Erin Andrews is not happy with the state of sports reporters.
The Fox Sports NFL sideline reporter went after industry colleagues who use what she denounced as “clickbait” tactics. This week, while speaking on the Calm Down podcast that she co-hosts with Fox Sports colleague Charissa Thompson, Andrews went ona bit of a rant about reporters who can be incredibly rude to athletes.
“I’m going to give you a little advice,” Andrews said. “You don’t have to be an asshole. How about this, stop worrying about trying to make a name for yourself, or be clickbait with these questions that tie these guys down or put them in a bind, or you want to be the guy in the press conference. Don’t do that.”
“They’re not animals. They’re not pieces of meat,” Andrews added. “Yes, I realize they’re part of the story.”
Andrews, who has been a reporter at Fox Sports since 2012, stated that athletes always remember the media members who treated them with kindness and respect.
“It will take you so far, and they will remember that more than the bulls–t, rude ass questions because you need to write your little bit on a blog or your hit for some network that you’re on,” Andrews explained.
“Don’t treat them like shit; it’s not going to help you because, guess what, I know you’re not a professional athlete, but things go on in your job where you get treated like crap, and you don’t like the feeling.”
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Last month, Bucs reporters Jenna Laine and Greg Auman got into a heated exchange with backup running back Giovani Bernard. She seemingly tried to fault him for the back-and-forth. After their actions were criticized, Laine and Auman eventually apologized to Bernard.
Andrews did not specifically mention anybody in her rant.
She added that athletes are still human beings and should not be treated any differently.
“I have guys that run right past me on the field, even if they’re my good friend, and I’m like, ‘Hello, you just threw for 432 yards. Why are you running past me?’” Andrews continued. “Shit is going on in their lives. They’ve got stuff going on that they’ll text you about later and apologize.”
She further went on to explain why she was fed up with reporters trying to stand out in the wrong way.
“I know people out there, they want to make a name for themselves, reporters, and I know they kinda want to stick out, but you do stick out in a really bad way when you treat these guys like shit,” Andrews added.
