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Overwatch League VP Spector issues apology to former talent

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Spector: OWL 'couldn't be happier' with casting talent (1:45)

The Overwatch League's vice president said he hopes to lean into the professional experience on the desks to help simplify the game for viewers. (1:45)

Overwatch League vice president Jon Spector responded Monday to criticisms levied at him and the league by previous members of the OWL broadcast talent roster during the league's opening weekend.

Following an interview Sunday in which Spector said he "couldn't be happier" with the current pool of OWL broadcasters and hosts and that "these are all people that live and breathe Overwatch," former members of the talent team said the comments made it seem like Spector was dismissing the efforts of previous employees.

"I want to apologize for my comments yesterday," Spector said in a statement. "I did not intend to slight anyone, but I failed to provide some important context before answering a question about my excitement for our 2020 talent lineup. I'd like to offer the context now that I should've provided yesterday.

"We are proud of our 2018 and 2019 broadcasts, and we feel great about our lineup this season. We're incredibly thankful for all of the talented voices that worked to launch the first two seasons of the Overwatch League. We would not be where we are today without your work -- thank you all for living and breathing Overwatch and supporting our league since the beginning."

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Spector's statement comes after multiple members of the Overwatch League broadcast team from the past two seasons, including Monte Christopher "MonteCristo" Mykles, Erik "DoA" Lonnquist, Auguste "Semmler" Massonnat and Malik Forté, responded to an ESPN interview of Spector that included the comments about the current talent lineup.

"We feel really good about the lineup we put together," Spector said in that interview. "These are all people who live and breathe Overwatch. We have a complicated game, right? That's something I know you guys talk about a lot. The more that we can pull former professionals, people who live and breathe this game, I think the better we're going to do in terms of what our show looks like and the ability to explain something truly complicated to our fans."