By WFAN.com
ESPN will not be be broadcasting the national anthem before "Monday Night Football" this season, President Jimmy Pitaro told reporters Friday.
"We generally have not broadcasted the anthem and I don't think that will change this year. Our plan going into this year is to not broadcast the anthem. It's not our job to cover politics, purely, but we'll cover the intersection of sports & politics. When something happens, when the Eagles disinvited from White House, or when someone takes a knee, if we think newsworthy were going to cover it," said Pitaro.
The national anthem became a huge ordeal two years ago when 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick kneeled during the singing of it in protest of the mistreatment of people of color in the United States.
ESPN aired the anthem three times last year when athletes were protesting because of simultaneous news events - a moment of silence for a hurricane, a moment of silence for the Las Vegas shooting and at the Dallas vs. Arizona game.
