ESPN, Disney & WNBA Silent On Rebecca Lobo Apologizing For Saying 'That's What Makes America Great'

During Sunday's WNBA game between the Indiana Fever and Las Vegas Aces, an awkward moment arose when ESPN commentator Rebecca Lobo used the phrase, "that's what makes America great" and then later apologized. 

OutKick's Alejandro Avila laid out what happened leading up to the strange exchange between Lobo and play-by-play commentator Pam Ward: 

While discussing a foul call, Lobo and WNBA play-by-play announcer Pam Ward debated officiating. Lobo noted that Ward’s disagreement with her on the assessment of a foul on a screening Aces player "makes America great," a comment that left Ward silent… Lobo soon backtracked.

During a WNBA broadcast on ESPN, there was an awkward moment when commentator Rebecca Lobo apologized for saying "that's what makes America great."

(Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

"I should rephrase that," Lobo said, prompted by Ward’s reaction.

"Yeah, I did think differences of opinion are perfectly fine," Ward replied.

"Yes, that’s a better way to say it. Sorry about that," Lobo conceded.

It's patently absurd that Ward was so offended by the phrase "that's what makes America great" that she couldn't even bother to respond to a direct question. It's even more absurd that when Lobo said, "I should rephrase that," Ward immediately fired back, "Yes." 

Putting aside the politics of the situation, it's also extremely unprofessional for Ward to leave her broadcasting partner hung out to dry like she did. Her silence led to eight seconds of dead-air, which is usually a no-no for broadcasters. But Ward was so upset by Lobo's word choice that she broke all the rules to make a political point. That's shameful. 

It's also laughable that Lobo felt the need to apologize for the mundane comment likely because it sounded too much like President Donald Trump's signature phrase, "Make America Great Again." 

But it does bring up an interesting question: does Pam Ward genuinely believe that America is not "great"? Her reaction certainly seems to imply that. 

During a WNBA broadcast on ESPN, there was an awkward moment when commentator Pam Ward (pictured) went silent to make a political point after her partner, Rebecca Lobo, used the phrase "that's what makes America great."

(Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)

OutKick reached out to Ward to ask her, along with two other questions: 

"Why didn’t [she] say anything after Lobo said, 'that’s what makes America great, right Pam Ward'?" 

And, "Did [she] agree with Lobo’s decision to apologize for saying ‘that’s what makes America great’?" 

Unfortunately, but unsurprisingly, Ward did not respond to our questions. She wasn't the only one, though. We asked Lobo very similar questions, including why she felt compelled to apologize for her word choice. Nothing back. 

Undeterred, OutKick also reached out to both ESPN and Disney to ask if they had any response to the awkward moment on their airwaves and if the company believes that "America is great." Again, no response. We reached out to the WNBA with the same questions. Ready for this shocking development? It did not respond. 

ESPN, Disney and the WNBA love "diversity," just not "diversity of thought" 

The moment is a microcosm of the state of the three entities involved: ESPN, Disney and the WNBA. OutKick has already documented how the WNBA has largely conspired to keep us from attending games because we don't cover the league in the way that it wants. 

In other words, our "politics" allegedly don't align with the WNBA, so it doesn't want us reporting on the league. Of course, for a league that never stops talking about the importance of "diversity," it seems awfully hypocritical to ban a media company because it doesn't agree on some issues. 

But that's the point. You see, companies like ESPN, Disney and the WNBA value a diversity of immutable characteristics. Things like skin color, gender, and sexual orientation matter much more to those organizations than the diversity of thoughts and political leanings. They value people who look different, but sound the same. And that's not really diversity, is it? 

Pam Ward apparently has no tolerance for the phrase "that's what makes America great" because she probably hates President Trump. While it might seem like a bad strategy for someone broadcasting to all of America to purposefully alienate the majority of the country, it's perfectly acceptable during a WNBA game on ESPN.