No Longer Held Back By ESPN, Kenny Mayne Blasts Trump and His Supporters for Using the ‘Nazi Playbook’

Kenny Mayne’s 27-year tenure with ESPN came to an end less than four months ago. And if you follow Mayne on social media, you will notice his political commentary has increased since departing the Disney-owned sports brand.

Mayne explained to John Gonzalez of The Ringer that his amplified political bluntness is not a coincidence. Although ESPN is often viewed as having liberal bias, management still attempts to make their talent follow “stick to sports” guidelines.

“They were clearly threatening some of us, me particularly.” Mayne said of ESPN, adding that he was “definitely on the watch list. They told me so: ‘There’s a group of people that watch your Twitter.’”

Mayne admitted to The Ringer that he often held back at ESPN, noting he didn’t have the same courage as his former colleague Jemele Hill. Hill’s courage to speak out against Donald Trump while she was at ESPN contributed to a suspension and numerous public battles, before ultimately influencing her and the Worldwide Leader to part ways.

Mayne recalled being asked by his boss Norby Williamson, “why do you have to do the politics?”

“Because I have four daughters and a wife and I want to look at myself in the mirror,” Mayne replied.

“I get it,” Mayne told Gonzalez. “It’s not like everyone who supported [Trump] is out-and-out racist—a lot of them are—but they were willing to abide that racism, for sure. Or look the other way. I have family members who look the other way—pretend it’s just ‘Republicans versus Democrats, and both sides, and you’re so liberal,’ and all this bullshit.”

“No, look at what they did,” the former SportsCenter anchor continued of Trump and his supporters. “He basically, I know this triggers people, but to say they use the Nazi playbook is pretty accurate. Fascism for sure. Call it what you want. Attack the media. Attack the immigrants. Attack people of color. Attack truth.”

For nearly three-decades, Mayne was a rock star at ESPN, helping the brand to skyrocket during its glory days in the ‘90s and early ‘00s. He was much more known for delivering sports highlights with dry humor and wit than he was his political leanings. But now that he’s free to say things like the former president used a “Nazi playbook,” Mayne is enjoying the “liberation.”