When the Washington Redskins play the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1, you won’t see Washington’s team name in the local Philadelphia paper. Or any time, for that matter.
The Philadelphia Inquirer told employees it will no longer use the name “Redskins” in its copy, according to an update from its style committee. Lisa Gartner, an investigative reporter for the Inquirer, shared the news on Twitter.
The Inquirer will no longer use the offensive name of a Washington football team, per an update from our style committee. We will also stop using the indirect phrase “officer-involved shooting” to describe police shooting a citizen
— Lisa Gartner (@lisagartner) June 24, 2020
The change comes as the Inquirer has been rocked by controversy in recent weeks related to a headline that ran titled, “Buildings Matter, too,” which resulted in a protest from employees and the resignation of executive editor Stan Wischnowski.
According to Crossing Broad, a Philadelphia sports blog, local outlets like CBS 3 and Philly Voice stopped using Washington’s team name years ago. Some outlets, like The Athletic and NBC Sports, give their journalists the option of not using it.
The Redskins have faced renewed pressure to change their name in light of the social justice movement happening around the world in the wake of George Floyd’s death. Owner Dan Snyder has said he’ll “never” change the name.
On Wednesday, the Redskins removed founding owner and segregationist George Preston Marshall’s name from the Ring of Fame and all other team material, such as their website and History Wall in Ashburn, Virginia. Marshall’s statue was removed last week by DC Events in a move the city called “overdue.” Marshall was the last NFL owner to integrate his team, not doing so until 1962.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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