Erin Andrews

Erin Andrews Introduction

Who says that pretty women have no place in sports? Pretty women have every right that men have to be a part of whatever subset of society they want. Pretty rocket-scientists? Fine. Pretty neurosurgeons? Totally ok. Pretty racecar drivers? Done. Pretty police women, fire women—all things that pretty women should be able to.

Erin Andrews (born May 4, 1978) joined ESPN in May 2004 as a reporter for the network's National Hockey League coverage. Since the 2004 season, Andrews has served as a reporter for the ESPN College Football Saturday telecast, the Saturday Primetime college basketball game and Big Ten college basketball coverage. In 2005, she added Major League Baseball sideline reporting to her duties. She also provides reports and features on Great Outdoor Games coverage.

Early life and career

Born in Lewiston, ME to Stephen and Paula Andrews. A young Erin moved to Tampa, Florida as a young girl when her father, a six-time Emmy Award-winner, began working as an investigative journalist for WFLA-TV. After attending Bloomingdale High School near Tampa, Andrews graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in telecommunications in 2000. While there she was a member of the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority. Andrews was also a member of the Dazzlers, the Gator basketball dance team, from 1997-2000.

In 2007, Playboy magazine ranked Erin as "America's Sexiest Sportscaster," beating out Lindsay Soto and Krista Voda. Andrews garnered almost 40% of the vote from the user-determined contest. The most popular video montage of Andrews on YouTube has been viewed over one million times.

In August 2008, Peoria Journal Star columnist Mike Nadel wrote that ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews dressed and acted like a "sexpot" in the Chicago Cubs clubhouse, and the world — sports fans, journalists, the blogosphere and beyond — responded in force. The ensuing firestorm has spurred columns calling Nadel "reckless, in search of cheap fame, a caveman, resentful of women, crusty and out of touch." We agree, and thanks to Mike, Erin Andrews name is now known by more people.

Video Controversy

In July 2009, Erin was caught up in a bit of a scandal when a video featuring her walking around a hotel room naked had surfaced online. The nude video was also being shopped around to the highest bidder, with hackers taking advantage of the situation by creating links to the video that contained Trojan viruses. Both Andrews' lawyers as well as ESPN worked quickly to remove the nude online video and find out who was responsible.

On September 11, 2009, Andrews appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show in what Andrews called her "first and last interview" about the situation. Andrews described the situation as a "nightmare", and stated that at the time she discovered the video she believed her career would end.

On October 2, 2009, the FBI announced the arrest of a Chicago, Illinois area suspect. The man, a 47 year old divorced father, was charged with interstate stalking for taking the videos, posting the videos online and trying to sell them to celebrity Web site TMZ.com. According to investigators, seven of the eight videos posted online were taken through a modified door peephole while Andrews was alone and undressed in hotel rooms in Nashville, Tennessee in September 2008. Investigators believe the eighth video was taken in a hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in July 2008. According to the FBI complaint, the suspect tried to sell the videos to TMZ.com via an email, but an employee there told Andrews' attorneys. On December 15, 2009, the suspect pleaded guilty to the interstate stalking charge. At a hearing on March 15, 2010 he was sentenced to 30 months in prison and ordered to register as a sex offender.

Reports in April 2010 say that the FBI is now investigating Death threats made against Erin. It is not said who these threats werre made by.