L.A. Times columnist apologizes for piece characterizing LSU players as ‘dirty debutantes’

Contents

Caitlin Clark leads Iowa past Colorado, sets up rematch vs. defending champion LSU 2024 Women’s March Madness Schedule: Sweet 16, scores, dates, locations, TV channels, how to watch 2024 Women’s Sweet 16: Bracket, schedule, locations, teams 2023-24 Women’s March Madness odds: South Carolina remains favorite Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, LSU’s Angel Reese bring star power to Albany 2 Regional Utah coach says team shaken after experiencing racism near hotel at NCAA Tournament Caitlin Clark scoring record tracker: What’s next after passing Pete Maravich? LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson, Angel Reese lead Tigers past UCLA to reach Elite Eight JuJu Watkins scores 30, powers USC past Baylor for spot in Elite Eight

Los Angeles Times columnist Ben Bolch apologized Monday for last week’s column that characterized the Sweet 16 game between UCLA and LSU in the women’s NCAA Tournament as a battle of good versus evil.

Bolch took to social media Monday to “own up to my mistake.”

LSU coach Kim Mulkey criticized the column on Saturday as sexist and hurtful to her players. In the piece, first published Friday, Bolch referred to LSU’s players as “villains” and “dirty debutantes.”

The Times removed those references late Saturday as well as one comparing UCLA’s team to “milk and cookies” and republished the column with a note that said: “A previous version of this commentary did not meet Times editorial standards. It has been updated.”

“Words matter,” Bolch said in his apology. “As a journalist, no one should know this more than me. Yet I have failed miserably in my choice of words.”

Reporting by The Associated Press.