The Athletic Review Finds Russini-Vrabel Relationship Breached Standards

The Athletic has concluded that former NFL reporter Dianna Russini's relationship with New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel breached the outlet's newsroom standards. The finding was disclosed Thursday in a report following an internal investigation that lasted about five months, according to reporting by The Guardian.

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Mike Semel, The Athletic's editorial director for standards and quality, said the relationship should have been disclosed regardless of whether it was romantic. However, the review did not determine the exact nature of the relationship and did not find a clear link showing that Russini used her platform to benefit Vrabel or teams he coached.

The investigation followed the publication of photographs showing Russini and Vrabel together at an Arizona resort around the NFL owners meetings in March. Some images appeared to show them embracing and holding hands. Both said the interaction was platonic. Russini said the pictures omitted the context of a larger group gathering, while Vrabel rejected suggestions of impropriety.

The Athletic initially defended Russini and said the photographs lacked context, but later opened a review of her work after further images and reporting raised questions. Russini, who joined the outlet in 2023 after almost a decade at ESPN, resigned on April 14. In her resignation letter, she defended the professionalism of her NFL reporting and stood by her published work.

Semel's review covered 903 stories, 77 videos and more than 200 podcast episodes involving Russini's reporting. He found that most of her work was unrelated to Vrabel, his teams or players those teams were pursuing. Interviews with colleagues also indicated that Russini had sources across the NFL and was not unusually dependent on Vrabel.

Even without evidence of favorable treatment, the report concluded that the appearance created by the relationship undermined confidence in Russini's impartiality. The NFL chose not to investigate Vrabel's conduct. The Guardian reported that the New York Times Company, which owns The Athletic, and Russini declined comment to ESPN and The New York Times.