Thoughts on "Shaquille O'Neal's 70-30 Joke"
David Chu

"It's too bad that something I said in jest was turned into something it's not. But I didn't mean anything by it and I'm sorry if I offend anybody." "It's amazing how, when you deliver a line, some people laugh, some people don't," "You don't need to write anything about that."

"If I offended anybody," O'Neal said, "I apologize." "I said a joke. It was a 70-30 joke. Seventy percent of people thought it was funny, 30 didn't." "It's probably [someone] just trying to start trouble.l"

People who make racist remarks seldom realize that jokes based on racial biases may be funny to some but that does not make these jokes any less racist/ Or, any less offensive to those on the receiving end of the so-called "jokes." They often attack the media for pointing out that their remarks were racist.

Does Shaq know that his behavior and subsequent explanations were almost identical to Fuzzy Zoeller's? The quotes in the first paragraph were made by Zoeller in the aftermath of the infamous Masters "watermelon" incident. Does Shaq not remember how he (and many of us) felt about Zoeller's "apology"? How ironic it is that the recipient of Zoeller's racial joke, Tiger Woods -- who, in addition to being African-American is after all also Asian-American -- is an unintended target of Shaq's racist "jokes."


Asian Weekly Article:
http://www.asianweek.com/2003_01_03/sports_yaoming.html


Letters by OCA National President, Raymond Wong
1) Letter to Shaquille O'Neal
2) Letter to Fox Sports Radio

Shaquille O'Neal
Los Angeles Lakers
555 N. Nash Street
El Segundo, CA 90245

January 10, 2003

Dear Mr. O'Neal:

I am writing you in response to the complaints we have received from listeners of Fox Sports Radio's Tony Bruno Morning Extravaganza, in which Bruno rebroadcast your racist taunts regarding Houston Rockets team member Yao Ming. I represent the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), a national Asian Pacific American (APA) civil rights and education group with over 80 chapters and affiliates nationwide, many of whom are fans of both the Los Angeles Lakers and the Houston Rockets.

On the show, you threatened Yao Ming with mock-Chinese gibberish, clearly intended to taunt not only Ming but any American of Asian descent. However, this was not an isolated incident. On June 28 of last year, on Fox Television's Best Damn Sports Show Period, you again made mockery of the fact that Yao Ming is Asian, in your use of a fake Chinese accent and supposed kung-fu moves. You even combined these verbal comments with a threat to Yao Ming's physical harm, announcing that you would like to take an elbow to Yao's face.

Your remarks show extreme ignorance and lack of concern over our nation's cultural diversity and how far we have all had to come to overcome dangerous stereotypes. Not only are these anti-Asian sentiments extremely offensive to the growing Asian Pacific American community, but they may incite anti-Asian sentiment that readily leads to racial violence. Chinese and Asian Pacific Americans make up over 11 percent of California's population, many of which are concentrated in the Los Angeles area. We doubt that you would want to further alienate this growing population by future offensive antics.

Next time, you must think twice about making such comments again. As a celebrity, you need to take responsibility for your statements to the general public and your many fans.

Sincerely,

Raymond Wong
OCA National President


Ross Levinsohn
Senior Vice President and General Manager
Fox Sports Radio
15260 Ventura Blvd, Suite 500
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403

January 10, 2003

Dear Mr. Levinsohn:

The Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), a national Asian Pacific American (APA) civil rights and education group with over 80 chapters and affiliates nationwide, writes to you in response to complaints we have received from the listeners of Fox Sports Radio's Tony Bruno Morning Extravaganza.

Reports indicate that Bruno had basketball star Shaquille O'Neal on as a guest and at the mention of Houston Rockets' Yao Ming, O'Neal proceeded to taunt Ming by speaking in mock-Chinese gibberish. Then, on December 16 and 17, 2002, Bruno replayed the recording of the taunt several times to the show's nationwide audience. Bruno remarked that O'Neal's comments were not racist and welcomed listeners to call in, often with more anti-Asian racist jokes.

This was not the only incident of Fox Sports Network condoning O'Neal's offensive behavior. On June 28, 2002, when O'Neal appeared on the Best Damn Sports Show Period, O'Neal again spoke in a fake Chinese accent and made mock kung-fu moves in response to the topic of Yao Ming.

We are extremely troubled by these incidents because they exhibit ignorance and a lack of concern over our nation's cultural diversity. This country has had to work very hard to become racially integrated and it is an ever-challenging process. Your shows should not be contributing to the perpetuation of dangerous stereotypes. Not only are these anti-Asian sentiments extremely offensive to the growing Asian Pacific American population, but they may be responsible for inciting anti-Asian sentiment that readily leads to racial violence. Our community has grown to over 12 million individuals and we have an estimated buying power of $250 billion. With these changing demographics, it does not make business sense for a network such as yours to alienate an important segment of American society.

We hope that you will address this issue seriously and responsibly. We believe that Tony Bruno should apologize on air to the Chinese American community and to the general listening audience for his racial insensitivity. Furthermore, you should take measures, such as diversity training for your radio hosts and program directors, to prevent similar further occurrences. We look forward to receiving a response from you and speaking with you further about improvements you hope to make. We thank you in advance for your attention to our concerns.

Sincerely,


Raymond Wong
OCA National President

Copy to:
David Hill
Chairman and CEO
Fox Sports Television
Fox Sports Networks, LLC
10,000 Santa Monica Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90067