WWE Hits Back At John Oliver For ‘Ignoring The Facts’

I hope you all have your popcorn and are enjoying the ongoing saga that is John Oliver versus WWE.

To refresh:

• Oliver went on an epic 20-minute tirade against WWE’s business practices, it’s classification of WWE wrestlers as independent contractors, and Vince McMahon on his HBO show Last Week Tonight.
• Many in the wrestling world responded to Oliver’s rant, largely backing him up. Jim Cornette called it “the absolute most truthful outside media piece I’ve seen on wrestling in over 40 years”
• The mainstream media picked up on the story, with major sites such as Forbes, Time and The Hollywood Reporter all reporting on Oliver’s comments.
• WWE stocks dropped 2.9% following Oliver’s tirade, although they have recovered a little since.

*WARNING: Strong Language*

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x752yej?fbclid=IwAR2X%5C_FCo1T4lIGW6am04GOw-pKOSisAx3JWOs%5C_21kSlPToQ3cEij3uMKifw

Now, to the surprise of many, WWE has responded directly to Oliver with the following statement:

“John Oliver is clearly a clever and humorous entertainer, however the subject matter covered in his WWE segment is no laughing matter.  Prior to airing, WWE responded to his producers refuting every point in his one-sided presentation.

John Oliver simply ignored the facts.

The health and wellness of our performers is the single most important aspect of our business, and we have a comprehensive, longstanding Talent Wellness program.

We invite John Oliver to attend WrestleMania this Sunday to learn more about our company.”

Responding to these claims makes it very clear that WWE is concerned about the horrific PR backlash it faces in the week leading up to WrestleMania, the biggest week on the wrestling calendar. Quite what WWE hopes to demonstrate to Oliver to make him take back his words or what Oliver’s response will be remains to be seen.

Either way, this is the absolute last thing that WWE wanted in the lead-up to WrestleMania. It is a PR disaster.

• john oliver
• last week tonight
• Vince McMahon
• wwe

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