This weekend’s planned airing of the EXP Apex Legends Invitational at X Games tournament on ESPN2 in the US has been postponed by the network, “out of respect for the victims and all those impacted in the immediate aftermath of the shootings”.
The broadcast is meant to show highlights from the Apex Legends tournament that was held at X Games in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on August 2. Originally scheduled to air in the US on ESPN2 this weekend, the show has been postponed for two months.
The news broke yesterday when esports reporter Rod Breslau tweeted a news tip from an ABC affiliate station. (ABC and ESPN both being networks owned by Disney.)
ESPN and ABC has made the decision not to air the TV broadcast of the XGames Apex Legends EXP Invitational that was scheduled for this weekend, in response to the recent mass shootings, according to an ABC Affiliate TV station source pic.twitter.com/6BMwdbk93t
— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) August 8, 2019
While ESPN has not made an official statement, a source with knowledge of the network’s plans has told Kotaku that the broadcast will now air on ESPN2 on Sunday, October 6 at 5:00PM ET; Tuesday, October 15 at 11:00PM ET; and Sunday, October 27 at 4:00PM ET.
The news comes following a similar move by retailer Walmart, which has pulled in-store advertising and displays for games that contain “violent themes or aggressive behaviour” following this weekend’s shooting near a store in El Paso, Texas. The stores will still sell guns.
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