On the list of things Shannon Sharpe has to worry about at this moment, getting called out for screenshotting his supposed personal statement from one of his reps is low on the list.
That doesn’t mean people will let it slide, however.
Several days after being served with a lawsuit that accuses him of sexual assault and rape, followed by several days of public back-and-forths with the accuser, Sharpe announced Thursday he would “step aside temporarily from my ESPN duties.” The announcement came in the form of a screenshot that included Sharpe’s entire statement, with his name attached at the end to indicate he authored it.
However, social media users quickly noted that the screenshot of an iMessage that Sharpe must have received from a member of his PR or legal team. And that led to a whole round of clowning the First Take co-host for not taking the extra care to make it seem as though he’d penned the statement himself.
Shannon Sharpe’s lawyers watching him post the text screenshot of their PR statement
pic.twitter.com/WsU2wW7SKC https://t.co/o6aGSrBzh3
— . (@J0nesToChina) April 24, 2025
Posting a screenshot of a tweet from someone else as your statement is next level no fucks https://t.co/TUSgzNxQjg
— Whitney Cummings (@WhitneyCummings) April 24, 2025
I think he was supposed cut and paste. https://t.co/CgoStNTVB5
— Bakari Sellers (@Bakari_Sellers) April 24, 2025
You was supposed to copy and paste this, not screenshot it Unc. https://t.co/Fh92e7oTpy
— Frozen Water (@OfficiallyIce) April 24, 2025
Sweetie I think you were supposed to copy and paste this text message from your publicist into a tweet. Not take a screenshot https://t.co/vKphDjDEJJ
— chris evans (@notcapnamerica) April 24, 2025
This is a new low for public statements during a scandal. Dude just posted a screenshot of a text that someone else wrote and sent to him. Good lord. https://t.co/XTHWVGmCFp
— Kristi Yamaguccimane (@TheWapplehouse) April 24, 2025
Shannon: “Attorney, what should I put out as a statement?”
Attorney: “I’ll text it to you.”
Shannon: “Got it. I posted it.”
Attorney: “You didn’t just screenshot the text, did you?”
Shannon: “screenshot, teen thot, fear not… Lakers in 5”
— Travis J Davidson (@TravisSkol) April 24, 2025
Shannon when your lawyer texted you that he probably didn’t mean post a screenshot. I’m guessing he wanted you to copy and paste it
— greg (@greg16676935420) April 24, 2025
It’s not unheard of for a famous person’s public relations or legal team to draft a statement on their behalf. It happens all the time. However, it was the lack of care that Sharpe showed for the situation with the copy and paste that seemed to bother people. Given the seriousness of the accusations against him and the way he has handled the situation in the days since, Sharpe really didn’t need to give people a reason to think he is being flippant about things, which is precisely what the screenshot implies, fair or not.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.