ESPN apologizes after controversial moment on Pat McAfee show
On Friday afternoon, ESPN officially apologized for false comments that New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers made about late-night host Jimmy Kimmel on his weekly appearance on the Pat McAfee Show. Rodgers incorrectly implied that Kimmel's name would be on the unsealed Jeffery Epstein court documents, stating on the show that "There’s a lot of […]
On Friday afternoon, ESPN officially apologized for false comments that New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers made about late-night host Jimmy Kimmel on his weekly appearance on the Pat McAfee Show.
Rodgers incorrectly implied that Kimmel's name would be on the unsealed Jeffery Epstein court documents, stating on the show that "There’s a lot of people, including Jimmy Kimmel, really hoping that doesn’t come out.”
"Aaron made a dumb and factually inaccurate joke about Jimmy Kimmel. It should never have happened. We all realized that in the moment," ESPN's Mike Foss said, via Front Office Sports.
When the clip was posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, Jimmy Kimmel immediately responded, denying those allegations.
"Dear A*******: for the record, I’ve not met, flown with, visited, or had any contact whatsoever with Epstein, nor will you find my name on any “list” other than the clearly-phony nonsense that soft-brained wackos like yourself can’t seem to distinguish from reality. Your reckless words put my family in danger. Keep it up and we will debate the facts further in court @AaronRodgers12 ," he wrote.
On Wednesday, McAfee addressed the comments that were made, issuing an apology.
“I can see exactly why Jimmy Kimmel felt the way he felt, especially with his position. But I think Aaron was just trying to talk sh**. But did it go too far? Jimmy Kimmel certainly said that was the case,” McAfee said. “We obviously don’t like the fact that we’re associated with anything negative ever. We like our show to be an uplifting one, a happy one, a fun one. But it’s because we talk shit and try to make light of everything. Some things obviously people get very pissed off about, especially when they’re that serious allegations, so we apologize for being a part of it.”
McAfee's show airs on ESPN, which is owned by Disney. They also own ABC, which is where "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" airs.
