Sports Illustrated‘s sports site The Cauldron won’t use freelancer John Gorman anymore after his tweets on the Dallas shooting. In them, he said the shooting suspect, Micah Xavier Johnson, “acted in righteous anger” and wrote to “burn this whole country to the ground.”
“He was a freelancer who has written (I think) three stories in two years for us, the last back in January 2016,” The Cauldron‘s editor Jamie O’Grady told iMediaEthics via e-mail. “The sentiments tweeted by the writer were incompatible with The Cauldron‘s so we felt it appropriate to let him know that we would no longer be accepting his submissions/pitches.”
Gorman’s Twitter account is currently set to private. Gorman told iMediaEthics via Facebook:
“I have nothing but the utmost respect for everyone at the Cauldron, and gratitude for the opportunity they gave me. I understand and agree with their decision. They did what they had to do and, in light of the firestorm generated by my comments, it was the right call.”
According to Awful Announcing’s screenshots of Gorman’s tweets, the offending tweets read: “Micah Xavier Johnson acted in righteous anger. He was tired and sick of it all. I don’t condone his actions, but I understand them,” he wrote in one tweet. In another, he wrote “I don’t believe in the USA. I don’t believe in our leaders. I don’t believe in the common good. And I sure as shit don’t believe in myself.” He added, “Burn this whole country to the ground. Start over.”
The Cauldron tweeted July 8 that Gorman “will no longer be a freelancer” and “We completely disavow the sentiments that were expressed, and they are not reflective of our publication or any of our partners.”
The Cauldron‘s editor Jamie O’Grady commented on Twitter
Hat Tip: Jason McIntyre
UPDATED: 7/9/2016 12:04 PM EST With comment from Gorman