Social media was awash with angry users after ESPN researcher Mackenzie Kraemer won a $1m prize through DraftKings’ “Best Ball” fantasy sports contest:
People claimed there was a conflict of interest as DraftKings has an official partnership with ESPN. However, Front Office Sports reported that a source explained that because Kraemer’s job title is that of a researcher rather than a journalist, she’s entitled to participate in these types of competitions. ESPN’s rules dictate that insiders and journalists typically cannot bet on sports that they frequently cover.
started before the partnership was announced in November
The competition had been running since the beginning of the NFL’s regular season, which started before the partnership was announced in November. Kraemer ultimately came in second place in the contest that sees entrants select their rosters through a snake draft. The highest-scoring player is then put into the starting lineup at the close of each game round. The first-place finisher took home $2m.
