Portland Trail Blazers fire new announcer hours after hiring

The Portland Trail Blazers fired play-by-play announcer Braiden Bell just hours after announcing his hiring. The decision followed the resurfacing of racist and misogynistic social media posts made by Bell in 2012 and 2013.

Bell, 29, was hired to replace longtime broadcaster Kevin Calabro. The offensive posts, which included derogatory comments about women and Asians, were uncovered by a reporter from KGW-TV. The franchise stated it has “zero tolerance for racist, sexist, or harmful comments” and noted that the posts violated team and league policies.

Bell issued an apology, stating the comments were written when he was 15 years old and do not reflect his current character. The incident has sparked debate regarding whether individuals should be held accountable for teenage social media activity. The Trail Blazers also apologized to fans, admitting they did not meet their own standards during the vetting process.