President Donald Trump ripped ESPN on Tuesday night for its plans to not show the national anthem live as part of its NFL broadcasts.
But ESPN is not the only major network planning to go that route, according to USAToday.
A CBS Sports spokesperson told USA TODAY Sports this week that it also does not plan to televise the playing of The Star-Spangled Banner as part of its weekly NFL broadcasts, which is the same approach it has taken in recent years.
A person familiar with Fox Sports' approach said the network plans to show the anthem only during what it considers to be special broadcasts — including on Veterans Day and Thanksgiving and during the playoffs. The person requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.
An NBC Sports spokesperson told USA TODAY Sports that the plans for its 19 NFL broadcasts are still undetermined.
"On occasion, we’ve covered the national anthem, but our plans aren’t finalized yet as we have an earlier kickoff time in 2018," the spokesperson wrote in an email, referencing the fact that the network's Sunday night games will start 10 minutes earlier than last year.
The national anthem has generally not been shown live during NFL broadcasts on a weekly basis in recent years, even as some players have kneeled, raised their fists or otherwise protested while it is being played. Players have described the demonstrations as a means of protesting police brutality and racial inequality, while critics — including Trump — have claimed that they are unpatriotic.
Multiple networks described their plans for 2018 as standard operating procedure, or a continuation of how they've approached the issue in the past.
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