Exec Who Penned Homophobic/Racist Olympic Op-Ed Is Out At Fox News

John Moody (via screen capture)

John Moody, the Fox News Channel executive who penned a divisive op-ed decrying the diversity of the U.S. Olympic team has resigned.

In February, Moody wrote, in part,  “Unless it’s changed overnight, the motto of the Olympics, since 1894, has been ‘Faster, Higher, Stronger.’ It appears the U.S. Olympic Committee would like to change that to ‘Darker, Gayer, Different.’ If your goal is to win medals, that won’t work.”

“Complaining that every team isn’t a rainbow of political correctness defeats the purpose of sports, which is competition,” he continued. “At the Olympic level, not everyone is a winner. Not everyone gets a little plastic trophy to take home.”

Moody went on to assert that the diversity of the U.S. Olympic team, which fielded the most Asian-American and African-American athletes ever assembled for a U.S. Winter Olympic team as well as our first two openly gay Winter Olympians, was merely a publicity stunt.

Fox News removed the op-ed and issued a statement saying the essay "does not reflect the views or values" of Fox News.

LGBT advocacy groups - including the Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD, and the National Center for Lesbian Rights - all immediately denounced the essay

From The Hollywood Reporter:

"The executive vice president of Fox News targeted some of our nation’s top athletes with vicious anti-LGBTQ and biased rhetoric at what should be the proudest moment of their lives," said Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of GLAAD.

She continued: "These athletes are at the Olympics because they already won by qualifying to represent the United States on the world's stage; and they did so despite facing discrimination from places like Fox News throughout their careers. Moody should not only apologize to the athletes and fans for this disgraceful post, but Fox News should open their site for diverse athletes to share their own personal stories and perspectives.”

Human Rights Campaign senior national press secretary Stephen Peters said the column is "the antithesis of what the Olympics are all about and an affront to the values of hard work and perseverance that Americans share." He added, "The U.S.O.C. does not have quotas for its Olympic delegation, and to suggest that race, sexuality, or gender orientation are the reasons these incredible athletes made the cut is insulting, repugnant and dismissive of a lifetime of hard work."

Catherine Sakimura, deputy director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said the column's "racist and homophobic sentiment demeans our U.S. Olympic athletes, who should be celebrated as they represent our country."