10 Times Controversy Inspired WWE Changes
9. JBL's Bullying Inspires Commentary Shake-Up And Greater Awareness Of Mental Health Issues
When Mauro Ranallo was absent from the SmackDown Live commentary booth for the first time since the brand fully separated from Raw in 2016, things didn't seem too suspicious at first - with WWE claiming that Ranallo missed the show due to travel issues - but then he missed another week and cited illness as the reason instead.
It soon came to light that Ranallo had been suffering with depression and one of the key triggers of the illness had been fellow commentator, John 'Bradshaw' Layfield, who had taken to the Bring It to the Table show to mock Ranallo for posting on Twitter about winning the 'Best Announcer' award from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
In June, Ranallo would thankfully return to WWE as NXT's new lead commentator and in September JBL would announce his departure from the SmackDown Live booth (after consistent fan pressure for him to be relieved of his duties) so that he could focus on humanitarian work in and outside of WWE.
The incident forced WWE to change up their commentary booths - with Corey Graves and Tom Phillips proving to be fresh additions to SmackDown Live - though Graves himself has recently added further controversy to proceedings with his very public criticism of Ranallo leading to the NXT voice deleting his Twitter and no-showing Survivor Series.
WWE haven't covered themselves in glory with their reaction to these recent events, but here's hoping that Ranallo feels well enough to take up a spot in the booth some time soon, and the company can use the incident as a way of highlighting the importance of not using public platforms to dig out your colleagues.