New ESPN+ series ‘delves into and challenges racism in the sports world’

An interesting new series is coming to ESPN+. Skin in the Game with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, a co-production between Andscape and ESPN+ Originals in association with Religion of Sports and Kendi’s own Maroon Visions, will debut on the over-the-top streaming service on Sept. 20. Here’s a trailer for it:

And here’s more from a release:

Skin in the Game with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi will debut September 20, exclusively on ESPN+. The series delves into and challenges racism in the sports world, and will reveal how pervasive racism is in sports, while challenging the thoughts and systems of various governing bodies. Through Dr. Kendi’s analysis, athlete profiles, and robust roundtable discussions with athletes, academics and journalists, each episode dives deeply into the histories, statistics and notable moments behind the racist norms we accept today.

The series is co-produced by ESPN+ Originals and Andscape, in association with Religion of Sports, and Dr Kendi’s Maroon Visions. The show features vignettes from notable names including W. Kamau Bell, Jemele Hill, The Kid Mero, Takeo Spikes, Nia Symone, Aida Rodriguez, Michelle Williams, and more. All five episodes of Skin in the Game will be available on Wednesday, September 20.

The first episode, “Power to the Players,” looks at protests, and features former Mississippi State running back Kylin Hill, American hammer throw Olympian Gwendolyn Berry, and ESPN journalist Howard Bryant. The second, “The Invisible Struggle,” focuses on Black female athletes and mental health, including conversations with golfer Mariah Stackhouse, Olympians Sanya Richards-Ross and Raven Saunders, psychologist Dr. Mariel Buqué and author Marita Golden.

The third episode, “The Impossible Measure,” looks at race norming, and has Kendi speaking with Dr. Charles Golden, retired NFL players Michael Bennett and Ken Jenkins, and journalist Martenzie Johnson. The fourth, “America’s Pastime,” looks at Latin American culture in baseball, and interviews former MLB player Eduardo Pérez, professor Adrian Burgos, Jr., and journalist Jesus Ortiz. And the fifth, “Out of Focus,” looks at racist ideas in sports media, and talks to WNBA champion Essence Carson (a target of Don Imus’ infamous WFAN rant during her time at Rutgers), as well as ESPN contributor Scoop Jackson, sports editor Dave Zirin, and University of Oklahoma professor Dr. Cynthia Frisby.

Skin in the Game is executive produced by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, Julie Anderson, and Michael Lebowitz. For Religion of Sports, executive producers are Gotham Chopra, Ameeth Sankaran, and Victor Buhler. For ESPN+, executive producers are Brian Lockhart, Burke Magnus, and Lindsay Rovegno. More on Skin in the Game and its episodes can be found here.