The Athletic finally releases result of bombshell Dianna Russini investigation after Mike Vrabel affair scandal
The Athletic has released the findings into its investigation of Dianna Russini, finding she was ‘noncompliant’ with its standards but finding no evidence of bias in reporting around Mike Vrabel.
Russini stepped down from the New York Times-owned company after bombshell pictures emerged of her and New England Patriots coach Vrabel at an adults-only resort in Arizona.
Further evidence emerged in the weeks that followed raising questions over the nature of their relationship and the issue of journalistic ethics given her role covering the league as an NFL insider.
The investigation declined to uncover the nature of Russini and Vrabel’s relationship. Both denied having an affair or cheating on their partners, though Vrabel later apologized for his ‘actions’.
The report states: ‘Russini’s relationship with Vrabel was in clear violation of The Athletic’s standards. Regardless of whether the relationship was romantic, it was a breach and should have been disclosed.
‘Specifically, when it comes to The Athletic’s standards, Russini was noncompliant.’
The Athletic has released a bombshell report on Dianna Russini after the Mike Vrabel scandal
The report said that Russini’s relationship with Mike Vrabel was a ‘clear violation of standards’
Per The Athletic, Russini declined to be interviewed but insisted: ‘I stand by any and all reporting I’ve ever done in my career.’
The report added: ‘We neither completed an investigation nor reached any conclusion about the nature of the full relationship between Vrabel and Russini, but the totality of the public photographs are enough to conclude a violation of company policy.’
The five-month long inquiry was conducted by Mike Semel, The Athletic’s editorial director for standards and editorial quality.
He ‘reviewed 903 stories and 77 videos’ that carried Russini’s byline as well as reviewing ‘204 episodes of the Scoop City podcast’, her show with the company. He also interviewed ‘approximately 14’ of her colleagues at the Athletic and tried ‘to evaluate how The Athletic’s coverage of certain events involving Vrabel or his teams compared to coverage in other publications.’
The report claims that ‘when first confronted with the photos by The New York Post, Russini waited two days before telling her editors and managers. She then told a story to explain the photos that did not align with facts, raising issues of trust.’
However, Semel found limited evidence of favoritism towards Vrabel, stating: ‘Most of what Russini wrote about Vrabel or the Patriots was transactional and newsy. In addition, I’ve not found a clear link to conclude that Russini used her platform to promote Vrabel or help his teams during her time at The Athletic.’
He added: ‘That said, there are examples of Russini writing glowingly of Vrabel that in hindsight are awkward or even uncomfortable.’
