Dianna Russini’s employer is reportedly looking deeper into her controversial weekend getaway with New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel.
The seasoned reporter was spotted getting pretty cozy with Vrabel at a boutique hotel in Arizona. Photos obtained by Page Six showed Russini and Vrabel holding hands, hugging, and relaxing poolside, seemingly without other companions at the luxury resort.
Russini said in a statement that the photos failed to capture the larger “group of six people who were hanging out during the day.” According to Front Office Sports’ Ryan Glasspiegel, The Athletic, Russini’s employer, is reportedly “pressing for proof” that there were others with them.
The FOS report comes days after The Athletic’s executive editor, Steven Ginsberg, publicly issued a statement supporting Russini, claiming the photos were “misleading” and “lack essential context.” Apparently, Ginsberg and his team also want some of that “essential context.”
Russini argued that media members and team personnel regularly spend time together away from the field or the locker room, and her resort trip with Vrabel was simply one of those instances.
The photographer who took the photos and sold them to Page Six was said to be asking for thousands of dollars in exchange. The photographer first approached TMZ, which reportedly turned down the opportunity to publish the photos first.
Both Russini and Vrabel are married with children.
