The Washington Football Team and dozens of former cheerleaders have reached a settlement over secretly-produced lewd videos.
The Washington Post reported the confidential settlement Wednesday, which stemmed from the cheerleaders’ swimsuit calendar photoshoots in 2008 and 2010. Without the cheerleaders knowing, outtakes of the shoots were turned into two 10-minute lewd videos that were obtained by The Washington Post.
According to The Post’s August report, former Washington Football Team broadcaster and senior vice president Larry Michael had told staffers to make the video for team owner Dan Snyder. Michael and Snyder have denied knowledge of the videos.
The Washington Football Team’s cheerleading program is currently on hiatus amid an investigation into sexual harassment allegations within the organization. WUSA9, a CBS affiliate in Washington, D.C., reported the move Monday, with sources telling Darren Haynes that the NFL team’s cheerleading program is on pause as “part of a larger rebranding effort to make changes in the fan experience for the franchise.”
“We’re wondering what they mean by a ‘pause’ and how long, and I guess it just means until they figure it out,” a current cheerleader told The Post. “Those videos and other stuff happened before any of us were on the team, and it feels like we’re being punished.”
Related content: Harassment Allegations Put WFT Cheerleading on Pause
The NFL franchise has gone through significant changes in the past year, including dropping the “Redskins” name and logo in July.
“The time is right to reimagine our entire game day experience, to reinvent it in a way that reflects our modern identity and aligns with what today’s fan seeks,” team president Jason Wright said in a recent news release regarding the organization’s rebrand. “Pausing all aspects of game day entertainment is solely based on transforming the fan experience in connection with the rebrand.”
Related content: Washington Football Team Picks Temporary Name as it Rebrands
