# It's a travesty to end someone's career over "chink in the armor" **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 21, 2012, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474 "2012-02-21T00:06:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/1 "2012-02-21T00:06:28Z")
I really believe this was an innocent oversight, that the writer was not trying to allude to Lin’s ethnicity but just using a common phrase. Even Lin himself doesn’t believe it was intentional. Now the poor guy has a career he “was proud of”, past tense. Ugh. > **[Ex-ESPN writer says slur was 'honest mistake' | CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2012/02/20/sport/espn-lin-slur/)** > > Former ESPN writer Anthony Federico told the N.Y. Daily News Monday that an offensive headline he wrote “was an honest mistake.” ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/2 "2012-02-21T00:19:00Z")
Some action should have been taken, but not sure he needed to be fired. Anyone who doesn’t know “chink” is a racial slur has no business in a position where he can publish something that doesn’t pass muster with an editor. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/3 "2012-02-21T00:22:43Z")
I’m all for giving people reasonable doubt, but… … I’m sorry, that’s just so hard to believe. “Chink in the armor” as a headline in a story about basketball and it just happens to be about Jeremy Lin. They claim to have used the phrase hundreds of times, but to be honest I don’t ever remember seeing that phrase in a sports headline before. [ESPN.com](http://ESPN.com) has cut off searches on the word “Chink” but for the hell of it I went to [CNNSI.com](http://CNNSI.com) and did a search. The phrase comes up maybe once every month or two, at most, and never in a headline. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/4 "2012-02-21T00:23:36Z")
I hope that ESPN at least gives the writer any overtime or holiday pay owed to him, otherwise they’d be particularly niggardly. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/5 "2012-02-21T00:28:45Z")
it’s just a harmless joke why is everyone so sensitive nowadays ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/6 "2012-02-21T00:30:14Z")
Especially in the context of all the awful punning that has been going on, it’s just very, very hard to buy that this wasn’t intentional. If that’s your job, you really should devote extra time on a regular basis to knowing slang and derrogatory or offensive terms. If you’re Howard Cosell, you can get away after showing contrition for calling someone a monkey. If you’re whatshisname who blogs for ESPN, not so much. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/7 "2012-02-21T00:32:37Z")
It reminds me of those idiots who were whining about “black hole” being racist. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/8 "2012-02-21T00:33:12Z")
Is there another story somewhere that more fully explains the writer’s “honest mistake?” I am just having a hard time seeing how that turn of phrase wasn’t a slur aimed at Lin. Did the writer not understand that the word “chink” is offensive? I just have a hard time believing that. I’m curious as to what the writer’s explanation is, mostly because I just don’t understand how he could think that phrase was acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/9 "2012-02-21T00:35:06Z")
> [@Grumman](#): > > It reminds me of those idiots who were whining about “black hole” being racist. Racist AND sexist. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/10 "2012-02-21T00:37:23Z")
I can see where the guy didn’t mean to be offensive to Lin, personally. And Lin is on record as having shrugged it off. But they guy used a racial slur in a headline. He needs to be operating only with a learner’s permit. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/11 "2012-02-21T00:44:26Z")
Yes, he should have known better, and if someone had asked him “Wait, are you sure that’s the best phrasing to use?”, he probably should have noticed it. But if I’m going to refer to a weak spot in a defense, “chink in the armor” is the first phrasing that would have come to my mind, too. It seems to me far more likely that this happened because the guy was sufficiently color-blind that the other meaning didn’t even occur to him, not because he was deliberately using a slur. > [@](#): > > Did the writer not understand that the word “chink” is offensive? I just have a hard time believing that. The word “chink” is _not_ always offensive-- It depends on context. In reference to a person of Chinese ethnicity, it’s offensive. In reference to a gap in armor, it’s not. The tricky part here is that it’s not completely clear what the relevant context is. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/12 "2012-02-21T00:45:39Z")
Of course Lin is going to shrug it off! If he didn’t shrug it off, people would be calling him a hypersensitive jackass. The public never likes it when someone takes offense at something…even if offense is warranted. People are strange like that. Sorry, not buying the ignorance excuse here. The turn of phrase is pretty weak in the context in which it was used, suggesting that the writer bent over backwards to use it. The editor that let this slip by should also be dick-slapped a few times. “Chink” isn’t an obscure slur. Anyone who wordsmiths for a living should know it. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/13 "2012-02-21T00:47:23Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Yes, he should have known better, and if someone had asked him “Wait, are you sure that’s the best phrasing to use?”, he probably should have noticed it. But if I’m going to refer to a weak spot in a defense, “chink in the armor” is the first phrasing that would have come to my mind, too. It seems to me far more likely that this happened because the guy was sufficiently color-blind that the other meaning didn’t even occur to him, not because he was deliberately using a slur. The sports industry is making a sport of puns off this guy’s name. It was obviously meant as a pun. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/14 "2012-02-21T00:49:26Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > I really believe this was an innocent oversight, that the writer was not trying to allude to Lin’s ethnicity but just using a common phrase. Let’s not be ridiculous here: even Federico is not denying he was making a pun on the two meanings of “chink.” I can believe the guy was not trying to demean Asians and simply suspended his common sense in the quest to come up with a pun for the headline, but if you think it’s a good idea to use pun on a racial slur in a headline, you deserve to get fired. I really don’t see a lot of middle ground there. It reflects abysmal judgment on his part and make his employer look terrible. Whether Feredico’s career is ended is up to him and potential future employers. I’m not saying he should never work again, but this is neither surprising not unwarranted. ---
**Author:** ![rat\_avatar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rat_avatar/32/255_2.png) [@rat\_avatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rat_avatar)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/15 "2012-02-21T00:52:52Z")
I’m not so sure about this “chink in the armor” is a common used sports phrase, there is no indication the “chink” was used due to the Asian connection. It should be based on intent, I would prefer a world where we didn’t notice these if they weren’t intended to be a slur like “nappy headed hoes” Although if it was put in intentionally due to race yes, they should be fired. Never mind I just saw the guy did do it on purpose, ya fire them. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/16 "2012-02-21T00:59:54Z")
[Sometimes stupidity can be just as nauseating as racism.](http://www.racialicious.com/2012/02/15/memewatch-adventures-in-linsanity/#more-20490) ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/17 "2012-02-21T01:00:56Z")
> [@rat\_avatar](#): > > Never mind I just saw the guy did do it on purpose, ya fire them. > [@Marley23](#): > > Let’s not be ridiculous here: even Federico is not denying he was making a pun on the two meanings of “chink.” Did ne “not deny” it, or has he actually said he did it on purpose? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/18 "2012-02-21T01:12:25Z")
> [@Grumman](#): > > Did ne “not deny” it, or has he actually said he did it on purpose? In the CNN story linked in the OP, you see that he says it was “an honest mistake” and that he’s sorry if he offended anybody. He does not argue about his choice of words. If he was not making a pun on the racial slur, I would expect the first words out of his mouth to be ‘I wasn’t using it as a racial slur.’ There is really only one way to read the headline- as a play on the two meaning of chink. If you take out the Asian angle, it doesn’t make much sense as a headline in the context of the Knicks’ season and Lin’s play. ESPN also suspended a broadcaster who made the same comment, and he also did not deny it was an insensitive pun- he just said he didn’t intend to be disrespectful and that his wife is Asian. _That_ guy is in for some awkward conversations over the next 30 days. ---
**Author:** ![gatorslap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gatorslap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gatorslap)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/19 "2012-02-21T01:22:01Z")
Why didn’t they also fire the editor who approved it? Also, is it just me, or does ESPN’s apology sound really patronizing? “We again apologize, especially to Mr. Lin. His accomplishments are a source of great pride to the Asian-American community, including the Asian-American employees at ESPN.” ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2012, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474/20 "2012-02-21T01:29:13Z")
> [@gatorslap](#): > > Why didn’t they also fire the editor who approved it? I’m also curious about how that worked. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-a-travesty-to-end-someones-career-over-chink-in-the-armor/613474.md?page=2)