Oregon State Latest College to Dump Papa John’s
Oregon State University’s (OSU) athletic department announced yesterday that it was suspending its sponsor relationship with Papa John’s in the wake of racist remarks from the company’s founder and CEO John Schnatter. The Wall Street Journal reported today that Schnatter now thinks his move to resign was “a mistake.”
“The derogatory and insensitive comments made by Papa John’s founder John Schnatter are not reflective of Oregon State University’s values and the inclusive environment we strive to foster throughout the university community and within OSU Athletics for all student-athletes and fans,” OSU Athletic Director Scott Barnes said in a statement.
In addition to other schools that have already split from Papa John’s, a host of Major League Baseball teams have made moves to end relationships with the pizza chain.
Per the Huffington Post:
The MLB teams include the Miami Marlins, New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals, Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers and Washington Nationals, according to Fortune. The MLB said it is also suspending its “Papa Slam” pizza promotion during games.
They also reported that Schattner said the racial slur he used was leaked to the media by a PR firm who had tried to blackmail him for $6 million over the incident.
