After a picture of Adolf Hitler flashed on the Spartan Stadium scoreboard prior to Saturday's game against Michigan, Michigan State athletic director Alan Haller announced on Sunday that the "involved employee" has been suspended without pay, per Jared Ramsey of the Detroit Free Press.
"Michigan State Athletics is responsible for all content shown on its video boards," Haller said in a statement. "Before it was displayed, the video was not viewed in its entirety by anyone in athletics, exposing a failure in our process. The video was not part of a sponsorship and had no affiliation with any of our corporate partners or our community."
The statement continued: "An initial assessment was conducted, and an involved employee has been identified and suspended with pay pending the results of an investigation. The investigation will determine any future appropriate actions."
The image appeared on the scoreboard less than 90 minutes before kickoff during a pregame question about Hitler's birthplace. An Oct. 13 episode on The Quiz Channel on YouTube featured a matching image. While the channel is publicly available, the creator and producer of the YouTube page said that Michigan State didn't ask his permission or pay him to use his content.
"It's an absolutely normal trivia question, shown in an inappropriate setting," Floris van Pallandt, creator and producer of The Quiz Channel wrote on Sunday. "Ignoring the dark facets of history is by no means the answer, on the contrary."
Haller's statement went on to say he was "deeply sorry for the offensive image we displayed." He apologized "for the pain it has caused our community," which he acknowledged is "currently experiencing a rise in antisemitism, including acts of violence."
The rise in antisemitism Haller referred to has occurred amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. Also, Ramsey pointed out that the incident occurred on the same day that a Detroit synagogue president was fatally stabbed outside her home.
"Antisemitism must be denounced," Haller said. "The image displayed prior to Saturday night's game is not representative of who we are and the culture we embody. Nevertheless, we must own our failures and accept responsibility. I understand our response might be met with skepticism. That skepticism is warranted, and we will do all that is necessary to earn back your trust."
Haller added that he would reach out to local groups in the Jewish community and student groups to ensure that the university avoids an incident like this happening again.
"Every person in the MSU community and our guests deserve to feel safe and that they belong," a statement from Michigan State's Board of Trustees said. "The board does not condone bigotry of any kind. We will take necessary steps to ensure that our athletic department and the administration live up to that expectation at all times."
