After being exposed for decades of using fictitious names to obtain prizes, ESPN has apologized and returned the Emmys.
When it was found that ESPN had created fictitious identities in order to win more Emmys, the network issued an apology and returned a number of the trophies.
“Some members of our team were clearly wrong in submitting certain names that may go back to 1997 in Emmy categories where they were not eligible for recognition or statuettes,” read a statement put out by ESPN on Friday, January 12. “This was an inept attempt to honor significant members of our production team who were on-air.”
“Once current leadership was informed, we apologized to NATAS for breaking guidelines and worked closely with them to completely overhaul our submission process to ensure that something similar doesn’t happen again,” the statement said.
On Thursday, January 11, The Athletic broke the scoop when it revealed that ESPN received multiple Emmys under false pretenses. According to the exposé, the trophies were re-engraved by the broadcasters before being given to the celebrities who weren’t qualified to receive them. Desmond Howard, Kirk Herbstreit, and Lee Corso, commentators on College GameDay, were among the announcers who accepted the phony awards. It is believed that ESPN submitted fictitious names for associate producers of the show that coincided with the initials of the on-air hosts. It was supposedly unknown to the commentators what the behind-the-scenes scandal was. The men have not discussed the scandal in public.
