ESPN Host Michael Wilbon Criticizes New York Times Over Sports Section
Longtime ESPN commentator Michael Wilbon used expletives to criticize The New York Times for what he described as abandoning the sports writing profession.
ESPN host Michael Wilbon voiced strong criticism of The New York Times on "The Dan Le Batard Show," accusing the newspaper of abandoning the sports journalism industry. Wilbon, a veteran print journalist who spent decades at The Washington Post before joining ESPN, expressed his frustration during the radio program when the topic of the Times' treatment of its sports writers was raised.
Le Batard pointed out that The New York Times was the sole major publication that did not permit its sports writers to appear on Wilbon's ESPN show, "Pardon the Interruption." This, according to Wilbon, is a symptom of the paper's broader disengagement from the field.
"They bailed,” Wilbon stated on the show. “They were the first to bail. F— The New York Times. I work for a better section anyway. You think I wouldn’t take a section with Tom Boswell and Dave Kindred and Tony Kornheiser and Sally Jenkins and David Remnick and David Aldridge and J.A. Adande — and I’m skipping a whole generation of people — Barry Lorge, the greatest tennis writer of all time? Half those people went to television."
He continued his critique, saying, “F— The New York Times, which bailed on our profession. It bailed. It took the sports section away. Gutless motherf——!”
Wilbon's remarks appear to reference The New York Times' decision in 2023 to close its internal sports department. The newspaper announced it would instead rely on coverage from The Athletic, an outlet it acquired the previous year. While this move did not result in layoffs among sports staff, the department had been diminishing in size for several years prior to the acquisition.
The sports desk at The New York Times eventually lost its dedicated section in the daily print edition, and the practice of assigning beat reporters to local teams was discontinued.
Some New York Times staffers have since advocated for The Athletic's employees to be included in their union, arguing that they perform the same duties as previously held by unionized sports journalists.
Fox News Digital reached out to The New York Times for comment, and ESPN declined to comment on the matter.