A general manager for the New York Mets is fired after sending a female reporter sexually explicit texts.
What We Know:
- Jared Porter was fired Tuesday after ESPN reported he sent unsolicited and sexually explicit texts. Porter was the general manager of the New York Mets. He sent a female reporter the texts back in 2016. The network obtained the messages in 2017, but it was never reported because of the woman’s fear of backlash.
- Steve Cohen, the owner of the Mets, went to Twitter to discuss Porter’s termination. The caption from Cohen reads, “There should be zero tolerance for this type of behavior.” Mets President Sandy Alderson commented on the situation, “Jared has acknowledged to me his serious error in judgment, has taken responsibility for his conduct, has expressed remorse, and has previously apologized for his actions.”
- According to NBC News, more than sixty texts sent by Porter were ignored by the reporter. Porter also sent a lewd photo. The Mets were unaware of the texts until the report. The woman remains unidentified but told ESPN that she met Porter while she was a Major League Baseball reporter and he was the Cub’s director of scouting. She said the messages began casual, but Porter later started to compliment her looks, invite her out and ask about her unresponsiveness.
- After Porter sent the nude photo, the woman responded to Porter, chastizing his behavior, saying the messages were “extremely inappropriate, very offensive, and getting out of line.” Porter then apologized to the woman, and the messages stopped. Initially, Porter denied sending any images at all. He later went back on that statement but claimed the photos were not of himself but instead stock images.
- Prior to his time with the Mets, Porter was employed by the Chicago Cubs in 2016, the time when the texts were sent. The Cubs have stated they were unaware of the incident.
The woman has since left the journalism career entirely but says the incident is not her sole reason for leaving. She has also returned to her home country, stating, “It’s a male-dominated industry. But it was a tipping point for me”.
