Grant Napear loses free speech appeal over 2020 tweet

A federal appeals court ruled on Thursday that Bonneville International Corp. Was justified in firing longtime Sacramento Kings announcer Grant Napear over a 2020 tweet. The court found the company could act to protect its public reputation after Napear replied "ALL LIVES MATTER" to a question about Black Lives Matter.

Napear had spent 31 years calling Kings games. His career unraveled in May 2020. While off work and watching coverage of the nationwide protests following George Floyd's death, former Kings star DeMarcus Cousins asked him on Twitter, "What's your take on BLM?" Napear responded, "ALL LIVES MATTER … EVERY SINGLE ONE!!!" Bonneville, which employed Napear as a radio host and the Kings' play-by-play announcer, suspended him the next day and fired him one day later.

The Court's Ruling

The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco rejected Napear's lawsuit arguing he was punished for personal political expression. A three-judge panel pointed to his status as a public figure and his employment contract. That contract required him to maintain a high standard of care on social media because it could affect the company's public image. The judges said California law does not appear to prevent employers from limiting employees' political expression when it impacts the employer's reputation. They concluded Napear's Twitter activity involved his celebrity persona and fell within the scope of his professional capacity.

Legal Challenge and Response

Napear's attorney, Matthew Ruggles, fiercely disputed the court's conclusion. He told reporters that the tweet was personal expression. "Grant Napear actually owned that Twitter account, had published approximately 38,500 tweets before he tweeted 'All Lives Matter…Every Single One,' and that tweet was not made on-air, during work, or as part of any radio show," Ruggles said. "It was Grant's personal expression, and that issue should be decided by a jury, not the court." Ruggles said he will seek a rehearing before the full appeals court and, if that fails, ask the Supreme Court to review the case. The ruling upheld a prior decision by US District Judge Dale Drozd to dismiss the lawsuit without a trial.

Aftermath and Broader Context

Napear spent the next five years podcasting before returning to radio last August as a daily host on Fox Sports Radio in Sacramento. He had faced previous controversy for defending disgraced former LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling. He later called former broadcast partner Doug Christie a "coward" for not defending him after the 2020 firing. The court's decision highlights the risks for sports broadcasters using social media. Napear is not the first to lose a job over a post; former major league pitcher Mike Bacsik was fired by a Dallas radio station in 2010 after a disparaging post about "Mexicans in San Antonio."