ESPN President Resigns, Writes of 'Embarrassment'

ESPN President John Skipper resigned Monday to tend to what he frames as a long-running but unspecified substance problem. "I have struggled for many years with a substance addiction. I have decided that the most important thing I can do right now is to take care of my problem," he says in a statement, per ESPN, noting that he comes "to this public disclosure with embarrassment, trepidation, and a feeling of having let others I care about down."

He says he brought his decision to the company, and that ESPN is in mutual agreement. "I will always appreciate the human understanding and warmth that Bob [Iger] displayed here and always," the 61-year-old added. Former President George Bodenheimer will take over for a 90-day period while a replacement is found. Skipper came to ESPN in 1997 and became president in 2012. (More ESPN stories.)