Washington Football Team owner Dan Snyder has been implicated in new allegations of sexual misconduct against the team. Last month, the Washington Post ran a story of sexual misconduct against the team that led to the firing of team executives Alex Santos and Richard Mann III, as well as the retirement of former lead broadcasting voice Larry Michael.
Wednesday, the Post ran an extension to the story, detailing new allegations that for the first time implicate Snyder.
Former Washington cheerleader, Tiffany Bacon Scourby said Snyder approached her at a 2004 charity event, where she was performing with other cheerleaders, to suggest she join his close friend, Anthony Roberts, in a hotel room so they “could get to know each other better.”
Scourby told three friends shortly after the alleged incident, including the team’s former cheerleader director.
āTiffany!ā Scourby recalled Snyder calling to her. Then 26, she had never spoken to Snyder before, she said, and was surprised he knew her name.
Scourby recalled a brief, awkward conversation before Snyder said, āYou know, Tony is here,ā and gestured to Anthony Roberts, his longtime friend, who was 40 years old at the time.
Initially Scourby thought Snyder was joking, but quickly realized he wasn’t. She declined Snyder’s offer.
Washington’s cheerleaders were participating in Beauties on the Beach video in 2008. The video chronicled the making of the team’s 2008 cheerleader swimsuit calendar from Aruba. However, the women were unaware of a separate video being made “strictly for private use.”
The 10-minute video captured lewd outtakes, showing exposed nipples of the women as they shifted positions or adjusted props for different shots. The video was referred to as “the good bits” and was made under the direction of Larry Michael and made for Dan Snyder, according to former Washington employee Brad Baker.
The lewd outtakes were what Larry Michael, then the teamās lead broadcaster and a senior vice president, referred to as āthe good bitsā or āthe good parts,ā according to Brad Baker, a former member of Michaelās staff. Baker said in an interview that he was present when Michael told staffers to make the video for team owner Daniel Snyder.
The Post obtained a copy of the outtake video from an unidentified former Washington employee. The employee saved the copy because “I didnāt think anyone would believe it was real.”
The video is described to be similar to the 2010 video of the team’s cheerleaders in the Dominican Republic.
The report notes Michael denied the allegations while Snyder and the team declined to comment.
The Washington Post interviewed more than 100 current and former Washington employees as part of a further investigation from last month into the toxic male-dominant culture of the football team under the ownership of Snyder. A total of 25 women — some of which spoke on condition of anonymity due to nondisclosure agreements or fear of reprisal, told the Post they experienced a wide-range of sexual harassment from bosses, colleagues and even some players.
The allegations come on the heels of Washington trying to change its culture and reputation. The team dropped its old name and logo following pressure from sponsors, deeming the name racist. Washington temporarily altered its name to the Washington Football Team for the 2020 season.
Washington hired DC high-profiled attorney Beth Wilkinson to conduct a full and unbiased investigation into the culture of the organization. The team hired Julie Donaldson to replace Michael as the team’s senior vice president of media and content. Washington also hired former NFL player Jason Wright as team president. Wright is the NFL’s first Black team president.
Dan Snyder is also being pressured by the team’s three minority owners to sell his stake in the team. Snyder is also suing an online media company and a former Washington employee for defamatory stories about him.
