Shannon Sharpe has publicly apologized after an embarrassing incident involving his Instagram Live.

 

The ESPN personality accidentally broadcast explicit audio of a private moment, initially claiming his account had been hacked.

Sharpe addressed the situation in an emergency episode of his podcast Nightcap, which he co-hosts with former NFL star Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson. He admitted feeling deeply embarrassed, saying, “I'm an extremely private person, and to have one of my most intimate moments shared with the world is humiliating for a number of reasons."

The 56-year-old NFL Hall of Famer reflected on his responsibilities to his media platforms and fans, stating, "People count on Shannon. Even in my personal life, I try to maintain a level of professionalism, and I’m disappointed in myself—not for the act itself, which consenting adults engage in—but for the mistake that allowed this to happen."

Sharpe explained that he had never used Instagram Live before and wasn’t familiar with how it works. "I’ve never turned IG Live on, so I had no idea what I was doing,” he admitted. He only realized what had happened when his phone started blowing up with messages, saying, "My heart just sank. It dropped."

Earlier, Sharpe had claimed on Instagram that his account was hacked, writing, “Beware, my account was hacked this morning. My team and I are working hard to resolve this.”

Aside from this incident, Sharpe has made headlines for a public disagreement with NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal. The two had a back-and-forth about last season’s NBA MVP, with Sharpe suggesting O'Neal was jealous of Denver Nuggets player Nikola Jokic. O'Neal responded with a diss track, calling Sharpe's podcast "nonsense."

Despite the beef, Sharpe told PEOPLE at the Webby Awards in May that he’s ready to move past it. “He said what he said, and I’m ready to move on," Sharpe shared.