The Athletic reported that ESPN was involved in a contentious Emmy Awards scheming. In order to obtain Emmy statuettes for its on-air talent, who were not eligible for the prizes, the network allegedly falsified names. Reportedly starting in 2010, this dishonest practice entailed submitting fictitious names under the pretense of “associate producers,” then re-engraving the awards to give them to the real on-air personality.
The main beneficiaries of the plan were the hosts of ESPN’s well-liked program “College GameDay.” Because there were distinct categories for best show and individual accomplishments, the hosts were not eligible for individual awards until 2023. ESPN said that these made-up names, which go all the way back to 1997, were submitted in an incompetent attempt to honor significant individuals of their production staff.
Prominent ESPN personalities such as Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Chris Fowler, Desmond Howard, Tom Rinaldi, and Samantha Ponder were involved in the fraud and took home the prizes under fictitious identities. Erin Andrews and “SportsCenter” anchor Linda Cohn are also mentioned in the article as potential winners of these honors.
The prominence and ego of the on-air personalities were mentioned by someone involved in ESPN’s Emmy application process, and it was implied that this could have played a role in the network’s choice to participate in this fraud. The investigation from The Athletic, however, made it clear that there was no proof these on-air talent knew the Emmy Awards were being won by questionable means.
Due to this scam, ESPN was subject to disciplinary procedures that included returning the trophies, barring its senior leadership from the Emmys for a year, and designating two people—ESP executive Craig Lazarus and former employee Lee Fitting—as ineligible for future Emmys. Fitting, who is currently with WWE and was once a senior vice president of production at ESPN, was allegedly fired by ESPN in August in part because of this controversy.
Shelley Smith, a former ESPN star who lost two phony Emmys, voiced dissatisfaction with the network’s decision. ESPN acknowledged the fraud after NATAS asked for the names to be verified in 2022, and they have since returned 37 prizes. The network and NATAS have collaborated extensively to restructure the submission procedure and avert future occurrences of this kind.