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The Big Ten College Football game between No. 2 [University of] Michigan and rival Michigan State [University] was a blowout. The Wolverines defeated the Spartans in an overwhelming scoring session in East Lansing.
What was supposed to be a fun night for fans turned into a controversy.
During a brief segment, the Spartans Stadium billboard has a questionaire. The question was about the birthplace of Adolf Hitler.
Michigan State is apologizing after an image of Adolf Hitler appeared on a Spartan Stadium video board Saturday night prior to its game against Michigan.
Multiple images circulating on social media on Saturday show an image of the Nazi leader’s face on the stadium’s largest scoreboard, alongside a trivia question answer about his birthplace.
Michigan State said the scoreboard content came from a third-party source. The school will no longer use that source and will update its screening procedures.
“MSU is aware that inappropriate content by a third-party source was displayed on the video board prior to the start of tonight’s football game,” MSU spokesperson Matt Larson said in a statement. “We are deeply sorry for the content that was displayed, as this is not representative of our institutional values. MSU will not be using the third-party source going forward and will implement stronger screening and approval procedures for all videoboard content in the future.”
The timestamp scoreboard shows that the image appeared 80 minutes before kickoff of Saturday night’s game. Michigan State regularly shows rotating trivia questions on its stadium video boards prior to the game.
Michigan State suffered its worst home loss in the 100-year history of Spartan Stadium on Saturday night.
A 49-0 defeat against rival Michigan followed an embarrassing pregame incident in which a picture of Adolf Hitler was displayed on the videoboard as part of a trivia question about the former Nazi leader’s birthplace.
The image quickly went viral and Michigan State issued a statement during the game apologizing for the incident, which it attributed to a third-party source that will no longer be used. A day later, a university employee has been suspended with pay and the Board of Trustees called for accountability.
“The Michigan State University Board of Trustees is outraged at last night’s incident at Spartan Stadium,” the board wrote in a statement released Sunday afternoon. “The projected image was unacceptable, and as the oversight body for MSU we want to publicly apologize to everyone who was in Spartan Stadium or learned of this through other means.
“The board has spoken with Interim President Teresa Woodruff and Athletic Director Alan Haller and conveyed to them our extreme disappointment and our demand to know how this happened. MSU personnel must be accountable and held responsible for this disgusting display.”
The trivia question came from The Quiz Channel and its creator, Floris van Pallandt, addressed the issue on his YouTube page, saying the university didn’t ask for permission to use it or pay for it.
“To be clear, I was unaware Michigan State University is using my content for stadium entertainment and this was unsolicited and (unauthorized) use,” he wrote. “A random history trivia question in an inappropriate setting.”
The image was displayed more than an hour before kickoff before most of the more than 74,000 fans filtered in. A trivia question about the central figure responsible for the Holocaust drew widespread condemnation of Michigan State, which has an enrollment of more than 51,000 students who hail from 130 different countries.
“Every person in the MSU community and our guests deserve to feel safe and that they belong,” the Board of Trustees said in its statement. “The board does not condone bigotry of any kind. We will take necessary steps to ensure that our athletic department and the administration live up to that expectation at all times. The board demands that MSU administrators thoroughly examine all the factors and actions that led to this incident and report back to the board and the public about how this happened and who will be held accountable.”
Haller issued a statement of his own Sunday night, detailing an error in vetting and the athletic department’s initial response.
“I am deeply sorry for the offensive image we displayed on the Spartan Stadium video boards Saturday night,” Haller wrote. “I apologize for the pain it has caused our community. Ultimately, it is my responsibility to make sure all those who interact with Spartan Athletics feel safe, valued and respected.
“The image was harmful to our communities, especially our Jewish community which is currently experiencing a rise in antisemitism, including acts of violence.
“Michigan State Athletics is responsible for all content shown on its video boards. Before it was displayed, the video was not viewed in its entirety by anyone in athletics, exposing a failure in our process. The video was not part of a sponsorship and had no affiliation with any of our corporate partners or our community.
“An initial assessment was conducted, and an involved employee has been identified and suspended with pay pending the results of an investigation. The investigation will determine any future appropriate actions.
“Looking forward, Michigan State Athletics will ensure greater oversight and processes surrounding any material displayed in relation to one of our athletics events. We are committed to ensuring this never happens again and to better demonstrating the inclusive community that we are."
The ongoing conflict in between Hamas and Israel has become one of the most polarizing events in the world. The U.S. is now caught in between a rock and a hard place.
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