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Sports Illustrated published articles under apparently fabricated writer identities, including Sora Tanaka, Drew Ortiz, and Ben Ortiz, whose biographies and profile images were reported as fake or AI-generated. The Arena Group denied that the article text was AI-generated, blamed third-party vendor AdVon Commerce for the content, acknowledged pseudonyms, and removed the material.
The controversy is therefore two related stories, not one settled finding: fabricated or nonexistent author profiles were the clearest documented problem, while the allegation that the articles themselves were generated by artificial intelligence remained disputed. That distinction matters because a fictional byline can mislead readers even if a human wrote the underlying copy.
Key takeaways
- Futurism’s November 27, 2023 investigation reported that Sports Illustrated used apparently nonexistent writers, AI-generated-looking headshots, and generic biographies on author pages.
- The Arena Group denied that the affected articles were AI-generated and said AdVon Commerce had assured the company that humans wrote and edited them.
- The Arena Group acknowledged that AdVon used pen names or pseudonyms, condemned the practice, removed the content, and ended the AdVon relationship.
- The affected material was described by The Arena Group as licensed commercial and product-review content rather than conventional reported sports journalism.
- Authentic Brands Group ended The Arena Group’s Sports Illustrated license on January 18, 2024, after a payment dispute; Minute Media later took over SI’s publishing operations.
- As of August 18, 2026, Minute Media-operated Sports Illustrated remains active in digital and print publishing and has also launched SI TV, but the later operation should not be conflated with the 2023 Arena Group controversy.
What happened when Sports Illustrated published articles by fake, AI-generated writers?
Sports Illustrated published commercial articles under bylines associated with apparently fabricated or unverifiable writers. The author pages presented names such as Sora Tanaka, Drew Ortiz, and Ben Ortiz as if they were identifiable contributors, complete with biographies and profile photographs. Futurism reported that some of the images appeared to be AI-generated and that the accompanying biographies looked generic or synthetic.
The investigation also questioned the quality and style of the articles, describing some prose as formulaic, unnatural, or low quality. Several author pages and articles reportedly disappeared or changed after questions were sent to The Arena Group, then Sports Illustrated’s publisher. The Arena Group said the material came from AdVon Commerce, an outside company supplying or licensing e-commerce content.
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The most accurate summary is narrower than the headline “Sports Illustrated used AI writers.” Sports Illustrated’s former operation published content using author identities that were reported as fabricated, and the publisher admitted that pseudonyms had been used. The separate claim that the article text itself was AI-generated was reported by Futurism but denied by The Arena Group.
Who were the alleged fake Sports Illustrated writers?
The reporting identified several purported authors, but the public record does not justify declaring that every name used by Sports Illustrated was fabricated. The safer descriptions are “purported authors,” “apparently fabricated bylines,” and “nonexistent or unverifiable author profiles.”
| Byline | How the reporting described the profile | What can responsibly be concluded |
|---|---|---|
| Sora Tanaka | An SI author page presented Tanaka as a fitness and nutrition expert. The Guardian reported on the profile, while Futurism concluded that Tanaka was not a real person. | The profile was reported as fabricated or nonexistent; the available reporting does not establish every technical detail behind the biography or image. |
| Drew Ortiz | Drew Ortiz was associated with a volleyball article and an apparently fabricated biography and headshot, according to The Guardian’s account of the investigation. | The identity and profile were questioned as apparently fabricated; the name should not be presented as a verified real contributor. |
| Ben Ortiz | Futurism mentioned Ben Ortiz as another purported author whose identity and profile were questioned. | The profile belongs in the category of reported or apparently fabricated identities, not as proof that every associated article was AI-written. |
A profile appearing only on a publisher’s own website is not, by itself, proof that the person does not exist. A stronger concern arises when the profile is paired with a synthetic-looking photograph, a generic biography, no independent publication history, and no verifiable professional identity. Those combined indicators were central to the reporting.
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The publicly reported evidence pointed to fabricated profiles and apparently synthetic images, but it was not presented as a formal forensic audit of every image or biography. Futurism’s reporting described several warning signs:
- Headshots that appeared to be generated by artificial intelligence.
- Biographies containing generic, awkward, or machine-like language.
- No clearly verifiable professional history outside Sports Illustrated-related websites.
- Author pages that appeared to exist primarily or exclusively on the publisher’s websites.
- Profiles and articles that were removed or altered after the investigation became public.
Those signs support careful language such as “reported as AI-generated,” “AI-generated-looking,” or “apparently fabricated.” They do not automatically prove the underlying image-generation method. Visual suspicion is different from technical verification, and a generic biography is evidence of poor authenticity controls rather than conclusive proof of a particular software tool.
Were the Sports Illustrated articles themselves written by AI?
The article text was allegedly AI-generated according to Futurism’s investigation, but The Arena Group denied that claim. No publicly disclosed independent audit established that every article associated with the questioned bylines was written by artificial intelligence.
Futurism reported that some articles appeared to be AI-generated and cited a source who characterized the content that way. The reporting also pointed to repetitive, generic, or unnatural prose and to the unusual combination of questionable author identities and the articles attached to them. Those facts supported suspicion, but stylistic analysis alone cannot establish the provenance of text.
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The publisher’s denial was a stated corporate position, not independent proof that humans wrote every article. Conversely, the presence of fabricated author profiles does not prove that the article text was generated by AI. These are separate questions that require separate evidence.
| Question | Publicly reported evidence | Responsible conclusion |
|---|---|---|
| Did the bylines correspond to real, independently verifiable people? | Several profiles had synthetic-looking images, generic biographies, and little or no independent identity evidence. | Some bylines were apparently fabricated or nonexistent, according to the reporting. |
| Were the profile images AI-generated? | The images were reported as AI-generated or AI-generated-looking. | The images can be described as reported or apparently AI-generated, not universally proven through a disclosed forensic examination. |
| Was the article text AI-generated? | Futurism alleged AI-generated text; The Arena Group denied the allegation and cited AdVon’s assurances. | The claim remained disputed in the public record. |
| Was pseudonym use acknowledged? | The Arena Group said AdVon used pen names or pseudonyms in some articles. | Pseudonym use was acknowledged by the publisher, although the company’s explanation did not resolve whether readers were misled by fictional biographies and portraits. |
What did The Arena Group say about the Sports Illustrated AI allegations?
The Arena Group said that the articles were supplied by AdVon Commerce, that AdVon had represented the content as written and edited by humans, and that the allegation of AI-generated article text was inaccurate. The company also said that AdVon had used pseudonyms, condemned that practice, removed the affected content, ended the relationship, and continued an internal investigation. These positions were reported by Futurism and The Guardian.
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The response addressed the text-generation allegation but did not make the byline problem disappear. A human-written article can still be published deceptively if the publisher attaches it to a fictional person, invents a biography, and displays a portrait that implies a real contributor. Human involvement in drafting or editing is not the same thing as truthful authorship disclosure.
The Arena Group’s explanation that pseudonyms were used to protect author privacy should be treated as the company’s justification, not as an independently validated explanation. A legitimate pen name can protect a writer from harassment or create a consistent editorial identity. The ethical problem becomes more serious when a pen name is presented as a complete fictional person with a biography and photograph, without clearly telling readers that the identity is pseudonymous.
What role did AdVon Commerce play?
AdVon Commerce was the outside company that The Arena Group identified as the source of the affected product reviews and e-commerce articles. The Arena Group’s explanation placed operational responsibility for the content and pseudonyms on AdVon, but the material still appeared on Arena-owned websites under Sports Illustrated’s brand.
That arrangement creates an accountability chain rather than a single-cause explanation:
- AdVon reportedly supplied or licensed commercial content.
- The Arena Group published or licensed that content on websites it operated.
- Sports Illustrated branding and author pages gave readers a context for judging the content’s authority.
- The displayed bylines, biographies, and images influenced whether readers understood the material as coming from real contributors.
- Authentic Brands Group owned the Sports Illustrated brand but was not the day-to-day publisher during the November 2023 controversy.
- Minute Media became the later Sports Illustrated publishing operator in 2024.
Outsourcing production does not remove a publisher’s responsibility for basic publication controls. A publisher still needs to verify bylines, approve author pages, label third-party material, distinguish commerce content from newsroom reporting, and ensure that vendor assurances match what readers see.
Were these articles journalism, advertorials, or e-commerce content?
The Arena Group described the affected material as commercial or product-review content licensed from AdVon Commerce. That category matters because the incident was not simply a case of a sports newsroom secretly replacing every beat reporter with a chatbot.
Product reviews and commerce articles can be commercially oriented while still affecting readers’ purchasing decisions. A reader may rely on a review even when the article is not investigative journalism. Commercial content therefore still needs truthful authorship, clear disclosure, and a transparent explanation of who created and edited it.
The key questions for any such page are whether it clearly identified third-party content, whether it disclosed an affiliate or commerce relationship, whether it named a real human author, and whether it stated that Sports Illustrated editorial staff were not involved. Contemporary reporting said that some articles later carried language identifying the content as created by a third party and stating that SI editorial staff were not involved. That report should not be expanded into a claim that every affected page carried the same disclaimer.
| Production label | What it means | Why disclosure still matters |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed content | An outside company supplies material for publication under an agreement. | Readers need to know who produced and edited the material, especially when the publisher’s brand is prominent. |
| Commerce or product-review content | Articles help explain or promote products and may influence purchases. | Commercial purpose does not excuse fictional author identities or unclear editorial responsibility. |
| Ordinary editorial journalism | Content presented as reporting or analysis by the publication’s editorial operation. | Readers reasonably expect authentic bylines, editorial oversight, and accurate attribution. |
Why did the fake-author controversy matter?
The controversy mattered because the central failure was not merely possible AI assistance. The deeper issue was that readers appeared to be shown human identities that did not correspond to identifiable contributors.
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- Deception: A name, biography, and face can imply that a real person researched and stands behind an article.
- Trust: Sports Illustrated’s brand carried an expectation of editorial standards and subject-matter expertise.
- Disclosure: Readers were not clearly told, at least initially, that the content came from a third-party vendor or that the displayed author identity might not be genuine.
- Commercial influence: Product reviews can shape purchases even when they are not traditional sports reporting.
- Accountability gaps: The vendor, publisher, brand owner, editor, author page, and byline all contributed to the reader’s understanding of who made the content.
- Representation concerns: Futurism criticized the use of fabricated images and identities that appeared to manufacture diversity or authority without real contributors. That criticism should be attributed to Futurism rather than treated as proven evidence of corporate motive.
The incident also illustrates why “AI assistance” and “AI authorship” should not be treated as synonyms. A human may use software for brainstorming, editing, translation, research organization, or drafting. Those uses differ from publishing text generated primarily by an AI system, and both differ again from inventing an author identity.
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How should the claims be evaluated?
A reliable assessment separates identity, image, text, disclosure, and responsibility instead of treating one suspicious feature as proof of everything else.
1. Was the byline attached to a real person?
Check for a professional history outside Sports Illustrated, independent social or professional profiles, prior bylines at other publications, public contact information, and evidence that the person supplied the biography and photograph. A lack of search results alone is not conclusive, but a profile that exists only on the publisher’s site and uses a synthetic-looking image deserves much greater scrutiny.
2. Was the profile image AI-generated?
Use qualified language unless a forensic analysis is available. “Reported as AI-generated” and “appeared to be AI-generated” accurately describe the public reporting without claiming technical certainty that the dossier does not establish.
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3. Was the article text AI-generated?
Evidence should be ranked carefully. A direct admission, internal workflow records, vendor documentation, or metadata would be stronger than stylistic oddities or an AI-detection score. AI detectors are not sufficient by themselves to prove authorship, and unnatural prose can result from rushed human writing, translation, templating, or poor editing.
4. Did the page disclose the production arrangement?
Look for a named human author, a third-party-content disclaimer, an affiliate or commerce disclosure, a statement that SI editorial staff were not involved, and a correction or removal notice. The existence of a disclaimer on one page does not prove that every affected article was disclosed in the same way.
5. Who had editorial responsibility?
Responsibility should be mapped across the production chain. AdVon reportedly supplied the content, The Arena Group licensed or published it, and Sports Illustrated branding presented it to readers. Authentic Brands Group owned the brand, while Minute Media became the later operator. Those roles should not be collapsed into one allegation against every company connected to the name.
What happened to the articles?
The Arena Group said it removed the content in question while its investigation continued and ended its partnership with AdVon. Contemporary reporting also described author pages and articles disappearing or being altered after the investigation was published.
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The safest historical description is that the publisher said it removed the affected content and that several profiles and articles disappeared or changed. The current SI website is not a complete public archive of the pages that existed in November 2023, so the disappearance of a current page cannot by itself establish the full scope of the original material.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What happened to Sports Illustrated and The Arena Group afterward?
The controversy unfolded during a wider period of instability at The Arena Group, but the public record does not establish that the scandal alone caused every later corporate event.
| Date | Event | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| November 27, 2023 | Futurism published the investigation that triggered the controversy. | The investigation reported fake-author profiles and alleged AI-generated content; the article-text allegation was later denied by The Arena Group. |
| November 28, 2023 | The Arena Group denied that the articles were AI-generated, identified AdVon as the content source, acknowledged pseudonyms, and said it would remove the material and end the relationship. | These were the company’s stated positions, not an independent finding that every article was human-written. |
| December 2023 | The Arena Group fired CEO Ross Levinsohn amid wider company turmoil. | The Guardian reported the timing, but the fake-author scandal should not be described as the sole formally established reason without stronger documentation. |
| January 18, 2024 | Authentic Brands Group terminated The Arena Group’s Sports Illustrated licensing arrangement after a payment dispute. | The Arena Group’s filings described an approximately $3.75 million payment and a $45 million termination liability. The payment dispute should not be rewritten as a formal penalty for the AI allegations. |
| March 18, 2024 | Minute Media reached an agreement with Authentic Brands Group to take over Sports Illustrated’s publishing rights and editorial operations. | Authentic Brands Group retained ownership of the Sports Illustrated brand. |
| June 20, 2024 | The SI FAQ said Minute Media had taken over editorial operations for the magazine and digital products. | This marked the later operating arrangement, separate from The Arena Group’s 2023 operation. |
| August 7, 2024 | Minute Media announced that FanNation’s localized team sites had been rebranded as “On SI.” | This was a later product and network change under the new operator. |
| January 20, 2026 | Sports Illustrated launched SI TV, a free ad-supported streaming channel. | The launch demonstrated continued brand activity under Minute Media; it did not resolve the 2023 authorship allegations. |
The payment and licensing details are documented in The Arena Group’s annual report. The later publishing transition was announced by Authentic Brands Group and reported by The Associated Press.
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Where is Sports Illustrated now?
As of August 18, 2026, Sports Illustrated is operated by Minute Media for digital and print publishing, while Authentic Brands Group owns the SI brand. The current operation is distinct from The Arena Group’s former Sports Illustrated publishing operation during the 2023 controversy.
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Final verdict: what was proven and what remains disputed?
Sports Illustrated undeniably published content under author identities that were reported as fabricated or nonexistent, and The Arena Group acknowledged that pseudonyms had been used in some of the relevant material. The profiles’ biographies and images were reported as fabricated or AI-generated-looking, but the public evidence should still be described with appropriate qualifications rather than as a universal forensic finding.
The stronger claim—that the articles themselves were definitively generated by artificial intelligence—was alleged by Futurism and disputed by The Arena Group. The Arena Group said AdVon Commerce assured it that humans wrote and edited the articles, but that assurance is not the same as an independent audit proving human authorship.
The lasting lesson is broader than whether a language model generated particular sentences. The scandal involved fictional or apparently fictional people, outsourced commercial content, unclear disclosure, vendor oversight, and the credibility of a major media brand. A publisher can fail readers even when a human touched the copy if the publication presents a made-up person as the accountable author.
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Did Sports Illustrated admit that it published AI-written articles?
No. The Arena Group denied that the affected article text was AI-generated and said AdVon Commerce had assured the company that humans wrote and edited the content. The Arena Group did acknowledge that AdVon used pseudonyms in some articles and said it removed the material.
Were Sora Tanaka and Drew Ortiz real Sports Illustrated writers?
Futurism and The Guardian reported that Sora Tanaka and Drew Ortiz were apparently fabricated or nonexistent author identities, based on synthetic-looking images, generic biographies, and a lack of independently verifiable identities. The most accurate wording is “purported” or “apparently fabricated” writers.
Who supplied the questionable Sports Illustrated articles?
The Arena Group identified AdVon Commerce as the outside company that supplied or licensed the affected product-review and e-commerce articles. The Arena Group said AdVon assured it that the articles were written and edited by humans.
Does The Arena Group still operate Sports Illustrated?
No. Authentic Brands Group ended The Arena Group’s Sports Illustrated license in January 2024 after a payment dispute, and Minute Media later took over SI’s digital and print publishing operations. Authentic Brands Group retained ownership of the Sports Illustrated brand.
Were the disputed Sports Illustrated articles removed?
The Arena Group said it removed the content in question and ended its relationship with AdVon. Contemporary reporting also described author pages and articles disappearing or changing, but the current SI website is not a complete archive of all pages that existed in 2023.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: The strongest documented finding is that Sports Illustrated’s former publishing operation used apparently fabricated author profiles and acknowledged pseudonym use in outsourced commercial content. The claim that the article text itself was AI-generated remained disputed, so “fake writers” is more firmly established than “AI-written articles.”
