We reported late last month that the venerable magazine Sports Illustrated had been publishing commercial articles bylined by nonexistent writers and featuring AI-generated profile pictures.
The revelation sparked a media frenzy and outrage among the magazine’s staff. The Arena Group, the publisher of Sports Illustrated, fired two top executives a week after our story ran, claiming the departures had nothing to do with the AI story.
But still. The Arena Group has announced that its board of directors has terminated the employment of its CEO, Ross Levinsohn, effective Monday afternoon.
“Effective immediately, Ross Levinsohn will be leaving the company and his role as CEO,” wrote Grady Tripp, the company’s senior vice president of people, in an email to staff. “This follows the recent departure of three senior executives last week.” A press release also went out to business news wires—discreet with this news, they are not.
Manoj Bhargava, the founder of the energy drink brand 5-hour Energy and a majority shareholder in The Arena Group, will serve as interim CEO. During a meeting concerning the termination of the execs last week, Bharga made headlines for lecturing staff to “stop doing dumb stuff” and saying the “amount of useless stuff you guys do is staggering.” He also outlawed PowerPoint presentations.
Following our initial report, The Arena Group issued a statement stating that the articles with AI-generated headshots were provided by a contractor called AdVon Commerce. It also removed all articles by phony authors while disputing one of our sources’ claims that the articles and headshots were AI-generated.
Sports Illustrated CEO fired amid AI scandal
The AI scandal was not mentioned in Tripp’s email or a press release. An Arena Group representative declined to comment on the firing, saying in an email that the company had “nothing further to add to the company’s prior statements regarding AI or terminations.”
Levinsohn has a long history in media executive positions, but he is perhaps best known in media circles for taking a leave of absence from Tronc after it was revealed that he had settled several sexual harassment claims at previous employers. He was eventually cleared and allowed to return to work.
“We understand that change can be challenging, but it is also a necessary catalyst for progress,” Tripp wrote. “Our commitment to making Arena a successful and profitable company remains steadfast. We believe that these and other changes will contribute to the growth and success of Arena for the benefit of all stakeholders, including our valued customers, shareholders, and employees.”
