The Athletic probes Dianna Russini and Mike Vrabel relationship while considering getting in bed with the NFL
The line between the NFL and the journalists that cover the league has gotten somewhat blurred recently and the latest example of that trend is The Athletic engaging in discussions with the NFL to add its content on the league's signature website.
As Front Office Sports reported recently, and a source confirmed to OutKick on Sunday, the New York Times-owned sports vertical and the NFL have held discussions about expanding their relationship.
And while the primary subject of those talks is said to be about video content, the idea of possibly including written content from the The Athletic on NFL.com and the NFL+ app has been part of discussions, the source confirmed.
It is unclear how far along these talks about collaboration are but what is certain is that if they reach an agreement to indeed place The Athletic stories on the NFL media website, multiple thorny issues will be raised.
Let's begin here:
The Athletic is currently believed to be conducting an internal probe on the work of its former NFL reporter Dianna Russini as it pertains to a possible conflict of interest she may have had with New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel.
So, The Athletic is presumably in the throes of this conflict of interest investigation of a former reporter with an NFL coach while at the same time engaging in talks to enter into a conflict of interest situation with the NFL.
Got it.
People who kept abreast of the Russini-Vrabel news can understand the relationship extended beyond professional. That was amplified by the Page Six photos of Russini and Vrabel hugging, holding hands, and lounging by a pool and a hot tub at a Sedona, Arizona resort last spring.
DIANNA RUSSINI RESIGNS FROM THE ATHLETIC AMID MIKE VRABEL CONTROVERSY
The photos suggested something more intimate than a typically accepted reporter-coach relationship and Vrabel admitted he eventually had to have difficult conversations with his family, including his wife, and even sought family counseling to address the situation.
That raises a sizeable inconsistency. The Athletic is presumably investigating Russini for possibly engaging in a questionable relationship with an NFL coach at a time it is weighing whether to get in bed with the NFL.
The Athletic's journalists are schooled on the vertical's editorial guidelines, most of them derived from The Times.
"When reporting and writing stories we do not have an agenda and it is important that our readers understand that," the section on transparency reads. "If our readers question our adherence to that basic tenet of journalism, our credibility will be at stake.
"To maintain the highest form of authority we should avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest and reveal ... sources or affiliations that may put into question our ability to be credible."
So will The Athletic, on the one hand trying to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, allow an affiliation with the NFL that violates its own guidelines by calling into question its credibility?
And such a move would indeed put into question The Athletic's ability to be credible if the content shared on the NFL site declines to address unflattering or controversial issues of domestic violence, suspensions, poor officiating, or the NFL's political agenda – which can be both left- and right-leaning at times.
Finally, The Athletic has over the last decade been a subscription-based service. The NFL's news website is not.
That's not a journalistic conflict of interest issue. But if The Athletic gives over its content to the NFL for free reader consumption, it does become a financial conflict of interest question within the company that readers will ultimately judge.