Fans Are Asking What Happened to Jayne Kennedy After She Disappeared From the Spotlight
Jayne was the first Black woman to co-host a major national sports program for the CBS show, 'The NFL Today.'
Published Oct. 3 2025, 3:52 p.m. ET
Fans of Jayne Kennedy, the first Black woman to co-host a major national sports program, are wondering what happened to the broadcast journalist after she disappeared from the spotlight in the 1990s. Jayne co-hosted the sports program The NFL Today on CBS from 1978 through 1980.
According to WLRN News, Jayne is sharing her story in a memoir, Plain Jayne.
Per CNN, Oprah Winfrey reportedly advised her Jayne to share her fascinating story. “She inspired me to go forward, and I’m glad she did because it allowed me to actually delve into who am I,” Jayne recalled. "Who am I at my authentic core? And it wasn’t just about writing about my career, it wasn’t just about writing about my family, it was writing about all of it.” So, what happened to make Jayne leave the spotlight?
Here's what happened to Jayne Kennedy and why she stepped away from the limelight.
During an interview with journalist Tamron Hall that aired on Sept. 19, 2025, Jayne shared the reasons for leaving the spotlight. A private sex tape that she'd made with her husband, Leon Isaac Kennedy, was leaked following their divorce. It was later revealed that it was a family member who leaked the VHS tape after stealing it.
“I lost every contract and the phone stopped ringing except to cancel," she told Tamron. "I just knew that if I didn’t tell the story in my words, there’s already all this other crap that’s out there that are untruths, that are lies, that are people speculating, and I had become sick of it. I had to say finally, these are my words.”
"I went through a deep depression," she added. "I didn’t want to see anyone, talk to anyone, except for my family."
After Tamron asked her how she recovered from the scandal, she replied, "I don't even know because it was 10 years that I hated myself. Um I — my daughters saved me. I mean, literally, they saved me. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know where to hide. I didn't know. I didn't talk to any of my friends for 10 freaking years."
Jayne has three daughters, Kopper, Savannah, and Zaire, with her husband, Bill Overton.
The former broadcaster also told Tamron that getting a call to be a presenter at the 1993 NAACP Image Awards helped to get her out of the house, and Bill even noted the fact at the awards show.
"He threw away the speech, and he got to the microphone and he said, 'I want to thank the NAACP for bringing my wife out of the house,' and that's when I started my journey of healing," Jayne said.
"I finally realized I had to forgive myself," she said.
Jayne also discusses the racism and sexism she endured throughout her career in her memoir.
Plain Jayne was released on Sept. 2 and is currently available for purchase.