Sports Media with Richard Deitsch

Episode 146 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 Tom Hannifan, better known by the announcing name Tom Phillips. He spent nine years with the WWE and during his WWE career he served as the play-by-play commentator on Raw, NXT, SmackDown, 205 Live, and NXT UK. He was recently let go by WWE and is now looking for traditional sports broadcasting opportunities. In this podcast Hill discusses Naomi Osaka’s withdrawal from the French Open; the failure to find a creative solution by French Open organizers; the debate over the value of the post-game/post-match presser; the importance of the press conference for smaller media outlets; the performative aspects and uncomfortable nature of sports press conferences; whether this means something larger for the sports media; a very bad week of fans interacting with athletes including criminality; why we have seen that happen, and more. Hannifan discusses the most challenging thing about being a WWE broadcaster; how long it took him to get product knowledge; how he was initially get hired by WWE; whether he was overproduced while on-air; his surprise to learn he was no longer calling RAW and being replaced by Adnan Virk; the short tenure of Virk; his alltime favorite match called; his friendship with Big E; getting slapped by Stephanie McMahon; what he wants to do next; his attempt to get work in college football and much more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 145 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is Kavitha Davidson, a sports and culture writer for The Athletic and the host of Culture Calculus podcast. She is followed by Sports Illustrated writer Jimmy Traina, the host of the SI Media Podcast. In this podcast  Davidson discusses the hiring of Wayne Gretzky by Turner Sports; Kenny Mayne leaving ESPN and what that means heading forward; the challenge of covering the Tokyo Olympics; how NBC will navigate issues of COVID in Japan, athlete protest and other news detrimental to the IOC;  how the American public would react to an athlete protesting on the medal stand, and more.  Traina discusses the massive amount of sports gambling money in sports media right now and what that means; whether the majority of sports writers will be working for places such as Draft Kings one day; if we are headed for gambling addiction issues; Adnan Virk’s exit from WWE; streaming services for sports fans; the challenges for WWE and AEW as media properties; sports teams asking people if they have been vaccinated, and much more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 144 of the Sports Media Podcast features three guests. First up are ESPN feature producers Lauren Stowell and Jenna Contreras, the directors of  “144” a behind-the-scenes documentary on what unfolded on and off the court over the tumultuous two-and-a-half-month 2020 WNBA season. The second guest is Julie Stewart Binks, who hosts Drinks with Binks on Fubo TV and NHL Twitter Live. In this podcast, Stowell and Contreras discuss how the project came about; how producer and ESPN on-air personality Chiney Ogwumike helped make the access possible; whether they got any internal pushback on the topics at hand; how they decided on who would be at the center among the league’s players; how they got beyond-the-scenes conversations of the players; dedicating the season to Breonna Taylor and getting her family on film; where the WNBA goes next, and more. Stewart-Binks discusses how to do a show from home; the challenge of getting press in a crowded sports media space; getting people to drink on-air; her reaction to ESPN and Turner getting the US rights to the NHL and whether they can they grow the game; how the playoffs feel this year; Leah Hextall getting a play by play job, and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 143 of the Sports Media Podcast features a conversation with James Andrew Miller, the best-selling author of books on CAA, ESPN and Saturday Night Live and the host of the “Origins” podcast. In this podcast, we discuss Kenny Mayne departing from ESPN; what Miller thinks of Mayne being asked to take a 61 percent pay cut; what the market is for former ESPNers; Miller’s thoughts on ex-ESPN-ers in the marketplace at other places; Miller’s upcoming HBO book and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 142 of the Sports Media Podcast features a conversation with Sports Media Watch founder and editor Jon Lewis and Sports Business Daily managing editor/digital Austin Karp. In this podcast, we discuss the three days of the NFL Draft averaging 6.1 million viewers and what that means; how the opening round’s 12.5 million average should be judged against the overall number; why Day 3 of the NFL Draft was down on viewership; analyzing NBC’s Kentucky Derby viewership numbers, which drew 14.5 million viewers for the race portion; what can be learned from the Derby in relation to upcoming jewel events; what Karp and Lewis’s expectations are for the NBA postseason and NHL postseason; whether the NBA Finals will be up over last year; the recent increase in NASCAR ratings; the upcoming Olympics in Tokyo and why both Lewis and Karp think the numbers will be down from 2016; what NBC can do to try to juice the Olympic viewership and much more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 141 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is Steve Kornacki, an NBC News and MSNBC national political correspondent who will serve as an insight analyst for NBC’s coverage of the Kentucky Derby. Kornacki previously analyzed NFL playoff probabilities for Football Night In America. He is followed by Tashan Reed, who covers the Las Vegas Raiders for The Athletic.In this podcast, Kornacki discusses how he landed assignments with NBC Sports including the Kentucky Derby; how he felt his Football Night In America experience went, and whether he expects to be back this fall; whether a knowledge of sports helps with understanding politics and elections; the notion of horse racing coverage within a political context; growing up as a horse racing and Patriots fan in Massachusetts; how is analyzing the Derby for viewers; whether he will place bets at the Derby; the feedback he has received from his sports segments; how conscious he is that some viewers will autonomically wonder or question why a political analyst is on a sports broadcast; the tribute videos Leslie Jones has made for him, and more. Reed discusses covering an NFL team in Las Vegas; working while family members were suffering with COVID; the challenges of covering the NFL Draft amid COVID; what he expects Las Vegas to be as an NFL city; where he expects the Raiders to go in the Draft; his piece on Raiders owner Mark Davis and the Raiders’ social media feed, and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, Audacy, and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 140 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests — ESPN staff writer David Purdum and soccer writer Grant Wahl, the host of the Football With Grant Wahl podcast. In this podcast, Purdum discusses where the U.S. and Canada are regarding the number of places where sports gambling is legal; the interest in non-NFL betting; where legacy media outlets are today regarding sports gambling content on air and where they will be in a couple of years; how big players such as DraftKings are hunting for media entities; how he covers his beat and what he thinks are interesting stories; the limited value of pick segments on air beyond entertainment; whether Jake Paul-like events have a big gambling future; the NFL partnering with Caesars Entertainment, DraftKings and FanDuel and what it means, and much more. Wahl discusses the collapse of the Super League; what the Super League might have commanded in the open market as a media play; MLS going to market for a media deal and what it means; whether Fox still has long-term interest in MLS; the interest in soccer from the streaming services in the U.S. and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, Audacy, and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 139 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests — Sports Illustrated writer Jimmy Traina and Boston Globe columnist Chad Finn — for a roundtable discussion on various sports media topics. In the podcast we discuss Paul Pierce and ESPN parting ways and why the decision was made; did ESPN make the correct decision with Pierce; the ascendency of Kendrick Perkins; Alex Rodriguez working for ESPN and Fox Sports and whether that constitutes a conflict of interest; why none of us think Rodriguez is good in his ESPN role; when the NHL’s second media rights package will be signed; baseball fans being shutout with Hulu and YouTube TV among other carriers;  the role of sports gambling in sports media in 2021 and forward; the plans for Meadowlark Media; why Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman are great at what they do, and much more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, Audacy, and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 138 features Paul Heyman, a longtime WWE performer — he currently is the special counsel for Universal Champion Roman Reigns —and sports entertainment impresario. In this podcast, Heyman discusses how doing press has changed for wrestling performers from the 2000s to current day; how much the public should the media know about the private lives of performers such as Roman Reigns, Becky Lynch or Charlotte Flair; whether he would let a media outlet go behind the scenes for WrestleMania; the freedom to ad-lib as opposed to being tightly scripted; the upcoming Wrestlemania 37 in Tampa; the ease of booking Becky Lynch in next year’s WrestleMania; the challenge of performing the last calendar year in front of no crowds; his comfort level in taking bumps; his time in ECW; how he has been able to work with people who are main event stars; the status of his WWE contract, which is set to expire; whether he would consider hosting a podcast about wrestling; perpetually changing greatness, and much more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, Radio.com and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 137 of the Sports Media Podcast with Richard Deitsch features two guests. First up is NFL Network reporter Stacey Dales. She is followed by ESPN national baseball reporter Marly Rivera. In this podcast Dales discusses her journey from Canada to becoming an All-America basketball player at the University of Oklahoma to playing professional basketball to landing a job at ESPN; the challenges of navigating a high-profile media job in her 20s; how she ended up at the NFL Network after leaving ESPN; the challenges of focusing on an entire league; how to get better as a reporter; her duties and responsibilities at the NFL Network; why offensive lineman are excellent interviews; the state of women’s college basketball and the NCAA’s leadership’s attitude toward its most prominent women’s sport; and much more. Rivera discusses the major stories the baseball media will focus on to start the season; what kind of access MLB reporters will have this year; the challenge of covering amid COVID and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices