Linda Cohn has gotten candid about her departure from ESPN.
In June 2026, the long-time anchor retired from the network after 34 years, during which she hosted a record 5,500 episodes of SportsCenter, its flagship show. And during Wednesday’s appearance on former co-host Sage Steele’s eponymous show, she revealed what factored into her decision: an 80% pay cut after the network ended the Los Angeles-based edition of SportsCenter in May 2025.
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When asked whether she felt as if she had been pushed out, she said:
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“Oh, yeah. They had no place for a Linda Cohn. … I felt bad more for my colleagues, the people behind the scenes in Los Angeles. They told them, ‘Sorry, we’re closing down for SportsCenter. Either you come to Bristol or, basically, you’re looking for another job.’
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“So, at that point, my deal was up, and I was like, ‘I’m not gonna let them rush me into a decision.’ And I didn’t want to end my tenure that way. So I accepted their 80% pay cut. I said, ‘Okay, let me do some events for you.’ And loyalty doesn’t pay. I ended up doing five events. That’s it.”
She continued:
“I was like, ‘Out of sight, out of mind.’ I pitched to people like (executive vice president of sports production) Mike McQuade, who was running (the) NHL at the time. ‘I’m here in the West Coast; let me do a Vegas Golden Knights game for the network for goodness’ sake, the LA Kings, anything. It’s so easy.’ … Crickets. Nothing.”
Linda Cohn recounts being suspended by John Skipper, ESPN’s lean into politics under former president
In the same podcast appearance, Linda Cohn recalled when she was suspended by then-ESPN president John Skipper in 2017 after a radio interview:
“He gets on the phone, and he’s yelling at me. … I go, ‘John, what’s going on?’ I really had no idea what he was talking about. I couldn’t believe it. ‘Don’t come in.’ I’m like, okay, I won’t come in. But I was really upset. I was close to tears. I don’t like being bullied, and I definitely don’t like being bullied for no reason.”
She also shared her thoughts on ESPN’s gradual lean into politics during Skipper’s tenure:
“My question at the time, which of course I couldn’t ask it out loud – ESPN, what do you want to be now? Do you want to stop being the worldwide leader in sports? Are you concerned about the competition in the sports world? Is this your way of separating yourself because of other growing outlets that maybe you don’t think like? … It made no sense.”
A month after leaving ESPN, Cohn began hosting her own YouTube show. New episodes air every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 8 p.m. ET.
Edited by Andre Castillo
