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Did Vince McMahon Order The 1984 Attack On ABC Journalist John Stossel?

Netflix's 'Mr. McMahon' series resurfaces the Stossel incident in its premiere episode.

Dariel Figueroa

Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

At a 1984 WWE house show at Madison Square Garden, ABC journalist John Stossel confronted Dr. D David Schultz with the now infamous line, "I think this is fake."

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Schultz fired back, "You think this is fake?", and then pummeled Stossel with two vicious slaps to the side of his head. Stossel scrambled on the floor wide-eyed and took off running down the hallway. All of it was caught on camera.

In the aftermath, Stossel sued Vince McMahon and WWE's parent company Titan Sports, claiming he suffered permanent ear damage from the assault. The journalist and McMahon settled out of court sometime later, with reports stating Stossel was granted north of $400,000. The New York State Athletic Commission also suspended Schultz.

Netflix's Mr. McMahon docu-series revisited the Schultz-Stossel incident in its premiere episode.

Hulk Hogan states in an interview with the series' filmmakers that he ran to Vince McMahon following a chat with Stossel, telling him the journalist was attempting to expose the business. According to Tony Atlas, McMahon said "I wish someone would take care of that guy," to the wrestlers in the back as an indirect way of placing a target on Stossel. The boys heard him and understood the assignment.

In interviews years later, Schultz claimed that McMahon instructed him to take out Stossel as a way of getting rid of both the ABC journalist and Schultz. Vince blamed Schultz and fired him after the incident and resulting lawsuit.

So, did Vince McMahon order the attack on John Stossel? According to Atlas, McMahon indirectly ordered the assault. According to Schultz, the former WWE owner and CEO instructed him to do it. But, like many things in pro wrestling, we'll never know for sure.

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Dariel Figueroa

DARIEL FIGUEROA

Dariel Figueroa joined On SI and The Takedown in 2024. He previously served as senior features writer at Uproxx, and has written for Heavy, Fansided, and Paste. Figueroa graduated with a double bachelor’s from Rowan University in journalism and multimedia production, respectively. You can follow him on X (fmr. Twitter) @figgyflow.

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