Miami – The incident that precipitated the firing of WQAM-560 sports talk host Dan Sileo had to do with his on-air comment, “that’s the half Hebrew in me.”
A letter written by Anti-Defamation League (ADL) officials to WQAM management urged the station “to take disciplinary action” against Sileo because of the statement that was made, “with regard to saving money …”
The ADL is a prominent civil rights organization that combats antisemitism and all types of bigotry. It sent WQAM’s management the Feb. 15-dated letter, obtained by The Miami Herald , referring to “constituent complaints claiming that Mr. Sileo made the derogatory comment about Jews during his show on Jan. 30.
“This comment … is troubling as it perpetuates offensive and bigoted anti-Jewish stereotypes about money that have for centuries served to incite antisemitism and violence against the Jewish community,” the letter stated.
Sileo, a former University of Miami football player, posted on his Twitter account Tuesday that his grandmother was Jewish, “and because my grandmom is Jewish..my nfl friends lose all [their] money..i said.. ‘I save [EVERY] nickel I have and that’s the hebrew.”
A person close to Sileo said of the controversial host’s remark, “That was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
