LCS Host LeTigress Apologizes for Controversial Doublelift & TSM Monologue

Update: LeTigress announces break from LCS broadcast

Gabby “LeTigress” Durden took to Twitter to announce that she has decided to take a short mental health break. She said she is taking a break from the LCS broadcast and emphasized that it was her sole decision. Additionally, she said she will be back for Week 4 of the league and that her activity on social media will also return to normalcy then. 

Update: LCS Apologizes, Extends support to LeTigress

The League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) released its statement on the controversial monologue about Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng and Team SoloMid (TSM) on 7th February. It stated that it hoped the segment would highlight a key narrative of the match which was Doublelift’s first match against his old team after his unretirement. The LCS added that the segment did not meet its own standards and that it apologizes to TSM staff, players, Doublelift, and the community. “This was a miss from us, and moving forward, the LCS will apply a sharper filter to our editorial segments,” the league said.

Additionally, the LCS noted that the broadcast is a team effort and is not the fault of just one person, and extended its full support to Gabby “LeTigress” Durden. “We sincerely regret the negative impact our misstep has had on her,” the league said.

(Original story continues below)

On 3rd February, League of Legends fans were treated to an exciting match-up between 100 Thieves (100T) and Team SoloMid (TSM) in the Spring Split of the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) 2023. Star player Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng faced off against his former organization TSM and the broadcast decided to focus on the fallout between the attack damage carry (ADC) player and the Andy “Reginald” Dinh-led organization. However, viewers were quick to point out that the segment was “unprofessional and tone-deaf”, with former pro players also echoing the same sentiment. Following the backlash, LCS broadcaster, play-by-play caster, and host Gabby “LeTigress” Durden issued an apology via a Twitlonger.

In her Twitlonger, LeTigress said, “The backlash is both understandable and sickening,” and explained the thought process behind LCS airing the segment.

LeTigress apologizes to TSM

LeTigress stated that she was truly sorry to those at TSM who were “hurt, bothered, or in any way discomforted by the monologue.” She added that it was not the intent and she respected people who work at TSM. “This piece was meant to tee up the history between DL [Doublelift] and his former team ahead of their first meeting back in the LCS. After someone pitched the topic and the team suggested a monologue would be a fitting structure, I agreed to work on the piece alongside our production team,” she explained. 

The host added that it went through multiple iterations and acknowledged that it clearly missed the mark. She stated that she understood how polarizing the piece was and that she appreciated those who voiced their opinions on it respectfully. However, she noted that she continues to be horrified by the harassment and vitriol directed at her for “simply doing” her job. 

LeTigress said, “Please remember that I am a human, not an object to throw your hatred and anger toward because of one mistake. Thanks for taking the time to read this. My goal is always to learn, better myself, and improve as a broadcaster to best convey the stories we all care so deeply about.”

What did the Doublelift x TSM monologue say?

The lead-up to the 100 Thieves vs TSM match on the second week of the LCS 2023 Spring Split had a monologue dedicated to Doublelift and his history with TSM. It talked about Doublelift’s achievements in the LCS and how he rose to fame in the esports scene. However, the tone of the monologue changed as the script brought up the allegations placed by Doublelift against TSM co-founder and CEO Reginald.

A post titled “Unprofessional LCS segment” on the League of Legends subreddit stated that the segment missed the mark and called it tone-deaf. “I understand the drama behind them makes for an "interesting" storyline but the upbeat and joking tone given to a segment regarding possible player/staff bullying and abuse was absolutely unprofessional,” the post said. 

Additionally, the monologue brought up the legal issues surrounding Doublelift, Reginald, and TSM, making it seem inappropriate. It further pointed out, “[As] some of the comments on the post-game threads have said, imagine LEC bringing up G2 Carlos being friends with Andrew Tate and being removed in a segment. It's unheard of. Yes, we want interesting storylines, but this is no way to do it.”

Another Redditor said the monologue was tasteless to be aired before the game. They added that they understood that the league wanted to spark some sort of a rivalry but noted “TSM’s current players have nothing to do with that and it sorta makes them look bad too.”

TSM and Doublelift react to the monologue

On 3rd February, TSM Head of Global Social Duncan “Dunc” Cox tweeted, “The things I wanna tweet right now. Holy s***,” and confirmed that he was referring to the LCS’ Doublelift and TSM monologue in his comments. He added, “They recapped the DL drama as some ‘revenge’ piece. Reaired everything. Like we’ve not been trying desperately to rebuild our image.”

While Doublelift was reacting to Meteos watching the segment live, he said it was like over-the-top children-focused theatre and that it was not funny or entertaining. He said he was not sensitive but reiterated that many people were involved. Doublelift added, “This is just weird, this is just so weird, and the way that it’s presented is so f***** weird if you really think about it. It’s workplace harassment, legality is involved, there’s like actual lawsuits involved and people’s lives… this is like a deeply traumatic series of events that happened to a lot of people, not just me.”