ESPN's Keith Olbermann asked his followers Tuesday to make a private citizen's life a "living hell" because the man killed a rare white turkey during turkey hunting season.
The Mississippi Clarion Ledger reported Monday that aptly-named Hunter Waltman was surprised during a recent hunting trip to come across a completely white wild turkey. After over three hours of stalking the bird, he managed to make the kill with a rifle from 60 yards. Experts contacted by the Clarion Ledger suggested the bird was a partial albino and quite rare, maybe "one out of several hundred thousand individuals."
Olbermann evidently did not care for the story, shaming Waltman by name on social media and mocking him. "It be rare and beautiful so me should kill it," the SportsCenter host tweeted.
"This pea-brained scumbag identifies himself as Hunter Waltman and we should do our best to make sure the rest of his life is a living hell," he told his 1.08 million followers. "And the nitwit clown who wrote this fawning piece should be fired."
It be rare and beautiful so me should kill it.
This pea-brained scumbag identifies himself as Hunter Waltman and we should do our best to make sure the rest of his life is a living hell. And the nitwit clown who wrote this fawning piece should be fired. https://t.co/KdU3Bkg104
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) March 26, 2019
The Clarion Ledger stood by its reporting, with editor in chief Sam Hall tweeting his support for reporter Brian Broom. "What was I thinking? I guess I should have fired our outdoors writer for writing about a hunter killing an unusual turkey during turkey hunting season," he snarked.
"Keith Olbermann‘s tweet was recklessly irresponsible," Hall continued, also tweeting that "in our newsroom, that would be a fireable offense."
Keith Olbermann‘s tweet was recklessly irresponsible. Someone with his following needs to understand the possible impact of his words. Telling over 1 million people to make someone’s life a living hell could have seriously dangerous consequences.
— Sam R. Hall (@samrhall) March 27, 2019
In our newsroom, that would be a fireable offense, not writing a story about a hunter bagging a turkey.
— Sam R. Hall (@samrhall) March 27, 2019
On the topic of firing, Olbermann has at various times been fired by MSNBC, Fox Sports, Current TV, and GQ, and had previously been fired twice by ESPN before his current tenure.
"We have spoken to him about not making personal attacks," ESPN said in a statement.
In an odd twist of fate, Olbermann also once appeared in a commercial for Boston Market selling their turkey melt BLT sandwich.
After 21 years it can be revealed...
We actually shot FIVE Boston Market "EAT SOMETHING" commercials. Two made air. One was never edited.
But two...survived.
Here, for the first time, is...
THE ONE IN THE MOSH PIT:#OfferExpiredIn1997 pic.twitter.com/AH6lQmHa1X— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) August 28, 2018
The Washington Free Beacon cannot confirm how many of the slaughtered turkeys were white.