Cam Newton

They broke him…

Cam Newton has apologized to a female reporter for joking about her knowledge of wide receiver passing routes. Newton made the joke at a press conference on Wednesday.

Newton, 28, was heavily criticized for telling Charlotte Observer reporter Jourdan Rodrigue that it was “funny to hear a female” ask a question about passing routes.

After the press conference, Rodrigue took to Twitter.com to complain, saying she didn’t think that it was “funny to hear a female” ask a question about passing routes.

She said she spoke to Newton after the press conference and his response was worse. “I choose not to share,” she added, “because I have an actual job to do today and one he will not keep me from.”
 
SEE ALSO: Major Sponsor Dumps Cam Newton Over ‘Sexist’ Remark
 
Dannon Yogurt announced Thursday that Newton was terminated as the spokesman for their Oikos Yogurt brand.

Cam Newton Jourdan Rodrigue

In a video he posted to Twitter.com Thursday night, the somber Carolina Panthers quarterback apologized for his comments and he urged his young fans to “be better than me.”

Newton indicated that he lost more than one sponsor, although Oikos is the only brand that publicly disowned him.

“The fact that, during this whole process, I’ve already lost sponsors and countless fans — I realize that the joke is really on me,” he said. “I’ve learned a valuable lesson from this.”

The Charlotte Observer spoke with Rodrigue who said Newton told her that she “wasn’t really seeing specific routes when watching the game, she was just seeing if somebody was open.”

The newspaper then said he told her that he should have directed his comment at reporters in general.

The reaction on social media was mixed and divided along gender lines. Admittedly, most females don’t know a thing about wide receiver passing routes. Some social media users say Rodrigue overreacted, and they don’t believe Newton should apologize for simply expressing his opinion.

Sandrarose.com readers note that Rodrigue tweeted racially offensive remarks about black athletes in 2013. Despite her racist tweets, she was hired to cover a sport where 80% of the athletes are black.