Colin Sheridan: Inequality still lurks in sports media industry

The biggest story in US sports last week was a lawsuit filed by a one-time hairstylist at Fox Sports, alleging a multitude of misdeeds against a host of defendants, including a senior network executive, Charlie Dixon, Skip Bayless, and FS1 host Joy Taylor.

US sports media personalities Stephen A. Smith (left) and Skip Bayless (right). Bayless is alleged to have made unwanted sexual advances towards former Fox Sports employee Noushin Faraji.  Picture: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Paley Center for Media

I must preface this column - which is about American sports media - by mentioning that earlier this week LA Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert was asked by reporters when he realised that his head coach Jim Harbaugh was made of different stuff. Herbert, like the great scrambler under-centre that he is, had a ready-made response, sharing that Harbaugh had told to the locker room that he remembers the exact day he was born.

"He kind of told us the whole story and how he remembered looking out the window and I think it was a cold, snowy day," Herbert said. "I really hope he does remember that. That'd be pretty cool."