The Athletic has reportedly addressed Dianna Russini and Mike Vrabel’s scandal with staff members for the first time since Page Six published photos of the pair together at an Arizona resort.
Executive editor Steven Ginsberg held an all-hands general meeting on Wednesday following Russini’s April 14 resignation from the outlet, according to Front Office Sports.
Sources told Front Office Sports that Ginsberg read a prepared statement lasting roughly 10 minutes and acknowledged that communication between the Athletic and its staff members could have been clearer as the Russini-Vrabel scandal unfolded.
Ginsberg also reportedly said that the investigation into Russini’s conduct, which is being led by editorial director for standards and editorial quality Mike Semel, remains ongoing and will be lengthy.
Although the Athletic executive editor was said not to have taken questions during the company-wide meeting, he reportedly told staffers that he would be available for direct contact.
A rep for the Athletic did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
Page Six published bombshell photos of the former Athletic reporter and New England Patriots head coach on April 7.
The pics showed Russini, 43, and Vrabel, 50, holding hands and hugging at the exclusive Ambiente hotel in Sedona on March 28.
The pair, who are both married to different people, later downplayed the situation after the snaps went viral.
“These photos show a completely innocent interaction and any suggestion otherwise is laughable,” the NFL coach and dad of two told Page Six in a statement.
“The photos don’t represent the group of six people who were hanging out during the day,” Russini told us. “Like most journalists in the NFL, reporters interact with sources away from stadiums and other venues.”
Ginsberg, meanwhile, said that the photos of Russini and Vrabel were “misleading” and lacked “essential context.”
“These were public interactions in front of many people,” he added. “Dianna is a premier journalist covering the NFL and we’re proud to have her at the Athletic.”
However, it was later revealed that the Athletic sidelined Russini and launched an investigation into her conduct. She resigned from the outlet on April 14.
“Rather than allowing this to continue, I have decided to step aside now — before my current contract expires on June 30,” she wrote in her resignation letter.
“I do so not because I accept the narrative that has been constructed around this episode, but because I refuse to lend it further oxygen or to let it define me or my career,” Russini added.
Ginsberg subsequently confirmed Russini’s departure from the outlet in a memo to staff.
“I’m writing to let you know that Dianna Russini has submitted her resignation from the Athletic, effective immediately,” he wrote.
“As additional information emerged, new questions were raised that became part of our investigation,” the executive editor added. “While our investigation into Dianna’s conduct was ongoing, she chose to resign.”
As for Vrabel, he addressed the bombshell photo scandal for the first time during a press conference with reporters ahead of this year’s NFL Draft last week.
He thanked the reporters for their “patience” amid his “personal and private matter” and acknowledged that he could have addressed the media “sooner.”
“I’ve had some difficult conversations with people that I care about — my family, the organization, the coaches, the players,” Vrabel said. “Those have been positive and productive.”
The NFL head coach then announced that he would “seek counseling” beginning this past weekend, and missed Day 3 of the draft on Saturday to do so.
But the scandal took another turn last Thursday when Page Six obtained new photos of Vrabel and Russini getting close and kissing inside a New York City bar in March 2020.