"Somebody from ESPN is getting fired over this stunt," says a December 8, 2022 Facebook post and tweet from Derek Brunson, a professional mixed martial artist.
The posts were among the earliest to share what appears to be a screenshot from ESPN's website, according to CrowdTangle, a social media insights tool. Similar posts -- some with thousands of interactions -- spread across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.
The claims come after Griner, a WNBA champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist, was released from a Russian prison on December 8 in exchange for an arms dealer imprisoned in the US. Griner had spent almost 10 months detained in Russia after being arrested on drug charges in February.
Griner, who is 6-foot-9 (2.06 meters), came out as a lesbian in 2013 and became the first openly gay athlete to sign an endorsement deal with Nike. She has long faced attacks about her gender, sexuality and body -- including false claims that she is a man.
The posts circulating online are also misinformation; they show an image of an ESPN report that was altered to insert the picture of Fitzgerald, a...
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