The New York Times covered the SmackDown! terrorist controversy in an article released Monday. WWE’s Gary Davis acknowledged that although the timing of the segment was terrible, UPN did not have a chance to edit the angle out of the show.
Davis did not accept all blame, however. He also put some of the heat on the false perceptions of WWE viewers. “We did everything we could to advise people that there might be material that might be offensive to some people,” Mr. Davis said. “The real problem is the perception of viewers watching that segment.”
Said the article: Mr. Hassan, he explained, is not a terrorist, but an angry, disillusioned Arab-American, embracing his roots after experiencing racism from other Americans since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The Times also covered the complaint issued to WWE by American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, which argued that although Hassan was an entertainer, his actions on the show would not make WWE viewers sympathetic to the plight of Arab-Americans.
