Hulk Hogan Apologizes For Racism

Hulk Hogan issued a public apology this Friday after a vulgar racist rant was found in a leaked sex tape.

This has come from the long-running lawsuit between Hogan – real name Terry Bollea – and Gawker Media, after an extract of a sex tape was leaked to the public. (Since the case, Gawker has taken down the story under ‘pending litigation’.)

The court case is set to drive Gawker Media into bankruptcy and is set to be one of the most expensive legal disputes in recent history – a $100m personal injury case.

However, after further investigation from RadarOnline and National Enquirer, a racist rant from the wrestler himself was found in one of the three sex tapes.

Taking place near the end – the ‘pillow talk’ – Hogan goes on to make offensive comments towards black men. In particular, he insults the boyfriend of his daughter (Brooke Hogan).

‘I don’t give a f*** if she (inaudible) an eight foot tall basketball player,’ he remarked. ‘If we’re gonna f*** with n*****s, let’s get a rich one!’

He admitted to his friend’s wife that he was ‘racist to a point.’

‘I’m not a double standard type of guy,’ he said. ‘I’m a racist to a point, y’know, f***ing n*****s, but then, when it comes to nice people…’

The fallout that ensued resulted in Hulk Hogan being swiftly fired by the WWE. All traces of him have since been removed from their websites and online stores.

Later, on Friday, Hogan made a public apology to the media and on twitter.

‘I said something horrible. I live with it forever. That’s not me. That’s not who I am.’

Following this, several notable figures spoke out in regards to the scandal. Among them was Dwayne Johnson – formerly known as ‘The Rock’. “I’ve known [Hulk Hogan] for a lot of years,” Johnson gave his thoughts on the matter. “So I’d not known him to be racist.” He later explained that he was “disappointed” in Hogan.

“I was pretty disappointed with what I heard, like all of us, by the way. Pretty disappointed.”

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The racist scandal has told the public that celebrities are not free from discrimination, but also highlights the issue of racism as a whole in today’s society.

An effort was made to investigate the public’s opinions regarding racism, due to anonymous concerns that there is as much discrimination in 2015 as there was in 2000.

In an interview with members of the public, they were questioned on how they feel about racism, how they feel about celebrities being racist and if a racist remark could ever be considered ‘too old’.

“Whether they’re a celebrity or not, they don’t have the right to be racist towards someone.”
– Grace, Female, 16, Canterbury.

“It still happens unfortunately, because some people feel they can split up people’s differences.”
– Robbie, Male, 17, Canterbury

“When it comes to celebrities and racism, they don’t have a right to be racist anymore than anyone else does.”
– Jamie, Male, 17, Birchington

“We’re all the same, we’ve all got a heart, we’ve all got a brain, we’ve all got two eyes, we’ve all got a mouth, we’ve all got teeth.”
– Taylor, Male, 20, Barnsley.

And many more answered an online questionnaire, using the Hulk Hogan scandal as the highlighted example and focus point for racism.

1 – Do you know who Hulk Hogan is? (10 yes, 0 no)
2 – Hulk Hogan left the WWE after a leaked 2008 tape showed him being racist towards his daughter’s boyfriend. Do you believe people can say anything as long as it’s private? (3 yes, 7 no)
3 – Do you believe celebrities have the freedom to act however they want? (3 yes, 7 no)
4 – Would you be disappointed to know a celebrity was racist? (10 yes, 0 no)
5 – Do you believe every company must have zero tolerance for racism? (9 yes, 1 no)
6 – Should a racist remark be forgiven if it was 7-10 years old? (4 yes, 6 no)
7 – Is it wrong for the WWE to remove all traces of Hulk Hogan from their websites and stores? (3 yes, 7 no)
8 – Do you believe there is not enough movement to stop discrimination? (9 yes, 1 no)
9 – Do you look up to certain celebrities as role models? (7 yes, 3 no)
10 – Have you witnessed any racism in the past 7 days? (6 yes, 4 no)