Voting Station

Lisa Olson

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Commentator

The Resume

    (1964- )
    Born in Phoenix, Arizona
    Sports reporter for the Boston Herald, Sydney Morning Herald and New York Daily News
    Claimed that during a locker room interview (September 17, 1990), several members of the New England Patriots taunted her by walking naked in front of her while making lewd gestures and comments and one, Zeke Mowatt, fondled his genitals in front of her
    Filed suit against the Patriots, owner Victor Kiam, general manager Patrick Sullivan, media relations director James Oldham and three players, claiming sexual harassment and intentional infliction of emotional distress (April 25, 1991)
    Lawsuit settled out of court, reportedly for $250,000 (1992)

Why she might be annoying:

    Before joining the Boston Herald, she had tried to get a job at the Boston Globe by walking in unannounced and asking to speak with an editor, but she was turned away by security.
    She called the players’ actions ‘a premeditated mind rape.’
    She declared that she would not be intimidated by Patriot fans (‘If I don’t go back, the message will be that threatening a woman will accomplish what they want, and I won’t let that happen. I can’t walk away now.’), then left the country to take a job with an Australian newspaper.

Why she might not be annoying:

    She noted that she never had any problems covering the Red Sox, Celtics or Bruins.
    An investigation ordered by the NFL conducted by a former Watergate prosecutor concluded that she had been ‘degraded and humiliated.’
    During a Patriots-Jets game, fans chanted ‘Lisa sucks’ after spotting her (September 30, 1991).
    The harassment by Patriots fans escalated to hate mail, death threats, slashing the tires of her car, and breaking into her apartment.
    One of her lawyers said about the hate mail she received, ‘This was the worst stuff I’ve ever read. The sexual references, the obscene drawings. Things that make you sick.’
    She received a Pioneer Award from the Association for Women in Sports Media (2013).

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 12 Votes: 91.67% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 17 Votes: 5.88% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 11 Votes: 45.45% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 29 Votes: 86.21% Annoying