📺 Viewers at home caught the mistake and quickly posted their criticism on social media, calling out NBC.
💬 An NBC Sports spokesperson tweeted an apology hours after the performance. We commend them for this but would have gone further to recognize the mistake as a known microaggression (because that’s how these things perpetuate — even though it was unintentional).
📣 Actions really do speak louder than words — your audience is watching (and judging) your every move. So today, we’re here to remind you about the importance of inclusive communications.
📝 Here’s what you can do:
☑️ Own your mistakes. Audiences want the truth (and also want something real). If you mess up, say so. Apologize, fix it and move on.
✍️ This year, our employee writing theme is introspection. We know it takes serious courage to look inward to uncover answers about where we’ve been and where we’re going next. And the first essay prompt is all about the mistakes we don’t regret and the ones that taught us the most. We cannot wait to share our stories with you this spring!
“When leaders are willing to be vulnerable and admit when they don’t know, it opens up the space for learning. It helps everyone take more responsibility for our own areas of ignorance, and to educate ourselves.”