So much had gone unsaid, and so much still needed to be said. I accepted Skipper’s invitation in part because I needed some clarity. He’d taken a job as executive chairman of DAZN Group (pronounced “da zone”), a sports-streaming service that recently signed mega-deals with the superstar boxer Canelo Alvarez and Major League Baseball. I’d started work here at The Atlantic, and Skipper had rebounded, too. Our reunion was pretty different from that last meal in Hartford, and not just because of the foreign location. Read: Why ESPN is more political than before And-again, being totally honest-I was pretty surprised when Skipper called me in October to ask if I’d moderate a Q&A with him at a technology conference in Lisbon, Portugal. I was even less sure when, two months after he suspended me, Skipper stunned the entire sports-media world by resigning from his position, citing substance addiction. Granted, to be totally honest, I wasn’t sure what, exactly, our relationship would look like going forward. He wanted me to know that despite the attacks from the White House, his belief in my ability remained unchanged. I wanted Skipper to know I didn’t have any hard feelings. Before we even sat down for breakfast, we hugged.
And yet, not every political decision has to be taken personally.Ī couple of weeks after the suspension, Skipper and I shared a meal at a small diner in Hartford, Connecticut. Now, maybe more than ever, the personal is political. Corporate America has to do what corporate America has to do-but it’s not the government’s place to attack private citizens, and Skipper could have said so. The thing that really bothered me was that he didn’t take the chance to condemn the White House even as he rebuked me. Although I didn’t always agree with Skipper’s decisions when he was my boss, the suspension I could more or less understand. Read: Trump’s war of words with black athletes The Trump drama and ensuing suspension were the first moments of tension in my 11-year working relationship with Skipper. In that instance, I suggested that Dallas Cowboys fans upset at the owner, Jerry Jones-who said he would bench any player who took a knee during the national anthem-should boycott the team’s advertisers. I made the job of someone who had created a wealth of opportunities for me that much harder.Ī few weeks later, Skipper suspended me for two weeks, for another set of tweets. It was reconciling the fact that even though I believed what I said was true and knew that I was on the right side of history, the collateral damage was sitting right there in front of me. It wasn’t Skipper’s anger that got to me. John Skipper, then ESPN’s president, was furious. The president’s press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, promptly called for me to be fired from ESPN, where I was an anchor. I'm healthy, and I'm ready to plunge back in.About a year ago, I sent a tweet calling President Donald Trump a white supremacist. I've been meeting with people, and that has gotten me even more excited. "In some ways I have no choice but to make the best of it. He hopes to re-enter sports media as a consultant. Skipper said he has received drug abuse treatment and therapy, and that process is ongoing. He also said "rumors and speculations" that mistreatment of women contributed to his resignation were untrue, and he denied having any inappropriate relationships or sexually harassing anyone. Skipper did not return a message seeking comment from The Associated Press on Thursday. I also have to accept that I used very poor judgment." "I accept that the consequences of my actions are my responsibility and have been appropriate.
#John skipper professional
"My drug use never had any professional repercussions, but I still have profound regret," he said. to be associated in any way with any of this," he said. "Look, it was inappropriate for the president of ESPN and an officer of The Walt Disney Co. He said he used drugs recreationally and that it never impacted his work at ESPN. 18 after leading ESPN since 2012, saying he was going to seek treatment for a substance abuse problem. 15, 2017, and they agreed Skipper "had placed the company in an untenable position." He resigned on Dec. He said he discussed the situation with Walt Disney Co. "They threatened me, and I understood immediately that threat put me and my family at risk, and this exposure would put my professional life at risk as well," Skipper said. He said he hadn't had dealings with the seller before, and previously had been "careful" about buying cocaine. John Skipper told the Hollywood Reporter in an interview published Thursday that the drug seller, whom he did not name, tried to extort him in December. LOS ANGELES - The former president of ESPN said he resigned from the sports network after an extortion plot by someone who sold him cocaine.