ESPN Exposes Decades-Long Scam: Fake Names Used to Claim Emmy Awards
ESPN issues a public apology and surrenders their Emmys after The Athletic reveals their use of fictitious names to fraudulently win awards for their college game day coverage, spanning over two decades
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ESPN apologized and returned several Emmys after it was discovered that the organization used fake names to gather more awards.
ESPN released a statement on Friday, January 12, acknowledging that some team members had incorrectly submitted names for Emmy categories dating back to 1997. The statement described it as a misguided attempt to recognize on-air individuals and apologized for violating guidelines. The network also mentioned that they have worked closely with NATAS to revamp their submission process to prevent similar issues in the future.
The Athletic first reported on Thursday, January 11, that ESPN had been awarded several Emmys under false names. The investigation revealed that the network had the trophies re-engraved and presented them to personalities who were not eligible to receive them.
Among the recipients of these fraudulent awards were College GameDay panelists Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso and Desmond Howard. ESPN reportedly submitted fake names with the same initials as the on-air hosts as associate producers of the show. The commentators allegedly had no knowledge of the scandal behind the scenes. As of now, none of the men have publicly addressed the controversy.
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The Athletic reported that on-air talent was ineligible for the Emmy category of outstanding weekly studio show in order to prevent "double dipping" in categories. However, they could still be considered for individual awards. The identity of the person behind this rule is currently unknown.
After the scandal was exposed, ESPN initiated its own inquiry and enlisted an external agency to "carry out a comprehensive investigation," as reported by CNN. The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences issued a statement.
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According to a statement made to CNN on Thursday, January 11th by a spokesperson for NATAS, when ESPN's senior management was informed about the situation, the network took action in order to take responsibility for the actions of its staff, conduct a thorough investigation, and make necessary changes. These steps included ESPN returning awards given to fake individuals and making commitments to implement additional internal accountability and procedural changes within the network.
Since its debut in 1987, College GameDay has become a fixture on ESPN, serving as a pregame show for the network's college football season coverage. Alongside the scandal-embroiled hosts, Pat McAfee, Pete Thamel, Jen Lada, and other sports commentators have graced the panel. The show has also been recognized with eight Sports Emmy Awards for Outstanding Studio Show.
