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11.19.2008

announcers confuse anthony kim with "all these chinese people"

Oh no they didn't. Last week, Sky TV golf announcers Richard Boxall and Bruce Critchley were working the HSBC Champions event in Shanghai. You know, just chatting up on live television, not at all trying to be racist and stupid... yet some how succeeding in the most cringeworthy way. At one point, they were talking about rising American star Anthony Kim, and Boxall made this asinine comment:
"With all these Chinese people around, I'm not sure if I bumped into him [Kim] in the hotel reception last night. I'm not sure if it was him."
Ah, because we all look alike, right? And heck, you're in China, so you're pretty much surrounded by a nation of lookalikes. Never mind the fact that Anthony Kim is actually Korean American, born and raised in Los Angeles. Ridiculous: Golf announcers in Anthony Kim race gaffe.

Stupid. But I guess that wasn't enough stupidity for one broadcast, and Critchley deemed it necessary to throw in his own moment ignorance. After Kim's approach shot landed well past the pin, he described Kim as wearing a look of "oriental surprise." What? That's racist!. More here: Golf Announcers Slip Up, Mistake Anthony Kim For 'All (Those) Chinese People'.