Lisa Olson
Encyclopedia
Lisa Olson is an American sportswriter and a national sports columnist for AOL Fanhouse. Her work has been featured in the anthology, "The Best American Sports Writing". She was previously a sports columnist for the New York Daily News
, and the
first-ever female sports columnist for the Sydney Morning Herald, where she covered rugby union, Australian rules football, cricket and rugby league. Olson is a member of the Baseball Writers Association of America and is a Hall of Fame voter. She has covered sports stories in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Japan, China, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. In 1990, while working at the Boston Herald
, she was sexually harassed by New England Patriots
football players in the team's locker room. Olson sued the National Football League
, and the players involved were punished; the incident "is considered a watershed moment for women in sports journalism." Olson graduated with a Bachelor of Science in journalism from Northern Arizona University
in 1985.
While interviewing players in the Patriots locker-room on a practice day, two Patriots had complained earlier to James Oldham, the team's director of media relations, and to Patrick Sullivan, the team's general manager, that they believed Olson was, in the players' words, "a looker," someone who stood around the locker room not interviewing anyone. General Manager Pat Sullivan
observed Olson and determined that she was acting professionally, interviewing Maurice Hurst
, but took no other action. Several of the players subsequently taunted her by walking naked in her presence, making vulgar comments and gestures. One player, Zeke Mowatt
, "fondled his genitals" in front of her. Robert Perryman did the same while her back was turned. Others, including Michael Timpson
, made jokes and egged each other on.
After Olson complained, describing the experience as a "mind rape", team owner Victor Kiam
allegedly described her as a "classic bitch." (He later apologized in a newspaper ad, while denying using crude language.) Eventually, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue
ordered an investigation under the aegis of former Watergate scandal
prosecutor Philip Heymann; the 60-page report concluded that Olson was "degraded and humiliated." Mowatt was fined $12,500, the other two players $5,000, and the team itself $50,000, since no management had intervened at the time or immediately following. Half the cost of the team's fine was to defray instructional materials the league could send to all teams and players, and Tagliabue wrote a letter to Kiam expressing his belief that the incident had "damaged" the league. The general manager of the team was fired.
In an interview on the March 11th, 2011 edition of Bill Simmons
' podcast, "The B.S. Report", Jackie MacMullan
reported that the fines were never actually collected from the players.
After the incident became public, Olson was subjected to harassment from fans of the Patriots. Her tires were slashed, she received hate mail and death threats, and her apartment was burglarized. The Herald's then owner, News Corporation
, offered to transfer her to Sydney, Australia, where she worked for The Daily Telegraph
and the Sydney Morning Herald.
In 1991, Olson settled a lawsuit against the Patriots.
to take a position with the New York Daily News. She has continued to receive harassing phone calls and mail.
Later that year, Olson and Sam Marchiano
were reportedly subjected to a profanity
-laced verbal tirade by New York Yankees
pitcher
David Wells
when they approached him at his home to comment on his sudden trade to the Toronto Blue Jays
for Roger Clemens
. David Cone, Wells's teammate, gave Olson and Marchiano the address to Wells's house. Olson later wrote a column apologizing to Wells for coming to his house during what was such an emotional time.
She won numerous writing awards during her time with the Daily News, including "Best Sports Reporting" by the Society of Professional Journalists. She is a frequent guest speaker at schools and colleges, and active in the public school's mentoring program for girls who hope to study journalism.
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
, and the
first-ever female sports columnist for the Sydney Morning Herald, where she covered rugby union, Australian rules football, cricket and rugby league. Olson is a member of the Baseball Writers Association of America and is a Hall of Fame voter. She has covered sports stories in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Japan, China, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. In 1990, while working at the Boston Herald
Boston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
, she was sexually harassed by New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
football players in the team's locker room. Olson sued the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
, and the players involved were punished; the incident "is considered a watershed moment for women in sports journalism." Olson graduated with a Bachelor of Science in journalism from Northern Arizona University
Northern Arizona University
Northern Arizona University is a public university located in Flagstaff, Arizona, United States. It is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, and has 39 satellite campuses in the state of Arizona. The university offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees.As of...
in 1985.
Sexual Harassment Incident
At the time, women sports journalists faced frequent discrimination, harassment, and intimidation. Women did not get equal access to post-game locker room interviews until a federal court decision in 1978. In 1985, the NFL enacted an equal access policy of its own.While interviewing players in the Patriots locker-room on a practice day, two Patriots had complained earlier to James Oldham, the team's director of media relations, and to Patrick Sullivan, the team's general manager, that they believed Olson was, in the players' words, "a looker," someone who stood around the locker room not interviewing anyone. General Manager Pat Sullivan
Patrick Sullivan (American football executive)
Patrick "Pat" Sullivan is a former American football executive who served as General Manager of the New England Patriots from 1983 to 1990.-Early life:The son of Patriots founder Billy Sullivan, Sullivan was a ballboy for the first Boston Patriots team....
observed Olson and determined that she was acting professionally, interviewing Maurice Hurst
Maurice Hurst
Maurice Roy Hurst is a former cornerback who played seven seasons for the New England Patriots in the National Football League. Cousin of "Marshall Faulk"...
, but took no other action. Several of the players subsequently taunted her by walking naked in her presence, making vulgar comments and gestures. One player, Zeke Mowatt
Zeke Mowatt
Ezekiel Mowatt is a former American football tight end in the National Football League who played for the New York Giants and the New England Patriots. He played college football at Florida State University...
, "fondled his genitals" in front of her. Robert Perryman did the same while her back was turned. Others, including Michael Timpson
Michael Timpson
Michael Dwain Timpson is a former American football player and sprinter.-Early life:Timpson was a track star and multi-sport athlete at Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School in Hialeah, Florida from 1981 to 1985.-NFL:...
, made jokes and egged each other on.
After Olson complained, describing the experience as a "mind rape", team owner Victor Kiam
Victor Kiam
Victor K. Kiam was an American entrepreneur and the owner of the New England Patriots football team from 1988-1991....
allegedly described her as a "classic bitch." (He later apologized in a newspaper ad, while denying using crude language.) Eventually, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue
Paul Tagliabue
Paul John Tagliabue is a former Commissioner of the National Football League. He took the position in 1989 and was succeeded by Roger Goodell, who was elected to the position on August 8, 2006. Tagliabue's retirement took effect on September 1, 2006. He had previously served as a lawyer for the NFL...
ordered an investigation under the aegis of former Watergate scandal
Watergate scandal
The Watergate scandal was a political scandal during the 1970s in the United States resulting from the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C., and the Nixon administration's attempted cover-up of its involvement...
prosecutor Philip Heymann; the 60-page report concluded that Olson was "degraded and humiliated." Mowatt was fined $12,500, the other two players $5,000, and the team itself $50,000, since no management had intervened at the time or immediately following. Half the cost of the team's fine was to defray instructional materials the league could send to all teams and players, and Tagliabue wrote a letter to Kiam expressing his belief that the incident had "damaged" the league. The general manager of the team was fired.
In an interview on the March 11th, 2011 edition of Bill Simmons
Bill Simmons
William J. "Bill" Simmons III is a sports columnist, author, and podcaster. He currently writes columns and hosts podcasts for Grantland.com, which is affiliated with ESPN.com. He is a former writer for ESPN The Magazine and Jimmy Kimmel Live!...
' podcast, "The B.S. Report", Jackie MacMullan
Jackie MacMullan
Jackie "Mac" MacMullan is an American freelance newspaper sportswriter and NBA columnist for the sports website ESPN.com. A graduate of the University of New Hampshire, where she played Division I basketball for the Wildcats, MacMullan was a columnist and associate editor of the Boston Globe...
reported that the fines were never actually collected from the players.
After the incident became public, Olson was subjected to harassment from fans of the Patriots. Her tires were slashed, she received hate mail and death threats, and her apartment was burglarized. The Herald's then owner, News Corporation
News Corporation
News Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
, offered to transfer her to Sydney, Australia, where she worked for The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...
and the Sydney Morning Herald.
In 1991, Olson settled a lawsuit against the Patriots.
Return to the US
In 1998, Olson returned to the U.S.United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to take a position with the New York Daily News. She has continued to receive harassing phone calls and mail.
Later that year, Olson and Sam Marchiano
Sam Marchiano
Susan Anne "Sam" Marchiano is an American television sportscaster who has been broadcasting since the mid 1990s. She is currently a reporter with MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball....
were reportedly subjected to a profanity
Profanity
Profanity is a show of disrespect, or a desecration or debasement of someone or something. Profanity can take the form of words, expressions, gestures, or other social behaviors that are socially constructed or interpreted as insulting, rude, vulgar, obscene, desecrating, or other forms.The...
-laced verbal tirade by New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
David Wells
David Wells
David Lee Wells , nicknamed "Boomer", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Wells was considered to be one of the game's better left-handed pitchers, especially during his years with the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays. He pitched the fifteenth perfect game in baseball history...
when they approached him at his home to comment on his sudden trade to the Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
for Roger Clemens
Roger Clemens
William Roger Clemens , nicknamed "Rocket", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who broke into the league with the Boston Red Sox, whose pitching staff he would help anchor for 12 years. Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards, more than any other pitcher. He played for four different teams over...
. David Cone, Wells's teammate, gave Olson and Marchiano the address to Wells's house. Olson later wrote a column apologizing to Wells for coming to his house during what was such an emotional time.
She won numerous writing awards during her time with the Daily News, including "Best Sports Reporting" by the Society of Professional Journalists. She is a frequent guest speaker at schools and colleges, and active in the public school's mentoring program for girls who hope to study journalism.
External links
- http://lisa-olson.fanhouse.com/