Podcast Host Says He Was Fired For Airing Bob Huggins' Comments

Podcaster Josh Neighbors claims he lost his job after airing Bob Huggins comments from earlier in the week.

The West Virginia basketball coach was fined $1 million after he referred to Xavier fans as "Catholic f*gs" during a radio appearance.

While Huggins kept his job - credit to West Virginia not caving to the mob - Neighbors wasn't so lucky. He played the audio uncensored during an instant reaction show and was fired from the "Locked On Big 12" podcast.

Podcaster fired over airing Bob Huggins' comments.

"I made the conscious decision to play Bob Huggins’ comments in their entirety and without censoring the slurs that he used. I did that because I thought it was important to play and get the full context of what he had said. I followed that up by saying I thought what he said was abhorrent," Neighbors explained in a Wednesday night video.

Ironically, Neighbors claimed he actually thought Huggins should be fired, but ultimately ended up getting fired himself.

"There is a zero tolerance policy on hate speech, whether you are decrying it or using it. That is their prerogative because Locked On podcast goes to various platforms. I thought I was using my platform to combat the hate speech, to say it's unacceptable ... It did not matter to the people at Locked On," Neighbors elaborated.

This is a shameful and cowardly decision.

There is simply no defense for this decision. Firing Josh Neighbors from the "Locked on Big 12" podcast for playing uncensored audio of Huggins' comments is crazy.

He's very literally a member of the media and podcasting isn't regulated by the FCC. You're able to say whatever you want without government restrictions.

The news has an obligation to bring people the truth and full context of situations. That's why news outlets publish violent videos of war and crime when necessary. People have a right to see what's going on and make decisions for themselves.

This is the United States of America. We have the free flow of information. Now, should a warning perhaps be stated that something many find offensive is coming? Sure, but playing uncensored audio in a *news capacity* is well within normal standards of journalism.

Well, unless you're part of the Locked On podcast network. At that point, it will cost you your job.

Podcaster fired for playing Bob Huggins' comments. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

It'd be one thing if Neighbors was playing Huggins' comments laughing about them and adding fuel to the fire. Clearly, that's not what happened. He found them to be gross, as did many others. The podcaster played them to give context and he lost his job. What a sad state of affairs for the media and the current climate in America.