Sports Media with Richard Deitsch

Episode 8 of the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch features a conversation with Grant Wahl, a Sports Illustrated senior writer and Fox Sports soccer reporter. In this podcast, Wahl discusses how to cover a World Cup, which Wahl will be doing for the next six weeks in Russia, how much access reporters get at a World Cup; racism at a World Cup setting; how Fox will approach its World Cup studio shows; writing the first SI cover story on LeBron James; buying LeBron and his friends dinner at Applebees; his predictions for the Group Stage including Argentina losing in the opening round; why he likes Spain to win over Belgium, the state of soccer journalism in the United States; ESPN’s impact on global soccer; whether it is important to have American voices calling the World Cup and much more. The second guest is Julie Kliegman, a copy editor for The Ringer who has written about the state of mental health care in the NBA for that publication. In this podcast, Kliegman discusses how she went about reporting her NBA piece; the importance of understanding mental health in professional athletics; why Celtics coach Brad Stevens is proactive on this topic; what happens to an NBA player when he asks for health on a mental health issue; what access college athletes have to mental illness help, and much more.   You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more.

Episode 7 of the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch features a conversation on ESPN’s present and future with Sports Business Daily media writer John Ourand and a roundtable with Boston Globe media writer Chad Finn, and Robert Littal, the founder and editor of Black Sports Online. In this podcast, Ourand discusses Wall Street Journal reporter Shalini Ramachandran’s examination of ESPN’s current business, the tension between Disney Chairman Robert Iger and former ESPN president John Skipper; whether ESPN’s front-facing talent has been given too much leeway on issues of politics and social justice; how the piece examined Skipper’s regime; the concern ESPN execs have on political talk; where Ourand stands on the money spent for NBA rights; the declines of other networks in number of households; ESPN’s potential interest in hockey; whether debate is in decline and what Ourand thinks of the upcoming ESPN show, High Noon and a long discussion on ESPN re-hiring of Keith Olbermann. Finn and Littal discuss the NFL’s new national anthem policy, the differences between the NFL’s and NBA approach to the issue; ESPN’s acquisition of Fox’s UFC package; the deal Fox cut for WWE’s Smackdown; why media keeps doing LeBron vs. Jordan; how the NBA will deal when LeBron leaves the games; and much more.   You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more.

Episode 6 of the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch features ESPN play by play announcer Joe Tessitore, who was recently named the lead voice of Monday Night Football. In the podcast, Tessitore discusses in-depth how over the course of a six-week period in March and April, he auditioned 12 potential Monday Night Football analyst candidates at ESPN’s Bristol, Ct. headquarters; how he approached the audition process; the memorable audition of Jason Witten which included Witten playing football with his son on his front lawn; why Witten landed the job; why he thinks Witten will be successful; his thoughts on other applicants including Jared Allen, Brett Favre, Greg Olson, Louis Riddick, Rex Ryan, Joe Thomas, and Kurt Warner; the plans for the crew for the spring and summer; his friendship with Booger McFarland and why he thinks McFarland will be great in the field analyst role; the best kind of calamari, and much more.   The second guest is Richard Sandomir, the the author of "The Pride of the Yankees: Lou Gehrig, Gary Cooper and the Making of a Classic," which has just been released in paperback. For 25 years Sandomir covered sports media for The New York Times where he now writes obituaries. In this podcast, Sandomir discusses why he decided to write a book about the Pride of the Yankees; how he went about his research; how the film was received in 1942; modern-day interest in Lou Gehrig; his thoughts on the resignation of former ESPN president John Skipper; whether he thinks there will be a future demand for sports media reporters, and more.   You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more.

Episode 5 of the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch features Peter King who will be leaving Sports Illustrated on June 1—his 29-year anniversary of being hired by SI—for a new job with NBC Sports in July. In the podcast King discusses why he left SI; how he came to the decision; how SI offered him more money to stay; where he stands on the future of Sports Illustrated and The MMQB; his response to criticism of being an access-oriented, league-friendly NFL reporter; why he writes about political issues in his column; what his role will be at NBC Sports; his thoughts on Jason Witten being hired for Monday Night Football; the future of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick; how legalized sports gambling will impact the NFL; NFL cheerleader gender-discrimination complaints; why the Browns drafted Baker Mayfield, and much more.   The podcast concludes with two roundtables. The first features Boston Globe media writer Chad Finn, and Robert Littal, the founder and editor of Black Sports Online. In this roundtable, Finn and Littal discuss the new Monday Night Football announcing team featuring Joe Tessitore, Witten, Booger McFarland and Lisa Salters; ESPN’s hiring of Katie Nolan; the lack of opportunity for women of color to host their own sports show; John Skipper’s return; Charles Barkley's remarks on Draymond Green; printing sports television talent salaries, and much more.   The second roundtable features Lindsay Adler, a baseball writer for The Athletic who covers the Mets and Yankees and AJ Perez, a sports reporter for USA Today who covers a multitude of areas including sports media. In this podcast, Adler discusses how to cover two different baseball teams; the challenges of being a first-year beat reporter; the most media friendly Yankees and Mets players; Perez’s take on ESPN’s deal to carry 10-15 UFC events exclusively on its direct-to-consumer ESPN+ platform; the future of UFC media rights; covering criminality in sports; the television prospect of the upcoming Stanley Cup Conference Finals including the Las Vegas Golden Knights, and much more.   You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more.

Episode 4 of the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch features Doris Burke, the acclaimed ESPN broadcaster who called a full season of NBA games as an color analyst for the first time in 2017-18; and Cheryl Reeve, the head coach and General Manager of the Minnesota Lynx. Under Reeve, the Lynx have won four titles in the last seven years. In this podcast, Burke discusses calling the NBA for a full season as a color analyst; her anxiety over her current contract coming to an end on Oct. 31; why she says she and ESPN will work out a deal for the long-term; calling the Sixers-Celtics series; how she currently feels about working as a sideline reporter after doing a season as an analyst; whether she has let her bosses know if she is interested in joining ESPN’s top NBA team should Mark Jackson get an NBA job; the impact of Kara Lawson, Sarah Kustok, and Stefanie Ready on NBA broadcasting; how she viewed Allie LaForce’s question to LeBron James; her feelings on how Gregg Popovich treats sideline reporter; her evaluation of the Cavaliers-Raptors series; what she thinks of the Celtics and Sixers rosters heading forward; her thoughts on a potential Rockets-Warriors match up, and much more   Reeve discusses why the Lynx have not been covered the way a team with four titles in seven years would normally be covered; why she has become active on social media when it comes to a lack of WNBA coverage; whether the lack of coverage of women’s basketball is due to sexism; what can be done to change attitudes about the WNBA; the amount of coverage the Lynx gets locally versus other teams; her back-and-forth with writers and editors from The Athletic about her team getting coverage; the prospect of moving the WNBA season; coaching an aging group and how she’ll approach that this season; her thoughts on point guard Lindsay Whalen getting the University of Minnesota women’s basketball head coaching job; what she expects from Maya Moore this season and Moore’s place in sports as a winner; the Lynx not being invited to the White House by this current administration and Reeve’s thoughts on it; and much more.   You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more.

Episode 3 of the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch features an extended conversation with Verne Lundquist, the iconic sports broadcaster for CBS and ABC and the voice of some of the most memorable calls in the history of sports broadcasting. After Lundquist, Sports Business Daily media writer John Ourand and Newsday sports media writer Neil Best come on to discuss various topics including the television schedules for the NFL TV networks and Mike Francesa’s return to WFAN.   In the podcast, Lundquist discusses calling the Masters again this year including Jordan Spieth’s memorable birdie at No. 16 in the final round; watching SEC Football on CBS from his home, getting nostalgic about missing the SEC, stepping away from the NCAA basketball tournament this year, his current health; filling in for Pat Summerall when Summerall was in rehab; Lundquist’s frustration with always being the No. 2 broadcaster at a network before he was named the lead voice of the SEC on CBS; why the SEC was the greatest assignment he ever received, the art of laying out (being quiet after a great play); why the “Kick Six” Game on Nov. 30,  2013 (Alabama-Auburn) is his greatest CFB broadcast; being influenced as a broadcaster by Ray Scott; calling the Christian Laettner game (Duke-Kenucky, 1992) and talking to Laettner about it 20 years later; the broadcasters he likes today and why; why he loves to listen to Ian Eagle; the memorable story of how Verne met his wife, Nancy, which includes a stop at disco and getting Nancy’s number while she was on a date, and much more. Ourand discusses ESPN’s Monday Night Football schedule and its relationship with the NFL; the potential for Thursday Night Football on FS1, and how ESPN is likely to approach the low viewership for “Get Up!” Best discusses his reporting on radio host Mike Francesa, who is returning to WFAN to once again host a radio show after leaving the station in December. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more. 

Episode 2 of the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch features two segments. First, a conversation with Ken Rosenthal, a senior baseball writer for The Athletic, a reporter for Fox Sports' MLB telecasts and analyst for the MLB Network, and Jayson Stark, a senior baseball writer at the Athletic and studio at MLB Network. The second segment features Sports Illustrated senior Tim Layden on the life and work of William Nack.    In this podcast, Rosenthal and Stark discusses how to morph between digital/print and television; the most interesting people to speak with in major league baseball; how to cultivate sources on the baseball beat; how Stark uses numbers and analytics as part of his work; why each joined The Athletic; how shocked Stark was upon learning he had lost his ESPN job; how Rosenthal dealt with learning that Fox Sports’s website was no longer using original writing content; what baseball writing might look like in 30 years; what teams are the most interesting  to cover right now; why Shohei Ohtani remains an underappreciated story, and much more. Layden discusses the historical impact of Nack’s work; his best SI pieces; what made Nack great as a writer; whether it was intimidating to follow Nack on the horse racing beat; why Nack was underappreciated at Sports Illustrated; Nack’s love of Secretariat; Layden’s thoughts on Sports Illustrated’s future, the Ringer’s recent piece on SI, and much more.   You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more.  

Episode 1 of the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch features a conversation with writer James Andrew Miller, the best-selling author of books on CAA, ESPN and Saturday Night Live as well as sports media roundtables with The Athletic Bay Area editor Tim Kawakami, BSO founder and editor Robert Littal, SB Nation writer Charlotte Wilder and Boston Globe sports media writer Chad Finn. In this podcast, Miller discusses the new ESPN morning show, Get Up!” and its struggling ratings; why the show likely has plenty or runway before ESPN execs make a decision on it; whether The Hollywood Reporter story on Get Up! and the reveal of the salaries of the hosts hurt the show before launch; Miller’s interview with John Skipper where the former ESPN president admitted he resigned because he was a cocaine user and was being extorted for that use; whether Miller should have asked Skipper who was extorting him; how the interview came together; whether Skipper is looking or a return to sports media, and much more. Kawakami and Littal discuss the television possibilities of the NBA playoffs; why Get Up! has not worked; whether Wrestlemania 34 was a success as a production; the stories on Patrick Reed after he won the Masters; why Robert thinks The Athletic should do more UFC and boxing, and more. The final roundtable features SB Nation Charlotte Wilder and Boston Globe media columnist Chad Finn. Wilder and Finn discuss Facebook’s exclusive MLB broadcasts and how sports fans view Facebook; Wilder’s piece on watching Wrestlemania 34; Finn’s thoughts on the Sunday Night Baseball booth; CBS’s Masters coverage; and predictions for all the major Boston sports teams.   You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and more.

Welcome to the teaser episode — call it Episode 0 – of Sports Media with Richard Deitsch. In this 20-minute mini-episode, Sports Business Daily media reporter John Ourand and Boston Globe media writer Chad Finn discuss ESPN’s immediate challenges under new president Jimmy Pitaro; the fractured relationship between ESPN and the NFL; how ESPN will report on the NFL in the future; the plans for Monday Night Football booth; whether the Sports Illustrated Media podcast is a competitor to this podcast; and information on how to subscribe. Weekly episodes of the show will launch the week of April 9.