Bob Costas Bashes Caitlyn Jenner’s ESPY Nod — ESPN Just Jumping On ‘Kardashian’ Bandwagon

ESPN has taken lots of criticism, and lots of praise, for handing the Arthur Ashe Award to Caitlyn Jenner. But few are standing behind this latest slam from Bob Costas.

Costas made some bristling comments on The Dan Patrick Show, calling Caitlyn’s nod “crass exploitation.” But as the Washington Post reported, the ESPYs “aren’t the Nobel prizes” and are essentially a creation of ESPN.

More importantly, they were made up to get people to watch the station when there are no games on TV. And it’s become quite a high-profile, Hollywood-esque program, complete with a red carpet.

Here’s Costas’ comment.

“It strikes me that awarding the Arthur Ashe Award to Caitlyn … is just a crass exploitation play — it’s a tabloid play. In the broad world of sports, I’m pretty sure they could’ve found someone — and this is not anything against (her) — who was much closer, actively involved in sports, who would’ve been deserving of what that award represents.

I think every year we look across the landscape of sports and we find prominent people and kids in high school and amateur athletes who I think more closely fit the description of what they’re looking for, or should be looking for there. I think this is just a play to pump up [the] audience. The way lots of things are put on television to attract eyeballs, not because of the validity, but because of whatever the kind of gawker factor is.”

But Bob pointed one potential motivation the network may have had to nominate Jenner. One is the social impact of his gender transition. But the less admirable reason is the ratings Jenner’s nomination will garner.

Costas pointed out how the station is falling under the spell of the show that made Jenner and his brood famous — Keeping Up with the Kardashians— but implied that the nomination merely jumps on a trend, the New York Daily News added.

And in an aside, Bob wished her “all the happiness … and all the peace of mind in the world.”

But an association with a family “mostly famous for producing daughters with big butts and starring in a frivolous reality show,” Deadspin added, doesn’t diminish Jenner’s social importance. Caitlyn, whether or not she is now a woman, was a decorated Olympian. Perhaps, writer Tom Levy noted, Bob Costas’ comments have more to do with “the narrow scope through which he insists on grumpily viewing the world.”

As the most famous athlete of the past century, her very public transition is in fact a big deal, pop culture phenomenon or not. ESPN has simply recognized that importance.

“She has shown the courage to embrace a truth that had been hidden for years, and to embark on a journey that may not only give comfort to those facing similar circumstances, but can also help to educate people on the challenges that the transgender community faces.”

[Photo Courtesy Tom Pennington / Getty Images]