The panel on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" mocked ESPN on Wednesday for removing a broadcaster named Robert Lee from an upcoming game involving the University of Virginia.
Lee was supposed to do play-by-play coverage for the upcoming college football season opener between the University of Virginia and William and Mary. Executives at ESPN released a statement saying Lee would not be doing coverage of the game due to the coincidence of him having the same name as the famed Confederate general, amid the recent violence in Charlottesville.
"I kid you not," co-host Willie Geist said, as he summarized the story.
"We collectively made the decision with Robert to switch games as the tragic events in Charlottesville were unfolding, simply because of the coincidence of his name," ESPN's statement said. "In that moment it felt right to all parties. It's a shame that this is even a topic of conversation and we regret that who calls play by play for a football game has become an issue."
"The irony here is it wasn't an issue for anyone until this statement went out, until that decision was made," Geist said.
Geist said that he thought the story was originally by The Onion, a satirical site. Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson called ESPN's move "the stupidest thing I've ever heard."
"I guess this is the logical outcome of the culture we've created," Geist said.
Robinson quipped this story is why President Donald Trump has a base of 33 percent support, saying that even mask-wearing anarchists would not confuse Lee, the announcer, with Lee, the Confederate general.
"I just think this is really dumb," Robinson said.
USA Today reported ESPN made the decision because it feared Lee would be the subject of mocking internet memes and did not want to put him in that position.