Major League Baseball insider and long-time ESPN reporter Buster Olney delivered a stark warning on the state of sports journalism in the wake of the Dianna Russini-Mike Vrabel controversy.
‘I do hope this whole thing opens up a larger conversation about the potential destructiveness of quid pro quo in our business, because let me tell you something: It’s as bad as I’ve ever seen,’ Olney told ESPN radio in New York.
Olney was speaking after the New York Post’s Page Six published exclusive photos of Vrabel, the New England Patriots head coach, and Russini, a top NFL insider for The Athletic, greeting each other and hanging out poolside at an adults-only resort in Arizona. Both denied any improper conduct, but the exclusive photos of Russini fraternizing with someone she’s supposed to be covering have raised questions about journalistic ethics.
While Vrabel has not been disciplined, Russini has been placed on leave by The Athletic’s parent company, The New York Times, amid an investigation into the Page Six photos and her reporting.
Olney, who worked for the Times before joining ESPN in 2003, was not specifically addressing Russini’s situation and did not profess to have any inside knowledge about her reporting on Vrabel or the NFL at large.
But the 62-year-old baseball reporter did slam the blatantly transactional interactions between reporters and their subjects.
Mike Vrabel (L) and Dianna Russini (R) are denying suggestions that they’re having an affair
Long-time ESPN reporter Buster Olney delivered a stark warning on the state of sports journalism in the wake of the Dianna Russini-Mike Vrabel controversy
‘The other day, I was having a conversation with an executive of a team who said: “When I read a story, I can connect all the dots. You know this person, you know this reporter has a relationship with this agency, and here’s how the truth is being bent because of that relationship and that man.”
‘I see it too,’ Olney continued. ‘I’m aware of what’s going on behind the scenes. And I think that’s the cost of all this, right?… “Hey, if I give you this quote-unquote scoop, then you can bend the number this way, or you can bend the truth this way…”
Olney compared the situation to baseball in the late 1990s, when certain sluggers were widely suspected of using steroids, but went years without facing firm allegations of misconduct.
‘It’s as if I’m a player, who is in the middle of the 90s steroid era, where you’re looking around going: “Come on with some of the stuff that’s happening,”‘ Olney continued. ‘And you know, the people who suffer for it, of course, are the viewers, the listeners, because they don’t have the context in the way that someone like me or the executive I was talking with has about what’s going on behind the scenes.
Russini has covered Vrabel dating back to his time as head coach of the Tennessee Titans
‘I really hope it’s something that gets scrutinized here as we move forward.’
Olney isn’t the only reporter expressing concern.
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer said the story ‘raises questions’ about Russini’s reporting, fairly or not.
‘The lines get blurred in these sorts of situations sometimes, and again, it’s hard because I think a lot of times, my female colleagues get questioned in ways when they’re seen, with these guys, out, in ways that I do not get questioned,’ Breer told 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston. ‘And I think a lot of that is totally unfair.
‘And if this is what it looks like,’ Breer added, ‘then this is really bad for all the women who are doing it on the level.
‘Dianna’s done such a good job covering the league, but if that line was crossed, well then she’s screwing over a lot of other women. It’s going to make people make assumptions about a lot of other women that don’t deserve to have those assumptions made about them.’
The two visited a hotel, Ambiente, which is an adults-only venue near Sedona, Arizona
Some criticism is reportedly coming from inside The New York Times.
As some insiders told Status News, The Athletic’s response to the suggestive photos was ‘unnecessarily messy,’ ‘reckless,’ ‘premature’ and ‘intentionally sneaky.’
The Athletic executive editor Steven Ginsberg issued his own statement after the publication, calling the photos ‘misleading’ and lacking ‘essential context,’ while defending Russini’s professionalism.
‘These were public interactions in front of many people,’ Ginsberg told Page Six. ‘Dianna is a premier journalist covering the NFL, and we’re proud to have her at The Athletic.’
Vrabel, the reigning NFL Coach of the Year, and Russini, a top reporter for The Athletic, are married to other people with whom they share two sons.
They have each issued statements confirming the March 28 interaction but have denied any improper conduct, with Vrabel specifically calling the story ‘laughable.’ Russini told Page Six she and Vrabel were at the resort with larger groups of people.
The Daily Mail has since learned Russini was placed on leave while the Athletic investigates her coverage and the circumstances behind the photos. New York Times and Athletic spokespeople declined to speak with the Daily Mail about the controversy.
