ESPN sex scandal: When you play the field, beware of fame's double standard
Just weeks after he confessed on his show to having had two sexual affairs with female staffers, talk-show host David Letterman is still on CBS's airwaves, late-night after late-night. CBS officials have said there haven't been any sexual harassment complaints about the gap-toothed comic -- and anyway, it's a matter for Worldwide Pants, Letterman's production company, to sort out, because it's WP that produces the show.So why was Steve Phillips (pictured) unceremoniously tossed from the booth as ESPN's baseball analyst after revelations of a workplace dalliance? In short, because he's not David Letterman.
For the famously private Letterman, this was the first time the public had caught him with his worldwide pants down. But Phillips, 46, has been in trouble before. The former general manager of the New York Mets, Phillips was placed on "extended leave" in 1998 following allegations of sexual harrassment. More recently, Phillips's ESPN colleague Brooke Hundley, 22, revealed their affair to Phillips's wife, who filed for divorce in September. ESPN fired Phillips last weekend. Phillips is entering a treatment facility "to address his personal issues," a representative said Monday.
"The lesson here is that it really depends on who you are," says Linda Henman, author of The Magnetic Boss and a veteran executive coach for Fortune 500 companies. "The question I always ask my clients is, which is more important: the person or the rule?" Henman, who has consulted for Boeing, Coors, Kraft, and Merrill Lynch, says, "If David Letterman gets fired, there's no show. He's pivotal. He's a rainmaker for CBS."
But the silver-haired Phillips evidently wasn't important enough for ESPN to defend him, Henman says. "He was a prime player at ESPN, but he wasn't pivotal to its success, or at least somebody doesn't think he was," says Henman. "I'm actually shocked they fired him. It makes me think they didn't think he was that valuable to the organization to begin with."
Considering how blasé the public has become about sex scandals, Henman wonders whether other factors were at play in Philips's firing. And she feels that ESPN risks backlash from its predominantly male audience, who may sympathize with Phillips for his setbacks by a former lover and then by his employer. "I think the guy who's sitting back, drinking a beer, eating Cheetos, and watching sports may kind of feel bad for him," she says, though she adds that many men will surely condemn his behavior.
Companies need consistent sexual harassment policies to set the right example for employees, Henman says: "Don't have a rule if you aren't willing to fire your most valuable employee for violating it."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 10)
10-26-2009 @ 4:02PM
Gordon said...
Male ESPN viewers will feel "bad" for him?? No sale! Ms. Henman seems to understand men about as well as most men understand women. Hey, Linda! This guy's a BUM!! He's had whatever his problems are for years, and instead of doing something about them, he's continued to be the same sorry sack of doodoo. Good riddance to bad rubbish, and what took ESPN so long?
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10-26-2009 @ 8:52PM
gennie said...
Gordo, Buddy, Pal,
You aren't really a guy are you??
I mean, you squat to pee doncha?
10-26-2009 @ 8:44PM
Xavier said...
The president Mr Clinton did it, the candidate to VP did it, the senator did it, the Governor did it, the lawyer did it, the doctor did it, the banker did it, the garbage man did it, the baker did it...it is un-fair to treat people differently...America will forgive, time will heal...go forward and move on....there is a God who will punish...
10-26-2009 @ 9:02PM
James said...
Does the media really think I give a sheet who's sleeping with who? It doesn't affect my life in the least. The media ought to find something worth writing about.
10-26-2009 @ 10:05PM
Ogram said...
Yay Gordon!
10-26-2009 @ 9:01PM
Mr. R. said...
Let's get down to the 'nitty gritty'. I would say you don't have an inkling as to why males screw. (or probably even care - whether they are married, unmarried, or somewhere in between). I strongly recommend you go out and talk to a few savvy males and acquire some real behind-the-barn sex education. (and stop thinking like a female, trying to sophisticate something that really amounts to 'crawling a mile over broken glass' for males ... and not just certain males either) And for the record we are talking about REAL males here ... with REAL male instincts.
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10-26-2009 @ 10:06PM
Teri said...
I know plenty of men who have NEVER cheated. I, a woman, cheated alot when I was young and out partying but I got help because it's a mental health issue, not biology, and I learned how to stop doing that. I'm still tempted but I don't allow myself to go there because I've grown up and learned that it's really self-centered and hurts people in my life and that's not cool. And there are alot of hurting people out there that I could be helping rather than spending my time being a jerk. Self control and integrity are signs of being a strong mature adult. I hope my tombstone says something about what good I contributed to society rather than, "She cheated alot." Is any of this sinking in?
10-26-2009 @ 10:18PM
nightcomp said...
ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha... poor ignorant thing.
You really need to get some help!
10-26-2009 @ 10:33PM
nightcomp said...
Oh by the way, I'm talking to you mr. r. Your statements make you sound like you are a rapist - like you are 'entitled' to have sex whenever you feel like it with whomever you feel like. You are dangerous! Find a good doctor and get some mental help!
What you don't understand is... everything there is to possibly understand.
10-27-2009 @ 12:15AM
Karen Anne said...
You're right nightcomp! The way "Mr. R." talks, he could well be dangerous as he seems to think he's entitled anytime, anywhere, with anyone, no matter what...and that could well include their willingness or NON-willingness.
10-27-2009 @ 3:02AM
ms. L said...
you are an idiot
10-26-2009 @ 8:03PM
dee said...
How stupid to compare these two. One was married, one was not!
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10-26-2009 @ 8:52PM
gennie said...
Dee,
A technicality. Letterman had been with his (now) wife, for 20 years. I bet that the present Mrs Letterman would have been just as destroyed had it happened after the ring. She still thought David was being a loving and faithful mate.
Semantics dear.
10-26-2009 @ 9:31PM
Larry said...
Both were married
10-27-2009 @ 8:33AM
Louisa said...
There's no comparison, but marriage has nothing to do with it. The guy at ESPN was charged with sexual harrassment... more than once. It's against the law, and ESPN might have to pay a hefty settlement if their employee is found guilty.
David Letterman has never had a sexual harrassment suit brought against him. His story became public after one of his staffer's OTHER boyfriends was upset, and tried to extort money from Letterman. Again, Letterman hasn't been charged with breaking the law.
The simple fact of who committed a crime is completely lost in this article. The guy who broke the law was fired. The one who didn't break the law kept his job. Fame has nothing to do with it.
10-26-2009 @ 10:43PM
Connie Wilson said...
I agree with this person, who points out that David Letterman was not married legally, but the other guy was...and had been involved in this kind of sexual escapade before. While it is true that Dave is unique and the producer for an ESPN show is not as unique, it should also be noted that the "news' that David Letterman dated some staff members (consenting adults) was hardly "news." One of his former flames wrote the book "It's My F****** Birthday" about her long-time affair with David. What was newsworthy this time out was the boldness of the attempt to blackmail David Letterman over his not-that-secret dating of adult female staff members, one of whom he is now officially married to. And I DO think there is 'a difference" between living together and being legally married, but maybe that's becuse I'm old-fashioned.
10-26-2009 @ 11:52PM
BC said...
That was what was said when the Letterman ordeal started. But in more recent court proceedings, it is said that the diary found of this employee, by her former boyfriend, said they had been on trips together, recently.
10-26-2009 @ 8:06PM
rosemary said...
Letterman, the macho pig is still on because somebody needs the money he makes. What a double standard.
It's crap.
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10-26-2009 @ 11:44PM
no bush said...
there is a difference between the two. the article pointed it out, Dave letterman did not sexually harassed his staffer. Philips on the other hand sexually harassed his co-worker. Espn was afraid of getting sued for not letting him go.
10-26-2009 @ 8:13PM
brooks said...
I THINK THAT LETTERMAN STAYED BECAUSE HE IS SO PATHETICALLY UGLY...THAT PEOPLE ARE SORRY FOR HIM....& HADTO HAVE SEX WITH A STAFF MEMBER...WHERE HE WAS BOSS....
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