HOULTON, Maine — Two longtime basketball broadcasters in Aroostook County have been fired from radio station WHOU soon after producing disparaging remarks Thursday on-air about some of the pupil gamers.
Jim Carter and Steve Shaw have been having ready to broadcast a higher college women basketball sport when they built inappropriate comments about basketball players on a various girls activity also staying broadcast on-line. The opinions experienced to do with the players’ physical appearance.
Carter and Shaw have broadcast large school basketball games in Aroostook County for a long time at several radio stations. Carter is a member of the Presque Isle Hall of Fame and Maine Sports activities Legends. Shaw is also a retired athletic director for Easton, is a previous standout coach at equally Easton and Central Aroostook and was inducted into the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame as portion of the “Legends of the Game” in 2021.
The remarks ended up created all through the waning minutes of a junior varsity women contest between Caribou and Fort Kent, with the broadcasters unaware their microphone was on. The opinions spread speedily on social media Thursday night, but the video game has due to the fact been taken down by the radio station.
“Our mission has been to spotlight the greatest of our communities, our faculties, the courses we appreciate and most importantly our college students,” wrote Fred Grant, owner of WHOU/Northern Maine Media. “Tonight, two broadcasters made opinions that were not only inappropriate, they had been also blatantly mistaken. Individuals broadcasters were being terminated.”
Grant additional, for the previous 11 yrs, his station has had the privilege of broadcasting learners in sporting situations and extracurricular things to do these as musical competitions.
“Every night pupils go out and give it their all, they find out, they choose by themselves and each and every other up when matters get difficult,” he said. “We might be let down when they eliminate, but we’re encouraged by their resilience when they come again to give it another shot. Which is what is important and which is what we embrace.
In his put up, Grant questioned men and women to chorus from circulating any video clips, and if they have, to just take them down, and as a substitute asked that they change the concentration back to something extra constructive – like aiding pupils move on to the important operate and situations in their lives.
“I apologize that the broadcasters unsuccessful to see this fundamental belief and I apologize for their conduct. I know they are remorseful and I consider they, much too, will continue to discover from their problems,” he reported.