The Athletic’s senior N.F.L. reporter, Dianna Russini, resigned on Tuesday, a week after photographs emerged of her holding hands with and embracing Mike Vrabel, the head coach of the New England Patriots.
Steven Ginsberg, executive editor of The Athletic, which is owned by The New York Times, told staff members about Ms. Russini’s decision in an internal memo.
“While I can’t share the details of our investigation into Dianna’s conduct,” he wrote, “I want to emphasize that the leadership of The Athletic has taken this matter seriously from the moment we learned about it.”
Mr. Ginsberg said The Athletic would continue a review of Ms. Russini’s work. The publication’s editorial guidelines require that its journalists avoid any activities that pose a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict, so as not to jeopardize their credibility.
Ms. Russini posted a copy of her resignation letter on X. She said she had decided to step aside before her contract ended on June 30 because the photographs and investigation had generated intense media attention.
“This media frenzy is hurtling forward without regard for the review process The Athletic is trying to complete,” she said. “It continues to escalate, fueled by repeated leaks, and I have no interest in submitting to a public inquiry that has already caused far more damage than I am willing to accept.”
She said in her letter that she had nothing more to add beyond what she had already told The New York Post’s Page Six gossip column, which published the photos. “I have covered the N.F.L. with professionalism and dedication throughout my career, and I stand behind every story I have ever published.”
On April 7, The Post published a series of photos showing Ms. Russini and Mr. Vrabel at a luxury Arizona resort holding hands, embracing and sitting in the hotel’s hot tub.
Mr. Vrabel told The Post that it was “a completely innocent interaction,” and Ms. Russini said “the photos don’t represent the group of six people who were hanging out during the day.”
Mr. Ginsberg told The Post at the time that the photos were “misleading and lack essential context. These were public interactions in front of many people.” He added that “Dianna is a premier journalist covering the N.F.L., and we’re proud to have her at The Athletic.”
The Athletic began an investigation into Ms. Russini’s conduct after the publication of the photos. She was not permitted to report during the investigation, a person familiar with the inquiry said.
Mr. Ginsberg wrote in his internal memo on Tuesday that after the situation was brought to leadership’s 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.”
“As additional information emerged, new questions were raised that became part of our investigation,” he wrote. “While our investigation into Dianna’s conduct was ongoing, she chose to resign.”
Katie Robertson covers the media industry for The Times. Email: [email protected]
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