NEW YORK, June 25 — The scene on social media Thursday night was anything but quiet. A New York Times report detailing former NFL insider Dianna Russini’s reported annual salary has ignited a firestorm among football fans, shifting the conversation away from the original story and onto the payout itself. According to the New York Times, Russini reportedly earned close to $800,000 annually during her time at The Athletic.
That figure, the report noted, would have placed her among the company’s highest-paid journalists. The disclosure arrived alongside a lengthy look at the aftermath of the controversy that ultimately led to her departure.
By nightfall, thousands of reactions had flooded online platforms. Opinion split sharply. Some users questioned whether such pay reflected the value of NFL insider reporting.
Others pointed to the growing demand for breaking news and exclusive reporting in professional football, arguing that top sports media personalities have commanded similar salaries for years. One fan wrote: “I guess working for ESPN gave her a lot of clout in name recognition.
It’s sad because she wasn’t worth the salary in terms of the coverage she provided before the scandal.” Another wrote: “800k to cheat on your husband and just bang coaches for scoops.
What a gig!” A separate commenter focused on the compensation itself rather than the reporting, saying: “$800k for reporting sports news…so much more valuable than saving lives or building roads and bridges…” Another added: “Dianna Russini was making nearly a million dollars a year and I can’t remember a single thing she did or a single time I saw her before her affair with Mike Vrabel.” The backlash has become one of the main topics of conversation amongst football fans. The discussion on the ground shows no sign of cooling.
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