The Athletic says former reporter Dianna Russini’s relationship with Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel crossed a bright line in its standards, even as its internal review stopped short of finding that her reporting was skewed by it.
In findings released Thursday, the company said Russini’s relationship with Vrabel “was in clear violation of The Athletic's standards.” The review, written by Editorial Director for Standards and Quality Mike Semel, capped roughly five months of investigation into how that relationship intersected with her NFL coverage.
The Athletic said it examined 903 stories and 77 videos published under Russini’s byline, along with 204 podcast episodes and 25 off-platform appearances, plus interviews with employees. Its bottom line was that Russini should have disclosed the nature of the relationship so editors could decide what work she should or should not have been doing.
“Regardless of whether the relationship was romantic, it was a breach and should have been disclosed,” the company said. “The photographs published by Page Six on April 7 and April 23 and by TMZ on April 23 indicate a relationship that puts The Athletic’s credibility in jeopardy and gives the appearance of a conflict of interest.”
Semel wrote that the investigation did not uncover “a clear link to conclude that Russini used her platform to help promote Vrabel or help his teams during her time at The Athletic.” Still, he said there were moments “of Russini writing glowingly of Vrabel that in hindsight are awkward or even uncomfortable.”
He also noted that most of Russini’s work had nothing to do with Vrabel, the teams he coached or the players those teams were pursuing. In interviews with editors and reporters who worked with her closely, Semel said it was clear she was well sourced around the NFL, not just with Vrabel or the Patriots.
The report also said there were no findings of inaccuracies in Russini’s reporting beyond a 2023 story that said Vrabel’s coaching job in Tennessee was safe less than two months before he was fired. At the time, Semel wrote, “no other media [coming] out as strongly about Vrabel's job security” as that story did.
The Athletic’s timeline says Russini first contacted company executives on Apr. 7 to warn them about an upcoming article that “would suggest a romantic relationship between Russini and Mike Vrabel.” She acknowledged a close relationship with Vrabel but said it was “strictly professional,” and the company initially backed her while it opened an internal review.
Russini resigned on Apr. 14, while that investigation was still underway, and The Athletic ended its review of her personal conduct but continued examining her journalism.
The company also said it added editor’s notes to two pieces of content and recommended changes to its internal process, including a standards-editor meeting during onboarding, clearer conflict-of-interest guidance and stricter enforcement of sourcing standards.
Russini left The Athletic in April after photographs surfaced showing her and Vrabel at a hotel resort in Arizona, fueling speculation about an extramarital affair. She denied that and said the photos were “misleading and lack essential context.” About a week after her resignation, Page Six published more photos that appeared to show Russini and Vrabel kissing at a New York City bar in 2020.
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