Sports Illustrated Writer Resigns After Reporter Reveals Sexually Inappropriate Messages He Sent Her
By Michael Luciano
A former Sports Illustrated writer is now out of a job thanks to some concerning Instagram DMs he sent to a local radio personality.
North Carolina radio host Jasmyn Fritz shared Instagram messages sent by a fellow journalist later revealed to be Brant Wilkerson-New, a writer for Sports Illustrated's North Carolina Tar Heels website HeelsMaven. The messages, which are extremely uncomfortable and creepy, describe sexual acts in wildly inappropriate detail.
we cover the same team.
— the girl fritz ?? (@thegirlfritz) January 3, 2020
and now we have an uncomfortable work environment.
stop sending these messages. check your friends who send these messages. check yourself if you send these messages. pic.twitter.com/Iqt2L8Cgcc
Finishing off with the "I was drunk" excuse only makes this whole mess worse.
As soon as the messages were made public, Wilkerson-New, who was hired in August after stints at the Winston-Salem Journal and Greensboro News & Record, immediately stepped down from HeelsMaven.
He later released a statement on Twitter in which he apologized to Fritz profusely and cited the fact that he has an alcohol problem that he has unfortunately ignored.
I've let a lot of people down, and the first person who I owe an apology is @thegirlfritz. She didn't deserve what I said.
— Brant Wilkerson-New (@BrantWNew) January 4, 2020
Now, it's time to turn this into a positive change that I've needed to make for a very long time. I have a drinking problem, and it's time to get help. pic.twitter.com/NnPXblUN3P
This is the first step on a long road for Wilkerson-New. If he really is seeking help for the personal problems he described, that's good news. But the road back is likely to be a long one.