Sports Media With Richard Deitsch

Episode 170 of the Sports Media Podcast features Rebecca Lowe, the host of NBC Sports Group’s Premier League coverage as well as an Olympic host for NBCUnversial. She is followed by a media roundtable with Chad Finn, the sports media writer and columnist for the Boston Globe, and Austin Karp, the managing editor/digital for Sports Business Journal. In this podcast Lowe discusses being in England when she learned NBC had retained the Premier League rights; how her bosses keep her abreast of the proceedings; her role in NBC Universal’s pitch to the EPL; what NBC has built with its soccer coverage; whether NBC retaining has incentivized she and NBC extending her current contract when it expires next year; what is happening with Manchester United; whether Fulham can sustain long-term success; whether the EPL would ever do a Drive To Survive series; why she avoids Twitter and much more.  Finn. Karp and Deitsch discuss our reactions to NBC’s landing the U.S. media rights to the Premier League through 2028; the upco

Episode 169 of the Sports Media Podcast features a conversation with ESPN NBA announcer Mike Breen and Ian Eagle, who calls the NBA for Turner Sports and the YES Network, and the NFL for CBS. They are followed by Dana O’Neil, a senior writer for The Athletic and the author of the new book, “The Big East: Inside the Most Entertaining and Influential Conference in College Basketball History.”   In this podcast Breen and Eagle discuss how they first met and the longevity of their friendship; how they would describe the other’s broadcast style; why they don’t view each other as competitors; why they still call local teams, the Knicks and Nets; how they view production meetings with coaches and players; Breen’s interest in calling games in the future; how they would feel about incorporating gambling content into their broadcasts; the NBA call they are most proud of; Kevin Garnett calling Eagle “the mother----- voice”; Magic Johnson’s praise of Breen, and much more.    O’Neil discusses why she wanted to explore the

Episode 168 of the Sports Media Podcast features Fox NFL reporter Pam Oliver and writer Lyndsey D'Arcangelo, the co-author with Britni de la Cretaz of the new book, “Hail Mary: The Rise and Fall of the National Women's Football League.” In this podcast, Oliver discusses what the 2021 season has been like for her as a sideline reporter; her remarkable longevity in the sports TV business; the on-field access she has in 2021 versus other years; working with Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen; what she says to women in the business wh0 approach her for advice; the chronic migraines and headaches she has suffered for decades, which sometimes force her to hide out in stadium; enduring fibroids that has required surgeries; her intentions to publish a memoir down the road and much more.  D'Arcangelo discusses the origins of how “Hail Mary” emerging as a book; the challenge and fulfillment of unearthing something fascinating about an athlete or league from a previous era; how the NWFL was covered by the sports media of th

Episode 167 of the Sports Media Podcast features Chris Jericho, who currently works as a professional wrestler for All Elite Wrestling (AEW), hosts the popular podcast “Talk Is Jericho,” and is the lead singer of the band, Fozzy. The next wrestling PPV he will perform in comes at “AEW Full Gear” on Nov. 13 at 8 p.m. ET at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  In this podcast, Jericho discusses the concept of professional reinvention and his ability to change his character over multiple decades for multiple companies; what he’s learned about reinvention that can be used by everyone; his approach to doing media; whether the media companies he has worked for dictate the press outlets he speaks with; how much he reads the people and publications who cover the business of professional wrestling daily; the importance of television viewership in professional wrestling and the 18-to-49 demo that advertisers want when they buy television time; if he follows how WWE does in viewership on Monday and Friday night

Episode 166 of the Sports Media Podcast features three guests. First up is ESPN college football and NFL analyst Robert Griffin III. He is followed by Katie Strang and Mark Lazerus of The Athletic.  In this podcast, Griffin discusses the how he landed at ESPN; his audition process at Fox and ESPN; why the ESPN job made sense; whether he sees broadcasting as a long-term proposition versus playing again; his preparation for calling games with Mark Jones and Quint Kessenich; why, in his opinion, some former players succeed and why some do not succeed in sports broadcasting; his role in production meetings; his interest in providing opinion versus doing a game broadcast; discussing Langston Hughes on the Oklahoma-Kansas broadcast; his interest in doing NFL content, learning about broadcast boards and much more.  Lazerus and Strang discuss the damming results of the Jenner & Block investigation; TSN's Rick Westhead’s powerful interview with Kyle Beach and the reporting on the sexual abuse allegations Beach made ag

Episode 165 of the Sports Media Podcast features three guests. First up is ESPN reporter and Utah Jazz analyst Holly Rowe. She is followed by Jimmy Traina, a writer/producer for Sports Illustrated and the host of the SI Media Podcast. He is followed by Ivan Maisel, the vice president of editorial and a senior Writer for On3. Maisel’s newest book is “I Keep Trying to Catch His Eye: A Memoir of Loss, Grief, and Love,” which is about his late son, Max. In this podcast, Rowe discusses has she landed the Jazz broadcasting job and what her role is on the broadcast; the challenges of navigating multiple jobs across multiple networks; what her college football access has been in 2021; getting coaches after games amid the crowd scrum; how she viewed the WNBA’s season and the cable and broadcast placement of the Finals and more. Traina and Deitsch discuss what Amazon Prime’s NFL exclusivity will mean for viewers next year; Traina’s interview with Steve Levy and Levy’s thoughts on the Manning Megcast; how the Mannings w

Episode 164 of the Sports Media Podcast features three guests. First up is New York Times writer Ken Belson, who covers the NFL for that media outlet. Belson joined with Katherine Rosman to report on the 650,000 emails the NFL is reported to be looking at regarding the workplace conduct with the Washington Football Team. He is followed by Jemele Hill, a contributing writer for The Atlantic, the host of the “Jemele Hill is Unbothered” podcast for Spotify, and a creative adviser for Meadowlark Media. She is followed by Grant Wahl, who writes the Futbol with Grant Wahl newsletter and works with CBS Sports and Meadowlark Media. In this podcast Belson discusses the challenges of covering the NFL; when he started working on stories about the review of workplace misconduct at the Washington Football Team; why readers should care about this story; his access to emails from Jon Gruden; whether the NYT is actively trying to get more of these emails; league attorney Jeff Pash’s role in the story; the nearly naked photos

Episode 163 of the Sports Media Podcast features three guests. First up is Jeff Van Gundy, the lead NBA analyst for ESPN and ABC’s NBA game coverage. He is followed by a media roundtable with Kavitha Davidson, a sports and culture writer for The Athletic and the host of Culture Calculus podcast, and Chad Finn, the sports media writer and columnist for the Boston Globe. In this podcast Van Gundy discusses how he prepares for an upcoming season; why he thinks he has lasted in broadcasting as long as he has;  if having money in the bank gives you freedom to say things; his reaction to Kyrie Irving not playing or practicing with the Nets until he is eligible to be a full participant; his thoughts on players doing their own vaccination research; whether the Raptors can attract transcendent free agents; how forthcoming he finds coaches in pregame production meeting; why the NBA hates when you criticize referees  and much more. Davidson and Finn discuss Jon Gruden resigning as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders fol

Episode 162 of the Sports Media Podcast features three guests. First up is a conversation with Lisa Byington and Kate Scott, the first women full-time TV play-by-play broadcasters for a major men's professional sports team. They are followed by Eli Saslow, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post reporter who has published a new book —Voices from the Pandemic: Americans tell their stories of crisis, courage and resilience. In this podcast, Byington and Scott discuss the interview process for an NBA play by play role and how they landed their jobs; becoming the first full-time TV play-by-play broadcasters for a major men's professional sports team; the challenges of the job; how to adjust to a new city and fan base; the broadcasters who reached out to them; how they will view success and much more. Saslow discusses the oral history project he did last year for The Washington Post where he talked to people around America about dealing with COVID; what he learned about America through his reporting; how to get

Episode 161 of the Sports Media Podcast features a conversation with Conrad Thompson and Jeff Jarrett, the co-hosts of “My World’ with Jeff Jarrett,” which focuses on Jarrett’s Hall of Fame career as a main-event professional wrestler, promoter, and company owner. Jarrett has been a well-known figure in professional wrestling for decades including in-ring prominence in the WWE, WCW and NWA Total Nonstop Action wrestling. In this podcast Thompson and Jarrett discuss the process of forming a podcast; how they first met; whether Thompson’s success with his other six podcasts gave Jarrett proof of concept; the number of downloads they average weekly and what the realistic celling is for the podcast; how the podcast makes money and what the download number is to make money; how prep works for the podcast; Jarrett’s approach to nostalgia storytelling; how not to be duplicative with other wresting podcasts; navigating multiple podcasts as a host and much more You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Goog

Episode 160 of the Sports Media Podcast features a conversation with the documentarian Ken Burns. In this podcast Burns discusses his latest project “Muhammad Ali,” a four-part documentary co-directed by Burns, Sarah Burns and David McMahon that will air on PBS September19-22; why he his co-directors embarked on a subject that has been explored in so many forms; how they determined the chronology of the film; the challenge of when to use Ali as a narrator; the complexity of Ali as a social and political figure; how Ali would be looked at if he existed in a 2021 contruct, and much more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 159 of the Sports Media Podcast features a conversation with the new Fox NFL broadcast team of Gus Johnson and Aqib Talib. The duo debuts in Week Two with the Vikings-Cardinals. In this podcast Johnson and Talib discuss how they formed their partnership; working together on a practice game; how Talib got into sports broadcasting and introduced himself to Fox Sports; how Johnson morphs between preparation for college football and the NFL; Talib’s style on the air; how broadcasters deal with feedback; what Talib is looking at pre-snap and how that is different than other announcers; their upcoming Cardinals-Jaguars broadcast; whether Gus wants to continue doing NFL games; Talib’s longterm thoughts about broadcasting and much more.  You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 158 of the Sports Media Podcast features two segments. First up is Kevin Clark, an NFL writer, podcaster and video host for The Ringer. He previously covered the NFL for The Wall Street Journal. He is followed by a media roundtable with Kavitha Davidson, a sports and culture writer for The Athletic and the host of Culture Calculus podcast, and Chad Finn, the sports media writer and columnist for the Boston Globe. In this podcast Clark discusses the stories that interest him most at the start of the 2021 NFL season; how COVID has shaped his approach to stories; his travel experiences; the nexus of gambling and the NFL and what it means; how he views his competition; what the NFL public relations establishment thinks of The Ringer; why geography matters very little regarding where you live today; why he chose his most recent pieces and much more. Davidson and Finn discuss the biggest media-related stories of the NFL season; what the NFL setting strict limits on game-day access means; how sports gambling

Episode 157 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is Molly McGrath, an ESPN college football and college basketball host and reporter. She is followed by Christopher Clarey, a tennis writer for the New York Times and the author of “The Master: The Long Run and Beautiful Game of Roger Federer” In this podcast, McGrath discusses returning to college football this season after the birth of her son earlier this year; finding a work-life balance; the internal pressure she felt to return to ESPN; how much college football coaches tell ESPN on-air talent during production meetings; her approach with her bosses after Maria Taylor left for NBC; being assigned to the team of Sean McDonough, Todd Blackledge, and Todd McShay; COVID protocols for covering college football this season; dealing with toxic social media; being public about her pregnancy; her interest in hosting long-term and more.  Clarey discusses what he hoped to produce by exploring Federer in longform; why he connected with Federer as

Episode 156 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is longtime WWE performer Seth Rollins, who will wrestle Edge on Aug. 21 at the WWE’s annual SummerSlam event He is followed by The Athletic’s Scott Dochterman, an Iowa-based college football writer who covered The Field of Dreams game in Dyersville, Iowa.  In this podcast, Rollins discusses how he views promotion and navigates when some media outlets want him in character and storyline versus others who want to talk about the business of wrestling; how much Rollins can dictate which interviews he wants to do for press;  talking to mainstream outlets versus traditional wrestling outlets; his philosophy of doing promos; how much his promo work is improvisation vs. scripted; bringing someone’s real life into a promo; how he and his wife Rebecca Quin, who wrestles under the name Becky Lynch, navigate joint press; how he and Becky would approach the possibility of their real-life becoming part of storyline; navigating a massive social media fol

Episode 155 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is ESPN staff writer David Purdum, the company’s premier gambling reporter. He is followed by Mirin Fader, a staff writer for The Ringer and the author of GIANNIS: The Improbable Rise of an NBA MVP. In this podcast, Purdum discusses the opportunities for sports media staffers working in the sports gaming space; former ESPN-ers and others working in the space; the expectations on the handles on college football and pro football this season; the impact of Oklahoma and Texas moving to the SEC; preseason NFL betting; why sports betting is a long-term investment and a grind; why you should only risk 2-5% of your bankroll per wager; sign-up bonuses advantage; the ethics of using your reporting for betting; why futures are not a smart bet and a big house advantage; international soccer betting, and more. Fader discusses why she wanted to write a book on Giannis; how the book came to be; the process of interviewing more than 220 people for the book

Episode 154 of the Sports Media Podcast features guest Rebecca Lowe, the host of NBC Sports Group’s Premier League coverage as well as an Olympic host for NBCUnversial. In this podcast, Lowe discusses what working the Tokyo Games has been like; her broadcasting setup in Tokyo; what protocols exist regarding COVID; how she views the declines in Olympic viewership; NBC’s Olympic storytelling; the on-air highlight for her; her Premier League preparation; what she expects from the upcoming Premier League season; if her future at NBC is tied to soccer; England’s World Cup prospects and how they handled Euros, and much more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 153 of the Sports Media Podcast features Kavitha Davidson, a sports and culture writer for The Athletic and the host of Culture Calculus podcast. In this podcast Davidson and Deitsch discuss how much Olympics we are each watching; why the primetime viewership of the Tokyo Games is way down; how we viewed coverage of Simone Biles in different mediums; why the coverage actually holds well for the future; the story around Suni Lee; whether it is time for sports outlets to have a mental health sports reporter; the intersection of COVID and the NFL; whether baseball should have a bigger Olympic presence and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 152 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is Chad Finn, the sports media writer and columnist for the Boston Globe. He is followed by Melanie Newman, a broadcaster for the Baltimore Orioles and MASN and the play by play voice for the first game in Major League Baseball history featuring an all-female announcing crew (She called the game alongside analyst Sarah Langs, reporter Alanna Rizzo and pre- and postgame hosts Lauren Gardner and Heidi Watney.) In this podcast, Finn discusses the interest in the Olympics as a television experience; whether NBC will get the viewership it has received in previous Olympics; how NBC will navigate the news elements of the Olympics with the competition; ESPN’s hiring of Peyton and Eli Manning for a Monday Night Football Megacast; the NHL’s television schedule on ESPN and Turner Sports; Cleveland changing its MLB name to the Guardians and more. Newman discusses her journey to do doing MLB play by play and the minor league stops along the way; the wom

Episode 151 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is Jemele Hill, a contributing writer for The Atlantic, the host of the “Jemele Hill is Unbothered” podcast for Spotify, and a creative adviser for Meadowlark Media. She is followed by Fabian Ardaya who covers the Dodgers for The Athletic but up until May covered the Angels and Shohei Ohtani. In this podcast, Hill discusses the impact of the New York Times story that focused on Rachel Nichols saying Maria Taylor earned the job to host 2020 NBA finals coverage because ESPN was “feeling pressure” on diversity; what she expects Taylor do when her ESPN contract expires before the end of this month; whether you can work for management you don’t trust; how this chapter impacts people of color working at ESPN and particular black women in front of and behind the cameras; the ESPN future for Nichols; Hill’s podcast network to elevate the voices and stories of Black women, and more.  Ardaya discusses his experience covering Ohtani; how the Angels ha