NAACP President Derrick Johnson Calls On NFL To ‘Rethink Its Relationship’ With Fox Network

Derrick Johnson, the president of the NAACP, has requested a meeting with NFL executives and called on the league to ‘rethink its relationship with the network.

Johnson wants to talk with NFL executives due to Fox News’ history of promoting racism and bigotry.

“For several decades, the Fox Corporation, and more specifically, Fox News has represented the worst traditions of American broadcasting, Johnson said in a statement. “The media outlet has used its news division to sow bigotry and racism, create dissension, spread misinformation, and promote conspiracy theories that ultimately led to an insurrection against the U.S. Capitol. It is safe to say, the views and opinions of Fox News are often squarely positioned against the progression of our democracy and not in the general public’s best interest.”

According to Johnson, Fox exploits its licensing deal with the NFL through its increasingly high cable subscriber fees that go toward subsidizing its news division. Johnson also knows the majority of NFL players are Black men and since the NFL prides itself on being the country’s favorite sport, it should not be complicit in increasing Fox’s profits.

“The NFL should immediately rethink its relationship with Fox, given all that Fox has done to harm its players and the franchise. It’s disturbing that this renewal is even on the table,” Johnson said.

The NFL announced its new television rights deal Thursday with ABC, FOX, ESPN, CBS NBC, and Amazon. The deal nearly doubles the league’s revenue to more than $10 billion. According to the Associated Press, the league made $5.9 billion a year under its previous contract and will receive $133 billion over the next 10 years under the current contract.

NFL games were three of the top five network television shows watched in 2018, five of the top 10 shows in 2019, and the top five most-watched shows in 2020.