In its reporting on the NBA-China dispute, ESPN mistakenly used a disputed map of the country that has led some critics to accuse it of kowtowing to the Chinese government. During a Wednesday morning “SportsCenter,” ESPN used a map that indicated China owned Taiwan and disputed areas in the South China Sea. The Chinese government uses these maps inside their own country to show their ownership over these territories; they are not accepted internationally.

ESPN declined to comment on the use of the graphic. On Tuesday night, Scott Van Pelt ’s “SportsCenter” used a completely different map of China that did not include those disputed territories. Since taking over as ESPN president last year, Jimmy Pitaro has emphasized that on-air talent should refrain from discussing politics unless it intersects with sports. The use of these two disputed maps, and the expected fallout that comes with it, illustrate why Pitaro and other ESPN execs want to stay out of politics and stick to sports.

The 49ers and the city of Santa Clara have agreed to pay $24M to "make Levi's Stadium and its parking lot more accessible to people with disabilities in a proposed settlement with fans in wheelchairs." The fans had said that they "encountered barriers in buying tickets, parking, reaching their seats and even using the restrooms." The plaintiffs' lawyer Guy Wallace said that the settlement, now pending before a federal judge in San Jose, "would be the largest ever in a class-action lawsuit over physical access to a facility by the disabled." Wallace added that the "payments would be divided among people with mobility impairments -- perhaps as many as 6,000 -- who have had access problems at the stadium since it opened" in '14 (S.F. CHRONICLE, 10/10).