What did Kasey Funderburg tweet? Controversy explained as reporter resigns over racist social media post

University of Tennessee sports reporter Kasey Funderburg has resigned from duty after Tweets of a racist nature from her teenage years were discovered. The Tweets date back to 2013 and 2014 when Funderburg would have been 16 years old.

Funderburg resigns after discovery of racist tweets (image via Instagram)

Funderburg is a sports reporter for the University of Tennessee and a sideline reporter for Vol Network - a radio and TV network belonging to the university's sports teams. She was also an on-air reporter for VFL Films.

Following her resignation, the reporter made her Instagram and Twitter accounts private and removed any mention of VFL films and Vol Network from her bio. Her VFL Film profile page has also been deleted from the Tennessee athletics site.

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What led to Kasey Funderburg's resignation?

The university football team usually dons orange and white colors while playing, but before their recent match against Kentucky, the colors were changed to black and orange on account of the team needing an "extra boost."

Richard G. West, a popular Tennessee parody account, Tweeted a joke that alluded to Tennessee encouraging "black face." He said:

“All fans will be asked to wear black clothes and paint their face all black as well.”

Kasey Funderburg quickly denounced this parody tweet as she took to Twitter to say that it was not okay for anyone to post such a joke. She also claimed that the account was fake and urged people not to follow its idea. She said:

"THIS IS A FAKE ACCOUNT and it's disgusting that this person thinks putting out a joke like this is okay. Please don't believe everything you read on Twitter."

In a separate Tweet, she called out the account for being "disgusting." Her stance led to internet sleuths digging up old racist Tweets from when Kasey was a high schooler. The Tweets contained several uses of the n-word, and one even stated that she would like a "slave."

The exposed Tweets by Funderburg (image via Twitte)

The exposed rants took off online, leading to her being canceled. Netizens admonished Kasey for her words and claimed that she should not be allowed to be the face of the university football team. She reportedly resigned shortly after.

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Netizens sign petition asking Vol Network to bring Kasey Funderburg back

The reporter released a statement on Twitter owning up to her mistakes made as a teenager, calling them "unacceptable and ignorant." She has accepted full responsibility and promises that she has strayed from using such language since. She said:

"I take full responsibility for my actions. This language is not appropriate in any context and has not been part of my vocabulary since then."

She went on to say that she will work hard to be a better ally and promote a more inclusive environment.

Netizens believe that Kasey Funderburg's resignation is uncalled for. Hence, a change.org petition was created asking Vol Network to bring her back. The petition has already garnered more than 1,000 signatures.

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