Bill Rhoden Talks to Jelani Cobb About Protest and Professional Sports
The Political Scene | The New Yorker
The New Yorker
4.3 • 3.9K Ratings
🗓️ 16 October 2017
⏱️ 16 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Colin Kaepernick has yet to set foot on the football field this season, but the protest movement he launched a year ago has taken on a life of its own, after the President went on a tirade against protesting players, suggesting that “that son of a bitch” be fired. The New Yorker staff writer Jelani Cobb reflects with Bill Rhoden, a writer-at-large for ESPN’s “Undefeated,” on the fifty-year history of black athletes embracing politics on the field. Is it time, they ask, to retire “The Star-Spangled Banner” from football?
Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choicesTranscript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Discover Earth's ultimate untamed places with wilderness. With access to 6 million acres of private land |
| 0:07.7 | in eight African countries, wilderness offers intimate wildlife encounters and experiences that will |
| 0:13.0 | leave you changed forever. The accommodations are luxurious and stay true to the vibrant soul |
| 0:19.8 | and spirit of each destination and the trips are |
| 0:23.0 | meticulously planned from arrival to departure, making them perfect for a group, family or |
| 0:28.5 | solo travellers. Wilderness is among the leaders of conservation hospitality, with more than 60 |
| 0:34.5 | of the most highly awarded lodges in camps in Africa. |
| 0:43.0 | Wilderness is especially excited this year to focus on wellness, providing experiences that immerse you in beautiful places to restore your sense of self through nature. |
| 0:48.1 | To learn more and book your own wilderness adventure, go to wilderness destinations.com |
| 0:52.9 | slash women who travel. |
| 0:55.7 | eBay, it's a place to fall in love with new pre-loved vintage and rare fashion over and over |
| 1:01.6 | again. Your favorite designers, expertly authenticated. Yeah, eBay. Things people love. |
| 1:11.9 | I'm David Remnick. This is the Politics and More podcast. This season, the player on everybody's |
| 1:18.0 | mind, hasn't set foot on the field even once. Colin Kaepernick, formerly of the 49ers, |
| 1:24.6 | is an unsigned free agent. But the silent protest against police brutality that |
| 1:28.9 | he began last year, taking a knee during the national anthem, now has a life of its own. We can |
| 1:35.0 | thank the president of the United States, of course, for reigniting a protest that was not very |
| 1:39.1 | popular in the first place, and had kind of lost its momentum after Kaepernick left the 49ers. |
| 1:45.0 | Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners when somebody disrespects our flag, |
| 1:50.0 | to say, get that son of a bitch off the field right now out. He's fired. He's fired! |
| 1:58.0 | The New Yorkers Jolani Cobb recently sat down with Bill Rodin, |
| 2:02.7 | late of the New York Times, now a contributor to ESPN's website, The Undefeated. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The New Yorker, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of The New Yorker and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.
