Popular Virginia radio host apologizes for branding sports reporter ‘Barbie’ after he was fired for on-air comments, claiming her ‘attempts to be humorous and topical failed’
A popular radio host in Virginia has apologized for calling a sports reporter a “Barbie girl” among other sexist comments while broadcasting from the Washington Commanders’ spring training camp last month.
On Wednesday, Don Gerinomo, who was fired by the NFL franchise’s flagship radio station WBIG ‘BIG 100’ last week, shared a lengthy message about recent pivotal events related to his career on social media.
“I deeply and sincerely apologize for the pain I have caused WUSA Sports Reporter Sharla McBride,” he wrote on Twitter. “My attempts to be humorous and topical backfired, and I unnecessarily disapproved of a professional colleague.”
Last Thursday, while taping what turned out to be the final episode of his WBIG-FM affiliate show, Geronimo made several disparaging comments about McBride as he walked past the show’s booth.
“Hey, Barbie is here,” Geronimo told producer Crash Young. ‘Hello, Barbie girl. I guess she’s a cheerleader.
Virginia-based radio host Don Geronimo apologized for calling a reporter ‘Barbie’
On Wednesday, Geronimo shared a lengthy message acknowledging his mistake on Twitter.
Gerinomo made the remarks to WUSA9’s Sharla McBride at the commanders’ training camp.
While Geronimo admitted his ‘Barbie’ comments were offensive, he wanted to clear up ‘an inaccuracy’ reported by the media about the incident.
“Contrary to these reports, neither I nor my producer (Crash Young) use the word ‘tight’ to describe Ms. McBride,” Geronimo said in a statement.
“Rather, my producer used the word ‘tight,’ a common term in the broadcast world referring to seamless production, to describe a technical aspect of our show that day.”
Geronimo also said he reached out to McBride, a reporter for WUSA9 in DC, and said he hopes “we can have a conversation and I’ll have a chance to reiterate my apologies in person.”
“When I heard the comments about me on the radio show, I was incredibly insulted and embarrassed,” McBride said in a statement shared with ESPN.
‘In my 17 years as a professional journalist, I have never been so flagrantly disrespected while trying to do my job. His words were sexist and misogynistic. No woman should experience this in the workplace, and I appreciate the Commanders’ quick response in handling this matter.’
McBride admitted that the comments had hurt her and she had never heard anything like it in her 17 years working in the media.
Geronimo now hopes he can apologize to McBride in person when he’s ready to meet.
Geronimo and Young were banned from Washington’s practice session at the training ground on Friday because iHeartMedia, the parent company of WBIG-FM, was conducting an internal investigation into the incident. WBIG-FM and the Commanders are in the midst of a three-year partnership agreement signed last year.
“After an internal review, Don Geronimo is no longer a WBIG employee,” Aaron Hyland, iHeartMedia’s DC region president, shared Sunday. “We take matters of this nature very seriously and this behavior does not align with our core values.”
McBride has yet to comment on Geronimo’s firing and his apology.
“I hope that Ms. McBride and the listeners who are listening will forgive me,” Gerinomo said as a farewell to her public apology note.
I am better than this and I promise to prove it in the future.
