In the world of journalism, the days of esteemed reporters like Walter Cronkite have long since passed. Though being a sideline reporter is a lower-stakes game than current affairs, Charissa Thompson has fumble the ball, as they say in the sports biz.
Women have long struggled to get ahead in male-dominated industries such as journalism, especially when it comes to sports reporting. But Thompson’s situation as a former NFL sideline reporter doesn’t have to do with sexism in the industry, but a different controversy that has also taken down—or at the very least impacted—careers such as NBC’s Brian Williams. Per NPR, Williams was suspended from NBC after being caught lying that his helicopter had been under fire during the Iraq War. Reports like this just go to show that in the realm of news, you can’t get away with lying, and Thompson has found herself in a similar situation.
What did Charissa Thompson do?
As a sideline reporter, Thompson would often be privy to comments that coaches or players for the NFL would make during halftime. But the journalist got into trouble when she didn’t get the information she was looking for. Mediaite.com reported that Thompson confessed to making up sideline reports on her podcast, Calm Down with Erin and Charissa.
“I was like ‘oh coach what adjustments are you gonna make at halftime?’ He goes, ‘that’s a great perfume you’re wearing.’ I was like ‘oh f*ck, this isn’t gonna work.’ I’m not kidding, I made up a report.”
Her cohost, sportscaster Erin Andrews, did not see an issue with this practice and admitted to doing the same thing, saying: “For a coach that I didn’t wanna throw under the bus because he was telling me all the wrong stuff!” Yahoo News later stated that Thompson elaborated on the Pardon My Take Podcast that she didn’t see any harm in making up quotes that the coach would probably agree with.
“No coach is gonna get mad if I say, ‘Hey, we need to stop hurting ourselves, we need to be better on third down, we need to stop turning the ball over and do a better job of getting off the field. Like, they’re not gonna correct me on that. I’m like it’s fine, I’ll just make up the report.”
Judging from how many times she told the story, it clearly seemed like a harmless practice to Thompson. But other journalists do not feel the same way. Molly McGrath for ESPN noted that this is more than just sports reporting. This revelation is about the integrity of an entire industry based on trust.
Chris Kirschner added that in the current world of fake news, being honest as a reporter is more important than ever.
Even more baffling is the excuse that Thompson made about her deception. Lying was not a way to seem more impressive or get career advancement. In a backward twist, the reporter seemed more concerned with how the reports would reflect on the coaches and players. The example she gave was akin to sexual harassment. No coach should address a reporter with such unprofessionalism, and yet Thompson put her career on the line to protect someone in the wrong.
What may appear harmless to many onlookers still has ramifications. Thompson’s actions affect people taking her seriously. Female-identifying reporters who devote their careers to transparency will now have to jump through hoops to prove they are not the next Charissa Thompson.