Sports Media with Richard Deitsch

Episode 148 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is Michael Kay, the television play by play voice of the New York Yankees and the host of The Michael Kay Show, heard on ESPN Radio in New York City from 2:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. Kay has a new book out — Centerstage: My Most Fascinating Interviews—from A-Rod to Jay-Z , which is a collection of the interviews Kay has conducted with some of the biggest names in sports, film, and television. Kay is followed by Jon Wertheim, a senior writer for Sports Illustrated, a correspondent for “60 Minutes,” and an analyst for the Tennis Channel. Wertheim is the author of “Glory Days: The Summer of 1984 and the 90 Days That Changed Sports and Culture.” In this podcast, Kay discusses what he thinks makes a good longform interviewer; a memorable interview with Sylvester Stallone; how his show has been able to book major names and the importance of the Yankee brand; how long he can reasonable call the Yankees; whether baseball broadcasters will continue to call road games; how he navigates being critical and working on behalf of a team; the challenges of doing sports-talk radio in New York City; why he thinks sports-talk radio still has significant meaning in his city; his obsession to beat Mike Francesa in the ratings; competing against Craig Carton and Evan Roberts; being thin-skinned about criticism; the cost and rewards of responding to media criticism about his work, and much more. Wertheim discusses the genesis for his new book, spending time with a young Michael Jordan in the summer of 1984; the cultural milestones in 1984; the challenges of weaving his story into a narrative; his thoughts on Naomi Osaka; what Osaka’s immediate future will be 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 147 of the Sports Media Podcast features two guests. First up is Ian Darke, the lead play-by-play commentator of ESPN’s soccer coverage. He will be in London this month calling UEFA EURO 2020 for ESPN. Darke is followed by Anthony Crupi, a sports media reporter for Sportico. In this podcast, Darke discusses the favorites for the tournament; calling the Euros from London’s Wembley Stadium and the IMG studios in London; the in-stadium protocols Darke has to follow because of COVID; how he preps for the tournament; why Poland is the toughest team for pronunciations; why the Floyd Mayweather-Logan Paul boxing exhibition was cynical and dangerous; stories from his contemporaries about sparring with all-time greats, and more.Crupi discusses the first round of the NBA playoffs averaging 3.06 million viewers, up 46% over 2020 and up 3% versus 2019; what the viewership numbers mean; why the second round of the NBA playoffs will be a significant viewership challenge for the NBA; the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs averaging a total audience of 642,000 viewers across NBC, NBCSN, USA, CNBC and digital outlets, up 6 percent 2020 but NHL’s least-watched first round since 2013; what those numbers mean; what the best viewership possibilities for the NHL, 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 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