ESPN's ongoing drama surrounding star host Pat McAfee is causing chaos for parent company Disney, but the House of Mouse remains silent as questions mount.
The ordeal began last week when four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers, during an appearance on ESPN's “The Pat McAfee Show,” told ABC star Jimmy Kimmel that he was “deeply saddened” that documents related to Jeffrey Epstein were never released. It started with him suggesting, “I want it.''
ESPN and ABC are both owned by Disney, so the entire industry was surprised that Kimmel was criticized on the platforms. Kimmel quickly threatened legal action and rejected the idea that he was a pedophile or had any connection to the notorious Epstein, who died in 2019.
ESPN apologizes for Aaron Rodgers' 'stupid' joke about Jimmy Kimmel and Jeffrey Epstein
ESPN's ongoing drama surrounding star host Pat McAfee is causing chaos for parent company Disney. (Getty Images)
The New York Post at the time A report has been published“Pat McAfee is worth $85 million to ESPN, so he needs to generate better ratings — and it's a headache –” said the show's low ratings on linear TV. I pointed out what I was doing.
The report notes that McAfee, who reportedly signed a five-year contract for $85 million, is attractive to ESPN because he has a younger audience and a huge audience on YouTube. , noted that the negative headlines were enough to irritate McAfee.
Later that week, McAfee called out longtime ESPN executive Norby Williamson by name during the show's streaming-only segment, accusing him of leaking damning ratings data to the press and “sabotaging” the show from within. did. He also called Williamson a “rat” and said many people inside ESPN were not happy about “The Pat McAfee Show” joining the ESPN family.
In response, ESPN said, “There is no one more dedicated and invested in ESPN's success than Norby Williamson,” and insisted the matter would be handled internally.
Over the weekend, McAfee shared a photo of himself at an Indianapolis Colts game alongside Burke Magnus, who happens to be Williamson's boss.
Mr. McAfee appeared to be on his toes Monday, joking that he didn't think anyone would hear what he said because it was on YouTube and ESPN+ shows, not terrestrial television. said. McAfee then told viewers that he loved Magnus, Disney Chairman Jimmy Pitaro and Disney CEO Bob Iger, and then went on to say that “some old ladies” at the station didn't like his show. suggested that.
Mr. McAfee, who joined ESPN last year and is well-liked by most of his colleagues, is also the co-host of the iconic “College GameDay,” where he is allowed to use profanity on the air. It already has enough power. Kirk Herbstreit, one of ESPN's biggest stars, has vowed to quit “College GameDay” if McAfee doesn't return.
Disney did not immediately respond to a question about whether McAfee and Williamson, executive senior vice president of studio and event production, had attempted to mend their relationship.
Pat McAfee doubles down on criticism of ESPN executives, reveals part of drama that makes him 'very angry'
ABC star Jimmy Kimmel has threatened legal action over comments New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers made on ESPN. ABC and ESPN are both owned by Disney. (Getty Images)
Some have speculated that the feud between McAfee and Williamson was planned to draw attention away from Rodgers and Kimmel. However, Outkick's Bobby Black wrote that ESPN hired McAfee “over the head of Norby Williamson,” suggesting that Magnus and Pitaro may have made the decision.
“Sources within ESPN say Mr. Williamson, who has an old-school TV mindset, doesn't appreciate McAfee's value on YouTube, which averages 403,000 viewers a day,” Black said. I have written.
McAfee's public criticism of Williamson, one of ESPN's longest-tenured executives, resulted in multiple former ESPN personalities sharing similar experiences.
Former ESPN host Dan Le Batard shared his thoughts on Williamson.
“This is not just a vice president, this is someone who has served as president.” [on] The wrong side of Stuart Scott and Dan Patrick,” Lebatard said on the podcast, referring to the two ESPN legends.
“In general, this is a feature, not a bug. This is a way to keep control of your talent when you don't want them to misbehave,” continued LeBatard, also a former ESPN host, Jemele Hill. I asked him for a lesson.
“We went through a lot of what Pat McAfee was talking about,” Hill said. That's something I can certainly relate to.
Former ESPN and MSNBC host Keith Olbermann said he had “running and pitching with Norby on and off since 1992,” but acknowledged that he is “a professional with ethics.”
On Tuesday, yet another ESPN executive was called out by name on “The Pat McAfee Show.”
Mike Foss, ESPN's senior vice president of production, previously said, “Aaron is [Rodgers] Made a stupid and factually inaccurate joke about Jimmy Kimmel. That should never have happened. We all realized that the moment we tried to clean up the mess that started all the infighting.
Rodgers returned to “The Pat McAfee Show” on his weekly segment and made it clear that he did not appreciate Foss joining.
“I don't understand…Mike Foss' comments because he didn't help either,” Rodgers said. “Mike, you're not helping…I feel like you've indicated that you don't want to be on the coming out list…'Did we realize in that moment?' What are you talking about? Is that so?”
Disney and ESPN remained publicly silent about the guests criticizing Foss, but McAfee announced at the beginning of his show the next day that Rodgers was making his final appearance of the season.
Jimmy Kimmel fires at 'delusional people' during feud with Aaron Rodgers
Pat McAfee brought the show to ESPN last year. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Mr. Rogers has also made polarizing comments regarding the coronavirus vaccine on the Disney-owned show, and even the outspoken Mr. McAfee appears to have had enough.
“Honestly, I think a lot of people, myself included, would be happy with this,” McAfee said. “The way it ended was really uproarious. I'm glad he won't be mentioned in my mentions anymore, which is great news.”
ESPN did not immediately respond to a question about whether this was the plan, but the New York Post reported that “Rodgers was originally scheduled to be out through the playoffs.”
Throughout this ordeal, parent company Disney has remained silent.
Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
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Fox News' Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report. OutKick and Fox News share common ownership.
