Fox Sports made a bizarre choice for a Baseball Night in America graphic. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Saturday’s New York Yankees-Boston Red Sox biggest misstep didn’t come on the field.
Broadcaster Fox Sports saw a quick reaction during the game, as part of its Baseball Night in America television broadcast, after the release of a commercial break with a graphic of the two rivals’ logos superimposed on the reflecting pools of the National Memorial. September 11 & Museum.
Any nationally televised Yankees game will see a number of established shots in New York, but it’s not hard to see why many felt it was in bad taste:
The reflecting pools sit on the former World Trade Center sites and have the names of 2,983 victims, including first responders, flight passengers and World Trade Center workers, inscribed on their side walls.
Fox Sports would soon apologize on Sunday afternoon, saying they had exercised “poor judgment” in airing the graphic.
“On last night’s telecast, we exercised poor judgment over the use of a graphic,” a Fox Sports spokesperson wrote in a statement. “We sincerely apologize and regret the decision.”
As the backlash mounted, the Yankees recorded a one-sided victory, beating the Red Sox 14-1 to improve their record to an MLB-best 63-28. They now lead the AL East by 13 games, the largest division lead in baseball.
