet.”
Read More: Proud Boys take Trump’s ‘stand back and stand by’ callout as marching orders
Gerteiny has since deleted his Twitter account.
During the first Trump-Biden debate on Tuesday, moderator Chris Wallace asked Trump if he was willing to condemn white supremacists and say that they need to stand down amid ongoing protests against police violence in the country. Wallace specifically pointed to Kenosha and Portland, where people have been killed during protests.
“Sure, I’m willing to (tell them to stand down), but I would say almost everything I see is from the left-wing, not from the right-wing. I’m willing to do anything. I want to see peace,” Trump said.
“Proud Boys, stand back and stand by,” Trump added. “But I’ll tell you what. I’ll tell you what. Somebody’s got to do something about Antifa and the left because this is not a right-wing problem.”
Senator Lindsey Graham said the president should “make it clear Proud Boys is a racist organization antithetical to American ideals.”
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