On Wednesday, Indianapolis Star reporter Gregg Doyel was criticized for a “creepy” exchange he had with the Indiana Fever’s Caitlin Clark during a press conference.
Here’s the exchange as previously reported:
“Doyel attempted to connect with Clark by mimicking her signature hand signal — a heart shape she routinely makes to her family during games. His gesture, however, did not land as intended. “Hi Caitlin, Gregg Doyel Indy Star,” he began, forming the hand signal.
“You like that?” Clark responded.
“I like that you’re here,” Doyel replied.
“I do it to my family after every game…pretty cool,” Clark said, trying to steer the conversation back to a more comfortable place.
“Do it to me and we’ll get along just fine,” Doyel added, a comment that caused visible discomfort in the room, evident from the uneasy laughter that followed.”
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Doyel received a lot of criticism for the exchange which included Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy calling Doyel “a pervert.”
Doyel issued an apology on Wednesday night.
“Today in my uniquely oafish way, while welcoming @CaitlinClark22 to Indy, I formed my hands into her signature “heart hands.” My comment afterward was clumsy and awkward. I sincerely apologize. Please know my heart (literally and figuratively) was well-intentioned. I will do better.”
Unfortunately for him, social media wasn’t having it.
Needless to say, this was not a great first impression for Doyel who will very likely be reporting on Caitlin Clark quite a bit as a columnist for the Indianapolis Star.
