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According to Ryan Rigney, aka Riot Cactopus, Riot's Communications Lead, they, "aren't telling anyone to avoid saying "hong kong." We'd just rather the team be referred to by its full name. There's been some confusion internally about this as well and we're working to correct it."

So it seems that there was just confusion amongst casters about whether or not to say the name, no conspiracy, no forced censorship, just honest mistakes since people can flop back and forth on the name. That isn't to say the casters are to blame, the issue is highly sensitive and it makes sense to be extra cautious with how things are handled.

IT also notes that Riot's official stance is that it is referred to in full as Hong Kong Attitude, so if anything the HKA part is a bigger slip up.

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over 4 years ago - /u/The_Cactopus - Direct link

I said this on Twitter but I really wanna reiterate it here: the confusion here is NOT to be blamed on the casters at all.

This is such a sensitive issue and they should have been better prepped by myself and other Riot comms folks. That’s on us.

over 4 years ago - /u/The_Cactopus - Direct link

Originally posted by raptearer

No worries, and I apologize if it sounds like I am blaming them, I know with how sensitive the issue is that people can get confused and slip on what they say, but I do not mean to blame them. I edited it slightly just to make sure no one takes it that way, casters are doing a great job

Thanks so much for the edit. And thanks also for sharing the statement in the first place. Agreed casters are doing a great job in a very tough situation.

over 4 years ago - /u/The_Cactopus - Direct link

Originally posted by KeyVisual

And the pre-recorded interview? Miscommunication there too?

No miscommunication there. We’re very intentionally using pre-recorded interviews, and it’s a super common tactic for us when we wanna treat something with thoughtfulness and sensitivity. A little more context here: https://twitter.com/rkrigney/status/1182070206438330369?s=21