Jonathan Coachman Responds To Being Named In ESPN Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

WWE Raw announcer Jonathan Coachman has taken to Twitter to respond being named in a sexual discrimination and harassment lawsuit filed against ESPN, his former employer. Coachman has strongly denied the allegations made by Adrienne Lawrence, a former ESPN anchor and legal analyst. Below is his response:

"I will address this only once because I am seething today. In 21 years of being a PROFESSIONAL I have never been more offended in my life. I my 9 years I can count on one hand the amount of times I interacted with anyone other than a co-anchor. To allow someone to spread vicious Lies and flat out fabrications is not ok and it's time someone stood up for themselves. @jemelehill addressed her lie last night. I am not a part of this lawsuit because I have never done anything wrong. My reputation speaks for itself and anyone that has ever worked with me Will back that up. I am also offended that someone can dangerously throw peoples names into something for the clear attempt at getting headlines. This the only time I will address this because I am not a part of this lawsuit. My heart goes out to anyone falsely accused of Anything. Trust me it doesn't feel good. But most of you have been incredible and supportive. Onward and upward."

In addition, WWE has also responded to the story with the following statement:

“We take these matters very seriously and are investigating.”

According to the lawsuit, which can be viewed in full by clicking here, Coachman was one of several different ESPN personalities named. Specifically, it mentions that Coachman had emailed Lawrence with an offer to provide her with a mentorship, and also gave his cell phone number. The lawsuit further states that when Coachman contacted Lawrence via text message, "he quickly turned a professional conversation into a personal matter" by asking about her various interests. Furthermore, the lawsuit states that Lawrence was informed by various colleagues that Coachman "was notorious for sexually harassing female employees." She then informed Coachman that she had a boyfriend, and not only did the conversations stop, he also apparently made no further mention of any mentorship.

The lawsuit also mentions that another female employee, a "young production assistant," told Lawrence about how Coachman made her "feel uncomfortable by complimenting her physical appearance and making passes at her." The lawsuit also states that Lawrence had been warned about Coachman in the form of being provided a "short list of men at ESPN who were notorious for sexual harassment." It is also stated in the lawsuit that Coachman had sent another woman at ESPN "inappropriate photos of himself and text messages, falsely telling her colleagues that they were romantically involved and that she 'wanted' him - another common practice of men at ESPN."