Desmond Howard revealed his involvement in ESPN’s Emmy Awards scandal, where the network submitted fake names for on-air talent, including him, ineligible for awards.
The network later re-engraved the awards before giving them to the talent.
Howard, along with co-hosts Kirk Herbstreit, Chris Fowler, and Lee Corso, claimed they did not know about the scheme. ESPN apologized for the incident, leading to the firing of former exec Lee Fitting.
“So, I get a phone call from an exec, and they’re saying that there’s some type of rule with the Sports Emmys or what have you, that the talent isn’t supposed to get Emmys,” Howard said on the Pivot Podcast. “Now, this is the first I’ve ever heard of this. It made zero sense. Like, who should get it then? You know what I mean? The show is not the show without the on-air talent.”
“What really, I’m gonna tell you all, f–ked me up, is that my man said ‘We got someone at Corso’s house getting his right now,’” Howard said. “They’re taking that old man’s Emmy’s? If they’re going to take his, you can have all of mine. I’ll break these damn things. You’re going to take that man’s Emmy’s? I said ‘How could y’all even let this happen to him?’ I was f–ked up over that. I’ll break all of them. Take ’em in pieces. That’s how much they mean to me. …
“Bitter taste in my mouth about that whole situation, I ain’t going to lie. Because I love Corso, and they took his. They should be ashamed of them damn selves.”
Howard expressed dismay over the situation, particularly when he found out Corso was asked to return his award, saying, “Bitter taste in my mouth about that whole situation. I ain’t going to lie.”
ESPN issued an apology for the scheme, and former executive Lee Fitting was fired in August in connection to the incident, as reported by The Post’s Andrew Marchand.
