Sports TV celeb Erin Andrews’ diagnosis makes splashy headlines

Is it cancer? Heart disease? Mental health issue?

I was startled by how much news this made - around the globe.

The Times of India: Fox reporter Erin Andrews revealed that she is currently dealing with a serious health condition prior to the Super Bowl LIX. … Just one week before Super Bowl Sunday she gave us the bad news…

The Daily Mail (London): Erin Andrews reveals she is battling a health condition days before her Fox Super Bowl duties….Andrews (is) trying to normalize the condition by speaking out.

The Irish Star: Erin Andrews raises health concerns after doctor's diagnosis days before Super Bowl LIX.

Battling a serious health condition…health struggles…bad news…

What is it she is trying to “normalize by speaking out?” Cancer? Heart disease? Mental health issues?

No. It’s dry eye disease, or what some marketing people refer to as DED.

As soon as I saw what her problem was, I thought, “Here comes a big pre-Super Bowl ad campaign.” And I was right, as you’ll see.

Dry eyes are common; many news stories about Erin Andrews reminded readers that 38 million people have it. It can cause a range of discomfort - from nuisance to severe. If severe and if left untreated, doctors warn of increased risk of eye infection, inflammation, abrasion of the corneal surface, corneal ulcers and possibly even vision loss.

Andrews has been quoted about her eyes, and she does not describe her condition in severe terms.

‘I just thought it was my eyes being tired,' Andrews said to Athletech. 'I thought maybe it was just because I'm looking at my screen so much - my eyes always kind of feel a little scratchy, gritty. I'm always like wiping them or trying to blink. I just thought that that's how it was.’

She didn’t make it sound any more serious in a segment on ABC’s Good Morning America - a segment sponsored by drug maker Bausch & Lomb - in which Andrews is introduced as spokesperson for Bausch & Lomb. She has used the company’s drug, Miebo. If you click on the image below, you can watch the ABC GMA segment.

The ethical guidelines for ABC’s Good Morning America and for a sports reporter should not be any different from those for any form of journalism. A celebrity reporter - referred to in one story as “maybe the most recognizable face in NFL sideline reporting” - identified on ABC as a spokesperson for Bausch & Lomb, touting a drug made by Bausch & Lomb, which sponsored the segment in which she appears is quite clearly a breach of ethics - for Andrews and for ABC News. The Society of Professional Journalists code of ethics states:

• Journalists should:

  • Avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived. Disclose unavoidable conflicts.

  • Refuse gifts, favors, fees, free travel and special treatment, and avoid political and other outside activities that may compromise integrity or impartiality, or may damage credibility.

  • Deny favored treatment to advertisers, donors or any other special interests, and resist internal and external pressure to influence coverage.

  • Distinguish news from advertising and shun hybrids that blur the lines between the two. Prominently label sponsored content.

Among the things Andrews didn’t disclose was what stage of dry eye disease was her diagnosis. Eye specialists sometimes refer to four stages and her description seems to fit stage one or two - but not severe. This is one of the recurring problems with celebrities talking about their own health. They disclose that they have an issue but they don’t provide enough details for you to judge how serious it is. They’ve chosen to go public - but only so far. Meantime, they’ve used their impactful platform to reach thousands of people to promote a product. Here’s one of the ads she’s done for Miebo and Bausch & Lomb.

I hope for her that the condition doesn’t worsen beyond the “little, scratchy, gritty, tired” feeling she has described.

But if I watch the Super Bowl and see one of those Miebo commercials during the same game in which she’s doing sideline reporting, I’m going to get up off the couch and throw down a penalty flag for illegal procedure.