Britt McHenry welcome to the club

Britt McHenry has managed to go from a largely unknown reporter for ESPN to being the modern day face of Mean Girls, thanks to her well-publicized personal attack of an employee at a towing company while she paid to get her towed car retrieved. McHenry has since apologized (on Twitter) and claimed it was the result of an intense and stressful situation.

If you have seen the video, Britt does not come across as loud or angry nearly as much as she does condescending and rude to a woman who is just doing her job. In fact, as soon as McHenry starts in on the woman, she is warned she is being recorded and the woman will make the tape public if she continues. This has no impact on McHenry who continues with her personal attacks and ends up coming across as nothing more than a spoiled bitch. Her employer, ESPN, suspended her for a week as a result.

Many people have called for Britt to be fired. Most companies would be embarrassed by such behavior but fortunately for Britt, she works for ESPN where getting fired is almost impossible (unless you are Keith Olberman). Instead, she now joins Dana Jacobson, suspended one week for her public drunken meltdown during a Mike and Mike roast, as the only female members of what I like to call, ESPN’s Horse’s Ass Club. Let’s look at its membership.

Stephen A. Smith: He was suspended last year for suggesting women should be careful and not “provoke” their men into physically abusing them. (He’s suppose to make insightful commentary, not commentary that incites).

Bill Simmons: He served a three-week suspension for calling NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell a liar multiple times. (The moral of the story is Roger Goodell has more clout than women who have been abused)

Steve Phillips: Suspended and then fired for having an affair with an ESPN production assistant (Just think Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky with a real consequence).

Mike Tirico: A three-month suspension for multiple incidents of sexual harassment (And the indignation of having to call some of the most boring Monday Night Football games ever).

Max Bretos: He was suspended for 30 days for referring to the weaknesses in Jeremy Lin’s game as “chinks in his armor.” (Next time just tell us he sucks as a point guard and leave it at that)

Teddy Atlas: Suspended for one month for his “altercation” with an ESPN2 production crewmember (He was told he would have received a bonus had he punched out Stephen A. Smith).

Tony Kornheiser: His inappropriate remarks about the wardrobe of colleague Hannah Storm earned him a two-week suspension (Next time he makes those kind of comments, he might want to make sure he doesn’t have food in his beard and mustard stains on his tie).

Jemele Hill: A one week suspension was all his for the Hitler reference he made in a column he wrote (Note to self: try not to do this in the future).

Sean Salisbury: Also, a one week suspension for showing female colleagues a photo of his penis (Next time, don’t refer to it as your T-bone when it is really a Salisbury Steak).

Eric Shoenfeld: Another one week suspension for physically threatening the radio producer of Tony Korheiser (In the future, do everyone a favor and just punch Tony).

Michael Irvin: He forgot to tell his ESPN bosses he was arrested for being in possession of drug paraphernalia and received a one-week suspension (I guess his bosses didn’t believe his story that he was too high to remember getting arrested).

Bob Griese: Another one week suspension for joking about NASCAR driver Pablo Montoya eating tacos (Always go with an American food like hotdogs).

Jay Mariotti: Suspended one week and then fired for his involvement in a domestic abuse incident (Hey, Mr. Goodell, did you see this?).

Brian Kinchen: For making a “gay” joke during a football broadcast, he was suspended for a week (Those kind of jokes always go over better during wrestling events).

Bucky Walters: He received a harsh one-game suspension after his derogatory comment about a college basketball player getting his ninth steal in a game (He should be fired just for going by the name Bucky).

Dan Le Batard: A two-day suspension was his punishment for trolling LeBron James with a billboard (Okay, I will admit it, I thought trolling was a form of fishing so I have no idea whether or not this is a serious offense).

Scott Van Pelt: He was suspended for an unknown amount of time for criticizing then MLB Commissioner Bud Selig (At what point is a suspension an unpaid vacation?)

Eric Kuselias: Again, suspended an unknown amount of time for harassing a female colleague (It was an unknown amount of time because Eric claimed he was not sure if the colleague was male or female).

So cheer up Britt, don’t get down on yourself, you are in good company, with the exception of those who got fired. You are officially a member of ESPN’s Horse’s Ass Club and entitled to all privileges that go with membership (Internet mockery for life).

Heck, you may even find yourself calling Monday Night Football games or hosting your own daily sports show. At any rate, by the time this article runs, there will be a couple more additions to the club and you will soon be forgotten.

(Editor’s note: Britt McHenry is back to work, as of this weekend. You can catch her on ESPN’s Sports Center talking about the NFL.)