Michigan State employee suspended in wake of video quiz showing Hitler image on scoreboard

Michigan State apologized Saturday night for playing a pregame trivia video that showed an image of Adolf Hitler on the Spartan Stadium scoreboard before its game against Michigan, which the Spartans lost 49-0.
The image of Hitler’s face flashed on the screen alongside a trivia question asking about his home country.
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The university said the video was produced by a third party and it will not be using that source going forward.
“MSU is aware that inappropriate content by a third-party source was displayed on the video board prior to the start of tonight’s football game,” Michigan State spokesperson Matt Larson said in a statement. “We are deeply sorry for the content that was displayed, as this is not representative of our institutional values.
“MSU will not be using the third-party source going forward and will implement stronger screening and approval procedures for all videoboard content in the future.”
The third-party source was The Quiz Channel, a YouTube channel and site that produces a variety of trivia quizzes. The Quiz Channel said in a reply to a comment on its YouTube video on Sunday that Michigan State’s use of the video was unauthorized.
Looks like the video with the Hitler question was from "The Quiz Channel" and just recently uploaded a general knowledge quiz to YouTube. https://t.co/2ZOm65llhy
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) October 22, 2023
On Sunday, MSU interim president Teresa K. Woodruff released a statement apologizing for the trivia video.
“I am deeply sorry for the image displayed at Spartan Stadium, which made many of our community feel alienated and unsafe. It was unacceptable,” Woodruff said. “I asked last evening for a full review of this university event and will take all necessary steps to align our messages and actions to our values. I will work with our Jewish community and every member of minoritized populations to ensure Spartans feel that this is a place where everyone can live, work, go to class and attend events that are welcoming.”
Vice president and director of athletics Alan Haller also released an statement Sunday, taking responsibility for the incident and apologizing for the pain it caused. Haller said in his statement that “the video was not viewed in its entirety by anyone in athletics, exposing a failure in our process.”
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As a result of the incident and an ensuing assessment, one employee has been suspended with pay pending the results of an investigation, Haller said.
“Looking forward, Michigan State Athletics will ensure greater oversight and processes surrounding any material displayed in relation to one of our athletics events. We are committed to ensuring this never happens again and to better demonstrating the inclusive community that we are.”
(Photo: Aaron J. Thornton / Getty Images)
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