After Joel Embiid’s altercation with a Philly columnist, here are eight times sports stars clashed with the media

The recent altercation between Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid and Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes has led to a discussion around media and athletes.

Embiid was irate after Hayes criticized the superstar’s perceived lack of work ethic, with the columnist invoking the name of the center’s dead brother and his young son in the piece.

That led to last Saturday night – when Embiid confronted Hayes, shoving him in the locker room, saying, ‘The next time you bring up my dead brother and my son again, you are going to see what I’m going to do to you and I’m going to have to… live with the consequences.’

It’s certainly not the first time that reporters and sports stars have clashed, with the media being seen as adversarial by some athletes throughout the years.

Here, DailyMail.com takes a look at eight other times that athletes and the media sparred – whether that’s physically or otherwise.

Jim Rome vs. Jim Everett

Arguably the most famous incident of an altercation between an athlete and a reporter (at least in North American sports), former New Orleans Saints quarterback Jim Everett once flipped a table to get at ESPN’s Jim Rome.

Everett was famous for his performance in the 1989 NFC Championship game with the Los Angeles Rams, when he was sacked so much that he fell down in the pocket anticipating a tackle before it even came.

That haunted him for years and led to his appearance on Talk2, hosted by Rome and airing on ESPN2, in 1994. Rome had been mocking Everett routinely for years, calling him ‘Chris’ Everett (a reference to female tennis player Chris Evert) over his aversion to getting hit.

When he appeared on the show as a guest, Rome almost immediately called him ‘Chris’. Everett dared him to say it to his face again, telling Rome that if he did ‘we’ll need a station break’ – implying that he would fight him.

About ten seconds after the warning, Rome called him ‘Chris’ again. Everett flipped aside the table between them and shoved Rome to the ground in his chair all while the cameras were still rolling.

The two were eventually separated and Everett apologized. Rome wasn’t injured and no legal action was taken.

Marshawn Lynch vs. The Media (in general)

This isn’t a fight between two particular people, but rather a general disdain for the media by one star athlete.

NFL star running back Marshawn Lynch had always been reluctant to speak to the media while he was a player. While it made reporters frustrated, it often led to some hilarious responses to questions.

Lynch was fined multiple times by the NFL for refusing to talk to the media – which led him to coming up with ways to speak to reporters without answering their questions.

After a November 2014 game against the Arizona Cardinals, Lynch responded to almost every question with the word, ‘Yeah’.

A few weeks later, in December 2014, after the second game against the Cardinals, Lynch responded to almost every question with ‘Thanks for asking’ or ‘I appreciate you asking’.

Then, of course, there was his famous Super Bowl XLIX media appearance where he answered each question with the phrase, ‘I’m just here so I won’t get fined’, which became a meme shortly after. 

Billy Martin vs. Will Hagar

New York Yankees manager Billy Martin was a fiery competitor both as a player and as a coach. Even when he wasn’t competing, he was quick to anger.

Martin was in Reno, Nevada at the opening day for a basketball team coached by a friend of his. 

25-year-old reporter Will Hagar did an interview with Martin, which was described as ‘cordial’ to start. Once Hagar began asking questions about Yankees star Reggie Jackson, that’s when Martin became upset.

Hagar told the New York Times at the time, ‘He said that writers always twist things… He saw me writing things down and he wanted to see my notes.’ 

That’s when Hagar Said that Martin began punching him – requiring restraining.

According to Martin, Hagar ‘challenged me to a fight, no question’ and that he ‘deliberately wanted me to hit him. His questions got bad at the end. He threatened to fight me. That’s when I hit him.’

Deion Sanders vs. Tim McCarver

Deion Sanders was a phenomenal two-sport athlete in his playing days – competing professionally in Major League Baseball and in the NFL.

Rarely did the two sports overlap, but they did in 1992 – when Sanders played football for the Atlanta Falcons and baseball for the Atlanta Braves.

Before the 1992 National League Championship Series, baseball reporter Tim McCarver criticized Sanders for playing the two sports at the same time, saying that it should be considered a breach of contract and called it the wrong thing to do.

The Braves ended up winning the 1992 NLCS in seven games, with Sanders participating. He decided to celebrate by dumping multiple buckets of ice water over McCarver’s head, leading to the reporter’s famous response: ‘You’re a real man, Deion. I’ll say that.’

Jamal Adams vs. Connor Hughes

During a game in the 2023 NFL season, Seattle Seahawks safety Jamal Adams put up poor coverage in a game against the Dallas Cowboys that led to a touchdown being scored.

Connor Hughes, a reporter for SNYTv that covered Adams when he was playing for the New York Jets, re-tweeted a video of the play and captioned it: ‘Yikes’.

Adams responded by posting a photo of Hughes and his wife with the same caption as well as a mocking emoji. He eventually deleted the post.

When asked if he’d apologize, Adams said, ‘It’s always the athlete that crossed the line when he responds. But at the end of the day, disrespect is disrespect, however you want to take it. So, I responded.’

Kim Mulkey vs. The Washington Post and the LA Times

LSU women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey once threatened to sue the Washington Post for an article they were going to publish on her methods and program.

Mulkey described the article as a ‘hit piece’ before it even went up, with the article eventually being published despite her threats.

The article accused her of targeting gay players while she was the coach at Baylor University.

Additionally, she criticized an LA Times article that referred to her players as ‘dirty debutantes’. That article was eventually changed and the author apologized.

Lawrence Taylor vs. Ernie Palladino

Former New York Giants defensive end Lawrence Taylor once attacked reporter Ernie Palladino after his playing days were over.

Taylor visited a Giants practice in 1995 when the team was 0-3 and in need of some inspiration.

Reporters present tried speaking with Taylor, but he refused. Palladino told Taylor that he was wrong and cursed at him.

Taylor then shouted back and started walking toward Palladino and grabbed him around the throat.

The two were eventually separated and they apologized to each other about an hour later.

Will McDonough vs. Raymond Clayborn

Finally, this is an example where the media fought back – literally.

New England Patriots cornerback Raymond Clayborn had a bad week in early September 1979. He had fought with teammates twice that week in practice and not even a 56-3 beatdown on the New York Jets could help change his mood.

After the game, Clayborn was seen snapping at writers and bumping into them – which drew a response from The Boston Globe’s Will McDonough, the father of ESPN play-by-play man Sean McDonough.

McDonough saw Clayborn’s behavior and remarked, ‘Hey Ray, there’s no need to do that.’ Clayborn reacted by jabbing his finger in the writer’s face, poking him in the eye.

What happened next became the stuff of legend in reporters circles: McDonough reacted to the poke by punching Clayborn twice in the face and knocking him into a laundry cart. Some say that McDonough’s punch knocked him ‘out cold’. Others said it was more of a scuffle. 

Either way, McDonough only added to his reputation for being a no-nonsense reporter and became a hero amongst Boston sports writers.