Cincinnati Sports Radio Jokingly Aired A Ben Roethlisberger Rape Warning

TMZ-  Ben Roethlisberger is getting roasted for his history of sexual assault allegations -- a Cincinnati radio station has issued a citywide Big Ben rape warning ahead of his playoff game against the Bengals.

​700 WLW actually aired this spoof alert: "The Steelers quarterback has been spotted in the downtown Cincinnati area. All females ages 18-40 are to use extreme caution, especially if heavily consuming alcohol. Males should also be on the lookout just in case."

It goes on ... "If you see Big Ben and he flashes little Ben you are asked to report it to authorities immediately." There are more warnings, especially for chicks with boob jobs.



I like to think I have a pretty open mind when it comes to humor. Generally speaking, there's no subject too taboo, or offensive, if the joke is crafted and delivered correctly. So yeah, I can endorse the use of this rape joke. Certainly not the most topical thing in the world, considering those allegations stem from an incident in 2008, but it also wasn't the most unfunny thing I have ever heard. The Big Ben/Little Ben reference definitely made crack a smile, and "when Ben's penis breaks out...we break in" was a pretty clever transition. If I had a suggestion it would be to make it a twinge more disrespectful by changing the ages from 16-40, but I can understand that the FCC probably isn't the biggest fan of using statutory for snickers. Regardless, despite what a bunch of overly sensitive wet blankets might think, it falls well within the legal parameters of pre-playoff trash talk.

I guess my biggest problem with this fictitious alert is the city from which it came from. I don't want to remind the Bengals of their postseason woes, but this comes off as a manifestation of those insecurities. For instance, if Baltimore - a city that has had recent success - did this it wouldn't seem quite as forced. It's kind of like arguing with a woman. You know you pretty much won as soon as she brings up the time you got way too drunk at her cousin's wedding five years prior. Calling Big Ben a rapist isn't going to change the fact that the Bengals haven't won a playoff game in two and half decades, it's just going to make it easier for them to forget about it for the time being. They can get their laughs now - and they should - but if they lose tomorrow we aren't going to be talking about Ben Roethlisberger's history of sexual deviancy, we are going to be talking about how this regime once again failed to capitalize on a fairly impressive regular season.