Bob Costas Slams CBS And Jim Nantz Over Gutless Masters Coverage

Bob Costas went on The Dan Patrick Show and really quite beautifully torched CBS's Masters coverage for not acknowledging "Augusta's history of racism and sexism." Here's Costas:

What no CBS commentator has ever alluded to, even in passing, even during a rain delay, even when there was time to do so, is Augusta's history of racism and sexism. Even when people were protesting just outside the grounds—forget about taking a side—never acknowledging it. So not only will I never work the Masters because I'm not at CBS, but I'd have to say something and then I would be ejected.

[...]

They do have a history that ought to be reckoned with that that they've only recent come to terms with—if you call this coming to terms with it.

He's not being overly dramatic: he'd be ejected because Augusta officials would have him fired. Jack Whitaker was banned after he referred to the Augusta gallery as a "mob" in 1966.

Costas doesn't refer to Nantz by name, but it would clearly be his job to take the bully pulpit here, which, unsurprisingly, he hasn't chosen to do. He continues:

I think someone should had the guts to do it along the way. Broadcaster, executive, somebody should have said to someone at Augusta, 'Look this is an issue. And this is not Nightline or Meet The Press, we understand that. But this is an issue. And it's an elephant in the room. And we're going to address it as concisely as we can but we're going to address it so our heads are not in the collective sand trap.'

Dan Patrick said it'd be awkward to talk about it all, to which Costas responded: "Just talk about guns. No one can get in trouble that way."