Mina Kimes rebuts 'DEI' claims about ESPN job: 'It's been twisted into a slur' (2025)

ESPNNFLBy Brendon Kleen on 04/24/202504/24/2025

Mina Kimes is one of a kind in NFL media, and that’s no secret.

She has one of the most unique stories in sports television as a Korean-American woman who rose to prominence as a business reporter and then became— and still is —the only woman with a regular role as a studio analyst covering professional football. But because she is a racial minority and a woman in an industry where nearly all of the other talking heads are men, Kimes sticks out and has become a target to some fans.

And as the Trump administration has made the concept of diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) a target in its efforts to slim down the federal government, Kimes has had the phrase lobbed at her regularly.

This week, ahead of her role covering the NFL Draft for ESPN, Kimes posted a video on TikTok responding to a commenter who claimed she was only in her job at ESPN because of DEI. In the video, Kimes reframed the phrase and actually accepted the DEI tag differently.

“I get called DEI all day, every day as of the last year or so. And no, there was no edict from anyone at ESPN saying, ‘You know what we really need? An Asian female NFL analyst,'” Kimes said. “I was not hired in that way. But I do think diversity, equity, and inclusion applies to my initial hire at ESPN.”

@espnmina Replying to @midnight2366 I get called DEI every day now. People like you use it as a slur, but what it *actually* represents is something that I’m proud of. #espn #nfl #podcasts ♬ NO SOUND – Sok Baraby

A Yale graduate, Kimes was a fairly prominent investigative reporter for major business magazines before ESPN discovered she was a diehard NFL and Seattle Seahawks fan. The network wasseeking diverse voices to contribute to its sports coverage across all platformsand offered Kimes a job —initially as a feature writer.

Kimes wrote memorable profiles of De’Andre Hopkins, Aaron Rodgers, Luka Doncic, and Zion Williamson while spreading her wings on ESPN Radio and Around the Horn. Over time, she developed a niche as an NFL podcaster and analyst. In 2020, Kimes was promoted as a full-time panelist onNFL Live.

“That’s what diversity, equity, and inclusion is all about,” Kimes said. “It’s been twisted into a slur; it’s been [derogatory] to say people are unqualified, when in fact it’s to find people who are actually qualified but haven’t been considered or given the opportunities.”

In the TikTok video, Kimes argues that she was a DEI hire because she came from outside the football world and sports media, not just because she is an Asian-American woman.

Politicians use the phrase “DEI” to target racial minorities or to argue that people in certain positions are unqualified. In Kimes’ journey, she believes she was qualified in a different way that ultimately contributed well to ESPN’s NFL coverage. However, without the network looking outside the box, none of it would have ever happened.

“Yeah, I am a person who’s representative of DEI,” Kimes added. “And honestly, it’s a good thing.”