Britt McHenry may be collateral damage in ESPN’s one-sided war with professional fire-starter Clay Travis.
McHenry, a reporter who was laid off from ESPN in April, is still under contract, and thus she has to abide by Bristol rules to collect her paychecks. On Monday, Travis suggested that one of those stipulations is that McHenry can no longer spout conservative talking points and bash ESPN on his show.
“Sadly, I can no longer appear on @ClayTravis radio show on Wednesday mornings,” tweeted McHenry, a victim of ESPN’s last wave of talent cuts. “Thanks to all who listened and @FoxSportsRadio & @Outkick. Being able to do what you love is something you should never take for granted.”
Travis, a carnival barker who founded Outkick the Coverage and hosts a show on Fox Sports Radio, has been a persistent thorn in the Worldwide Leader’s side. He immediately jumped on McHenry’s forlorn message and alleged that ESPN was banning her from his show “even though they laid her off.”
ESPN declined comment about their allegations on Tuesday, but has clearly grown weary of dealing with the ringleader of the “MSESPN” agitators.
Travis and McHenry are two of the biggest faces of the anti-ESPN campaign, in which bombs are lobbed at the network that aim to paint ESPN as liberal-leaning (which, as Travis will tell you, is why it’s facing such troubled times).
In August, when ESPN re-assigned broadcaster Robert Lee so he didn’t work a University of Virginia football game in Charlottesville — to strangely avoid a person who shares the name of a Confederate leader being on hand following the clashes between white nationalists and counter-protesters that turned deadly — Travis was there to break the story. In the aftermath, network president John Skipper blasted Travis without breathing his name, saying, “I’m disappointed that the good intentions of our Charlotte colleagues have been intentionally hijacked by someone with a personal agenda.”
At each turn, Travis has shouted about ESPN’s downfall, using its struggles to elevate his own career. He was a frequent guest on Fox News, where he would rant about the failings of ESPN through a conservative prism, before he speculated that talks between Fox and Disney spelled the end of his run.
Now Travis’ shots at ESPN — which are plentiful, especially with another round of cuts worth a reported $80 million in the offing — are restrained to Fox Sports Radio and Outkick the Coverage. McHenry, who had alleged ESPN laid her off because of her right-wing views, had often lent her voice to Travis’ bashing.
Some ex-ESPNers have been hamstrung by their contracts in pursuit of new media opportunities. ESPN reportedly agreed to honor the contracts of the roughly 100 casualties in April, meaning they still are getting paid. But with non-competes and finer contract details, former employees such as McHenry have been limited in where they can find work.