Ryan Clark says ESPN’s handling of his exit was to embarrass him. He believes leaking his firing to OutKick was the point.
What We Know: ESPN let Clark go in July during a live taping of NFL Live. Clark says the company informed him Monday, while other employees learned of their layoffs Tuesday. Consequently, he insists ESPN fired him outright, not simply laid him off. In an interview with The Breakfast Club, Clark explained that he felt the handling of his firing was purposeful with an intent to embarrass.
What They Said: (All quotes via The Breakfast Club):
Ryan Clark why he considers his departure from ESPN a firing over a layoff: “Everybody that got laid off got told on Tuesday. Only one person got told on Monday on set. Me. That’s the distinction.”
Ryan Clark believes his firing being arranged to embarrass him: “It was also purposeful. It was also meant, in my opinion, to humiliate In leaking it to OutKick, you now know if anybody is going to curry favor for you in this decision, it’s going to be them because it’s me.”
Ryan Clark doesn’t understand why his firing was leaked to OutKick: “There’s so many reputable sports publications. Whether it’s you know Sports Illustrated, the New York Times, the Athletic. If this is going to be as big a news as it turned out to be, why not give it to them? Because you knew who you were giving it to. You knew the small amount of people within that building that knew it. Then the humiliation that you at least purposed it to come along with me being laid
off.”
Ryan Clark is thankful to the person who told him his departure was leaked to OutKick: “I do feel like it was about that humiliation, and he wanted to save me from that. It was already going to be enough written. It was already going to be enough laughs, enough jokes that I worked that day anyway. So I appreciated him.”
What Remains Unclear: It’s still unclear who at ESPN chose to leak the story with OutKick. Clark also did not identify who was the person who called him to inform him of the leaked story regarding his employment with ESPN.
What It Means: Ultimately, Clark’s account suggests some exits carry more than job loss. Despite losing his role with the network, Clark recently announced two deals that continue to build on his Pivot platform. One signing with Netflix for exclusive rights to full video episodes of The Pivot. The other announcing the formation of The Pivot Sports, a weekly show geared around the weekend in the NFL. For now, ESPN hasn’t responded to his humiliation claim.
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