The New York Times was faced with a crisis when evidence arose that its high-profile NFL reporter, Dianna Russini, might be in an undisclosed personal relationship with someone she covers, New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel. That’s a journalistic no-no. ESPN gives us an instructive, behind-the-scenes look at how the company and Russini responded.

ESPN on April 17 published a long piece by Ben Strauss. The crisis began for Russini on Easter, when a New York Post reporter went to her New Jersey home and informed her that the paper had photos of her and Vrabel that appeared to show them embracing and holding hands at a luxury resort in Arizona, according to Strauss. Both Russini and Vrabel are married to other people.

The Post’s Page Six published its story with the photos two days later, on April 7. Before and after it came out, Russini, Vrabel and New York Times Co. executives “scrambled to respond to an explosive story,” according to ESPN. Russini is (spoiler: was) a reporter for The Athletic, which the Times Co. bought in 2022. She was the one who informed executives at The Athletic about the Post story, according to Strauss. She denied the relationship and said that she traveled to Arizona with friends and that she and Vrabel were there for NFL meetings.

The Times Co. declined her offer to have Vrabel speak to them, ESPN wrote. That was a mistake in our opinion as every fact-gathering avenue should be explored in a crisis.

‘Essential Context’

The Post story included quotes from Russini, 43, and Vrabel, 50, denying that the photos showed anything untoward. It also included a quote from Steven Ginsberg, executive editor of The Athletic, publicly defending Russini: “These photos are misleading and lack essential context. These were public interactions in front of many people.” (On Sunday this week, In Touch wrote that Patriots owner Robert Kraft tried to get the Post story killed.)

Despite the defense, Ginsberg faced complaints from staff, according to ESPN, given the obvious conflict for Russini if the accusations were true. Strauss reported April 10 that the Times Co. was probing the situation, including Russini’s coverage of the Patriots and whether she lied about her relationship with Vrabel. That showed the organization taking the crisis seriously.

The Athletic wanted further proof from Russini to back up her story that she was at the resort with friends, but Russini didn’t provide sufficient evidence, according to ESPN. That seems to have caused the publication to think that maybe all was not right with her alibi. It’s a good example of an organization being sensitive to the facts in a crisis.

Ultimately, the Times Co. and The Athletic weren’t forced to act: Russini resigned April 14. She posted her resignation letter on X. “I have no interest in submitting to a public inquiry that has already caused far more damage than I am willing to accept,” she wrote. Resigning was a big move, especially because she was one of the highest-paid reporters at the NYT.

‘New Questions’

Ginsberg, the executive editor of The Athletic, penned a staff memo about the resignation. “When this situation was brought to our attention last week, there were clear concerns, but we received a detailed explanation and it was our instinct to support and defend a colleague while we continued to review the matter,” he wrote. “As additional information emerged, new questions were raised that became part of our investigation. While our investigation into Dianna’s conduct was ongoing, she chose to resign.”

As for Vrabel, the NFL isn’t investigating him. It’s unclear if he violated any ethical rules, though the league does require players, coaches and executives to avoid “conduct detrimental to the integrity of and public confidence in the National Football League.”

On Tuesday this week, the coach (sort of) addressed the episode at a presser at the Patriots’ Gillette Stadium. He said he’d had “difficult conversations” with the team and his family, but didn’t mention Russini. The next day (yesterday), the same day the Post published more pics of him and Russini, he said he was “seeking counseling” and would miss the third day of the NFL draft Saturday.

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