Did basketball great Michael Jordan call for a ban on the pride flag from U.S. schools and sports? No, that's not true: The website that published the article has a satire disclaimer and is known for publishing fabricated content. The article also identifies its content as "SATIRE." No credible reports support the assertion that Jordan called to ban pride flags.
The claim appeared in an article (archived here) published by esspots.com on January 4, 2025, under the title "Michael Jordan Calls for Ban on Pride Flags in Sports and Schools." It read:
In a recent and controversial statement, basketball legend Michael Jordan has called for a ban on Pride flags in sports and educational institutions, stirring up significant debate across various communities.
This is how the post looked on esspots.com at the time of this writing:
(Source: Esspots.com website screenshot taken on Mon Jan 27 16:12:39 2025 UTC)
The article claimed basketball legend Jordan made the statement on an unnamed podcast. It read:
Jordan, whose reputation as one of the greatest basketball players of all time has earned him a position of great influence, made the remarks during a podcast appearance, where he addressed a range of issues concerning culture, society, and the role of sports in influencing public opinion.
There is no record of the basketball legend calling for a ban on the pride flag at schools or sports. The article has a clear label under the headline that reads, "SATIRE," as in the screenshot shared of the article above shows.
The Esspots.com website (archived here) has a clearly marked "SATIRE" label on the homepage as shown in the below screenshot (highlight by Lead Stories):
(Source: Esspots.com website screenshot taken on Mon Jan 27 16:54:11 2025 UTC)
The description on the "About Us" page (archived here) of the Esspots website, in part, reads:
Welcome to the US page of Esspots (A Subsidiary of SpaceXMania.com specializing in Satire and Parody News), your one-stop destination for satirical news and commentary about the United States of America.
Had Jordan, one of the most famous sports stars in the world, made such a comment, it would have been national and international news. Lead Stories searched using keywords (archived here) on Google News and found no credible documents or reporting to confirm this claim.
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Lead Stories has debunked other claims involving Essports.com, which can be read here.
Additional Lead Stories fact checks of claims mentioning Michael Jordan can be read here.
