Apex Legends tournament pulled from ESPN in wake of mass shootings

According to Rod “Slasher” Breslau, ESPN pulls X Games Apex Legends Invitational off ESPN2 after recent mass shootings in El Paso, TX and Dayton, OH.

ESPN and ABC has made the decision not to air the TV broadcast of the XGames Apex Legends EXP Invitational that was scheduled for this weekend, in response to the recent mass shootings, according to an ABC Affiliate TV station source pic.twitter.com/6BMwdbk93t

— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) August 8, 2019

“Out of respect for the victims and all those impacted by the recent shootings, ABC will no longer air “EXP Invitational APEX Legends at X Game” on Sunday, August 11, 2019 in the 4:00 – 5:00 PM / 3:00 – 4:00 PM PT time period,” reads a screenshot posted by esports insider Rod ‘Slasher’ Breslau.

Breslau’s email details that this decision was made on August 6, three days after the shootings. Instead of originally airing the rebroadcast of the Apex Legends tournament held August 2 and 3 in Minneapolis. The email also states that they will be replacing the time slot with “E:60 – Forever Broncos.”

the hour long recap that was set for this Saturday at 10 PM on ESPN2 is no longer in the programming schedule, but can still be watched on ESPN3. the broadcast will still be shown on TV at a later date, according to an event source

— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) August 8, 2019

The airing was going to be a clip show of highlights from all the best moments and action from the competition. Those who still want to watch may still view it on ESPN3.

ESPN confirmed to still be airing the tournament on ESPN 2. Catch the show at the following times:

Sunday, October 6 at 5p ET on ESPN2
Tuesday, October 15 at 11p ET on ESPN2
Sunday, October 27 at 4 ET on ESPN2

The recent shootings have also affected the movie industry as well. ESPN has also pulled ads for ‘The Hunt,’ a Blumhouse film where a group of people “slaughtering a dozen deplorables.”

The debate of whether video games are to blame for the violence in America has been brought back to the forefront by politicians.

Credit: Rudolf Baldovino