LA Kings allow a guest to run their Twitter, distasteful sexual assault joke follows

The LA Kings had a guy named Kevin Ryder run their Twitter account during the second period of Game 4 against the San Jose Sharks. Ryder is on a show called "Kevin & Bean" on KROQ 106.7 FM. The show falls directly into the category of shock humor. Once Ryder took over mostly weak attempts at humor followed, but the controversy here is all about one Tweet that refers to Anze Kopitar being sexually assaulted. The Kings quickly removed the Tweet, but Sean Gentille took a screenshot. 

It's one thing to be snarky and a bit edgy. It's another to use what boils down to a rape joke on an NHL team's Twitter account. Though Ryder is responsible for the Tweet itself, those behind LA's account and marketing team are responsible for allowing him to use it in the first place. We're not sure who thought it was a good idea or how the idea was approved, but here we are. If you go and look through Ryder's work, this isn't exactly a surprising outcome. 

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of this story is the fact Ryder's wife reportedly runs a charity for women which have been abused in relationships. You'd think Ryder of all people might know that sexual assault isn't a topic one should joke about.

Last year we gave LA plenty of credit for their new approach to the social media scene. Their Tweets were funny and original yet they always kept things tasteful. This year their act grew a bit tired. What was once fun and new now feels like an act we've all seen before. Now they decided letting a shock jock was the right way to run a professional organization's Twitter account. Not smart. 

The Kings later apologized for the Tweet. 

About David Rogers

Editor for The Comeback and Contributing Editor for Awful Announcing. Lover of hockey, soccer and all things pop culture.

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