ESPN anchor apologizes to Benjamin Watson for making on-air joke about Watson's wife
It was the moment caught on live television that had social media buzzing: Was Benjamin Watson really furious with ESPN host Peter Burns after Burns made a joke about Watson’s wife? Was it a bit that we saw play out during halftime of the Vanderbilt and Florida game?
We don’t know those full answers. But what we do know is Burns has apologized.
Burns made a joke about Watson wearing a light suit when the others on set had darker looks. Watson responded by saying, as long as he got a text from his wife saying he looked good, he was fine with it.
“That’s not the one she sent me,” Burns replied.
After returning from break, Burns wasn’t on set and a very mad-looking Watson walked back on, leading some to wonder if they had fought backstage.
Burns had snapped a photo of the pair together that day, but he then tweeted an apology on Monday night:
#Friendship pic.twitter.com/3D41kTpF73
— Peter Burns (@PeterBurnsESPN) November 19, 2022
While it was an joke, the truth is that I crossed the line, you should never joke about family so that I owe a public apology to Ben & Kirsten 100%.@BenjaminSWatson couldn’t have handled it better with his humor and class.
We all good & proud to call him a friend & coworker https://t.co/dPw7VdPcaX
— Peter Burns (@PeterBurnsESPN) November 22, 2022
Not sure if this just turned into a random bit, but Benjamin Watson looks legit upset that Peter Burns made a joke about his wife. pic.twitter.com/XxLvhgrnx5
— Cork Gaines (@CorkGaines) November 19, 2022