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Director of ESPN's 'The Last Dance' explains Obama chyron
Published April 20, 2020
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The first two episodes of the acclaimed 10-part ESPN series, ‘The Last Dance’ aired Sunday and the much-anticipated series about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls is not without some controversy on social media – but not about the basketball superstar.
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Barack Obama, the nation’s 44th president, was identified in a chyron as, former Chicago resident, Entertainment Weekly reported. Bill Clinton, another former president was identified as the former Arkansas governor.
Jason Hehir said the chyrons were not a mistake.
Hehir told Entertainment Weekly he wanted each subject in the movie to have an “organic connection” to Jordan and his story, as opposed to simply including “as many famous people … as possible."
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And so, the documentaries creators decided to stress Obama’s relationship to the city of Chicago rather than his later accomplishments.
In Clinton’s case, Hehir said his presence in the documentary added a different perspective because he served as governor of Arkansas, the place where Jordan’s teammate Scottie Pippen grew up.
"My question was, OK, what is Bill Clinton going to say that is different than any other fan would say about watching Michael play?" Hehir told journalist Richard Deitsch. "Now if Bill Clinton says I was governor of Arkansas when Scottie Pippen was in high school and I saw [Scottie] play, that's organic to the story and much more interesting."
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The next two installments of the 10-part ESPN series will air Sunday, April 26.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/espns-the-last-dance-employs-controversial-chyrons-for-obama-clinton-heres-why