The Other 51

“I kept thinking, is there a single quarterback I can write about that I can tell this story through? And no matter who it was … everything felt too small. And so what I wanted to do was write about all of them, in a way, at every level.”It’s our 200th episode, and we’re celebrating by talking to one of our favorite writers. Seth Wickersham joins Brian to talk about the writing and reporting of his new book, “American Kings: A Biography of The Quarterback.”Seth discusses what that word “biography” means to him in this context, and talks about how came to write a book about the quarterback position. He talks about how the writing, reporting, and promotion of this book is different than his first book and the lessons he learned from writing about the New England Patriots that applied here. Seth describes the different reporting methods he used in writing the book, how he landed on this particular structure and how he chose his anchor characters. He tells us how something being interesting to him was his north star, and the moment his repertorial antenna went up. He also talks about how conversations with his friend Wright Thompson and an ESPN editor helped him crack book’s structure. “Having my friends be brilliant writers has just been like, what a blessing. Because it’s like, everyone’s supportive and a teeny bit competitive … You want to have a story that’s worthy of the text thread.”LinksAmerican Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback (Bookshop.org link)American Kings (Amazon link)The Book of a CoachFeds probing NFLPA actions that ‘may be criminal,’ doc says by Don Van Natta and Kalyn Kahler (the best thing Seth’s read lately)Untold  by Tom Junod and Paula LavigneSupportSupport the show at Buy Me a CoffeeFollow us on Instagram.Subscribe at: Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“That’s why I do this. That’s why I’m involved in this. I was one of those young people who was endlessly inspired by female athletes and by women’s sport”Danielle Sarver Coombs and Molly Yanity join Brian to talk about the two scholarly anthologies they co-edited about the 2023 Women’s World Cup. We’ve interviewed writers of all sorts throughout our nine years hosting this show, but this is the first time we’ve ever talked to the editors of an anthology! Danielle and Molly talk about that process, how they decided against writing a book of their own and instead landed on editing an anthology. They talk about how their anthology on the 2019 World Cup influenced these books, what about these events make them so ripe for scholarship, and how important it was for them to include voices from outside of the Global North. The three of us also get deeply nerdy talking about the books we’ve read lately. “We have a responsibility as senior scholars who are also women to help lift the voices of people who have a bigger challenge getting published.”LinksPolitics, Social Issues and the 2023 FIFA Women’s World CupMedia, Communication and the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup: Media, Fandom, and Soccer’s Biggest StageThe best books we’ve read latelyGreat Big Beautiful Summer by Emily HenryThe Creativity Code by Marcus du SautoyJames by Percival EverettAtmosphere by Taylor Jenkins ReidTomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle ZevinThe Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael ChabonSupportSupport the show at Buy Me a CoffeeFollow us on Instagram.Subscribe at: Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“It was the stories that I woke up the next day thinking about … I want complicated stories about complicated people making difficult choices and facing real things.”Journalist, professor, and author Jane McManus joins us this week to talk about her career, The Year’s Best Sports Writing, her new book and more. Jane was the editor of the 2024 edition of The Year’s Best Sports Writing. She and Brian do a deep dive into what that job actually looked like. Jane describes how she got the gig, how Richard Deitsch helped her, how she leaned on a group of fellow journalists as an advisory board, and what she was looking for in picking the best sports stories. We talk about the importance of scene setting at the start of a feature story, of showing the work that the reporter has done, and the deep reporting you see in a great piece of investigative journalism. They also talk about her introductory essay, a form Brian has studied at great length. Jane also talks about her book, The Fast Track, and why this was the book she wrote at this stage in her career. She describes the biggest differences between writing articles and a book, and why she doesn't want her students to outsource their thinking by letting AI do any writing. “There's no Tik Tok, there’s no short form video on YouTube, hot-take sports talk show that is going to force you to think about something the way that at a well written long form piece of journalism is.”LinksThe Year’s Best Sports Writing 2024The Fast Track by Jane McManusThe Three-Body Problem (The best thing Jane’s read lately.)Middlemarch (The best thing Jane’s read latelyA Gentleman in Moscow (The best thing Brian’s read lately.)SupportSupport the show at Buy Me a CoffeeFollow us on Instagram.Apple PodcastsSpotify

“The challenge is to make you love Lloyd and make you realize that Lloyd is extraordinary and that you realize that before Lloyd does.”Will Leitch returns to the show to talk all about his new book, “Lloyd McNeil’s Last Ride.” which is out now and you should totally buy! Will describes how a pre-pandemic visit to a family friend helped plant the seed for the book’s premise, and how that premise allows him to address the existential angst that parents are feeling about the world they’re leaving their kids. Will also reveals the biggest challenge in writing Lloyd as a character, why he wrote the book in the present tense, and how all of his novels have clocks in one way or another. Will and Brian talk about the action sequences in the book, how they were influenced by Will’s love of movies and how listening to The Donnas was Will’s secret for those scenes. They also talk about how Will’s excellent weekly newsletter influenced parts of this book. “I want you to feel the entire time like this is happening right now.”LinksLloyd McNeil’s Last Ride on Bookshop.org (to support independent bookstores.)Lloyd McNeil’s Last Ride on AmazonAll of Will’s booksRun for the Hills by Kevin Wilson (The best thing Will’s read lately.)Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham (The best thing Brian’s read lately.)SupportSupport the show at Buy Me a CoffeeFollow us on Instagram.Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“I never really thought about it as something I would ever do a story on. I didn’t even think of it in terms of a story … these were just our friends.”Sam Borden from ESPN joins us for a deep dive into his moving feature story on the friendship between Abby Zittoun and the UConn women’s basketball team. Sam discusses the intensely personal nature of this story for him, how he navigated being both a friend and reporter in telling Abby’s story, and why being transparent and intimate as a journalist is so vital to doing stories like this. He also talks about how he dealt with the personal pressure he felt writing this story.Sam and Brian also discuss the writing and reporting of the story. The details make this story so memorable, but how does Sam know he has the right details, and how do you keep from overwhelming the reader with them? Sam also talks about how he avoided making an inherently sad story like this feel like a long march for the reader. This is not a story about grief, it’s the story about an amazing young girl, her family, and the connection she had with this team.“I want Abby to be alive for as much of this story as possible.” Links:Love, Abby: Inside UConn basketball's eternal bond with a magical fanLove, Abby (TV version of story)Trump is selling Jews a dangerous lie by Michael S. Roth (The best thing Sam’s read lately)Support:Support the show at Buy Me a CoffeeFollow us on Instagram.Apple PodcastsSpotify 

Author, journalist and screenwriter Michael Weinreb joins Brian to talk about newsletters, carving out a writing career in the digital world, the intersection of sports, politics and culture and the value of works in progress. We start out by talking about Michael’s time writing for Grantland and how that site was almost our generation’s version of The National Sports Daily. Michael talks about what it was like to write for Grantland and be a part of a site that let writers indulge in the topics they wanted to write about, This evolves into a broader and frank discussion about a writer’s life and how Michael carves out writing and a career space in this current media environment. The main topic is Throwbacks, Michael’s excellent newsletter on Substack. He describes how it began during the COVID pandemic, how and why he started writing though a historical lens, and how forcing himself to write every week has helped him in his other writing projects.LinksThrowbacks: A Newsletter About Sports History and CultureMove Fast and Break Things (2012)Michae’s books on AmazonGrantlandThe Greatest Paper that Ever DiedThe Bronx is BurningOne Party Town podcastThe Genius: How Bill Walsh Reinvented Football and Created an NFL Dynasty by David Harris (the best thing Michael’s read lately)Philip Bump columns at The Washington Post (the best thing Michael’s read lately)SupportFollow us on Instagram.Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“I didn’t want this to be 300 pages of highlights. I wanted this book to surprise people in its depth and in the way it’s written and in the topics we cover.”Mike Sielski returns to the show for a deep dive into the writing and reporting of his new book, “Magic in the Air.”We start with the book’s subtitle: “The Myth, the Mystery and the Soul of the Slam Dunk.” Mike, a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer and friend of the show, talks about he was inspired by Tyler Kepner’s book K  and how he wanted to do a book where each chapter was its own entityMike describes how his reporting had him dodging rattlesnakes in Amarillo Texas teetering on the rabbit hole of finding the first person to dunk. He talks about why he wrote some of the book in first person, what it’s like to stretch that writing muscle, and how he used it to dunk on the NCAA. We also talk about his favorite dunk of all time and the surprising role N.C. State plays in the history of the dunk. And no, Olean is not the birthplace of the dunk.“What I wanted to do is take the dunk and use it as a vehicle to understand how basketball has changed and how American culture and society have changed over time.”LinksPre-order Magic in the Air: AmazonBookshop.orgSmall Things Like These by Claire Keegan (The best thing Mike’s read lately)SupportFollow us on Instagram.Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“What’s the book that I would write if I had time?”Jennifer Ashley Tepper joins us for a deep dive into her upcoming book, “Women Writing Musicals: The Legacy That the History Books Left Out.”Jennifer, a Broadway historian, producer and 2022 Tony Honoree (!!!), talks about how she came to the idea of writing about 300-plus women writers, dating back to the 1700s, who have written musical theater. She talks about how she started to write the book during deep isolation in Covid - but really started writing it even earlier than that. How do you do historical research during a worldwide shutdown, and how do you research people who have been left out of the history books? Jennifer talks about how online library resources and newspaper archives were so useful, and how restrictions can be helpful to a creative person. Jennifer and Brian talk about what stories get left out of the history books, how work that addresses the experiences or perspectives of women (or other marginalized communities)  during a past era might be seen as dated, and how cast recordings are a kind of unintentional gatekeeping. If something’s out of print, it’s like it didn’t exist.  Rabbit holes include Toni Tennille’s long-forgotten environmental musical, which was produced by Roger Ailes, and watching TikToks on Instagram like a grown up.  “To get to finally share these stories with people is thrilling to me, because so many of them are untold Broadway stories that deserve to be told.”LinksPre-order Women Writing Musicals: The Legacy That the History Books Left Out: All of Jennifer Ashley Tepper’s books Yellow Face (the best show Jennifer’s seen lately).Men We Reaped by Jesmyn Ward (the best thing Jen’s read lately).The 100 Best Books of the 21st Century from The New York Times.(All links are Amazon affiliate links)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy) and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram and Threads. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“I’ve got this crazy idea, it would be Agatha Christie meets Lost. They were like ‘how are you gonna pull that off?’ and I was like ‘I have absolutely no idea.”Stuart Turton joins Brian to talk about the writing of his New York Times bestseller, “The Last Murder at the End of the World.” Stuart talks about how this was the hardest book he’s ever written, why it was so hard, and how he had to throw a full 130,000-word draft away and start over. He talks about how he knew things weren’t working and the changes he made that changed everything. Turns out, he killed the wrong person. Stuart and Brian talk about the unintentional symbolism of the fog, the beauty of the mourning lanterns, why Stuart hates red herrings, and how the constraints of writing a mystery novel are like a game of chess to him.“That’s the thing that you started with, that was your premise, that was your holy grail, and that's the reason you started writing this book. But it's not working. So have courage and toss it.” LinksThe Last Murder at the End of the WorldAll of Stuart Turton’s booksA Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Eagen (the best thing Stuart’s read lately.)Starve Acre by Andrew Michael Hurley (the other best thing Stuart’s read lately.)Everyone on this Train is a Suspect by Benjamin Stevenson (the best thing Brian’s read lately.)(all links are Amazon affiliate links)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy) and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram and Threads. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“After 190 episodes talking about other’s people writing, I finally get to talk about something I wrote!”Brian is joined by Matthew Zimmeran and Lauren Burch, and the three of them talk about their new textbook, Introduction to Sports Journalism. We talk about how Matt started the project and how/why he asked us to be a part of it. We talk about our different writing styles and methods, how Brian’s writing habits give Lauren anxiety, and how our three voices turned into one cohesive book. We also talk about the challenges of balancing theory with the need for practicality, and how we to tried to balance writing something as permanent as a book about such a fast-changing industry.Anyway, I’m super proud of the book and so proud that I got to do it with friends of mine. LinksIntroduction to Sports Journalism (our book!) Buy it at Human KineticsBuy it on AmazonWant: Sexual Fantasies by Gillian Anderson (the best thing Lauren’s read lately.The Storyteller by Dave Grohl (the other best thing Lauren’s read lately)Tennessee coach Josh Heupel comes home to Oklahoma by Jake Trotter and Chris Low (the best thing Matt’s read recently.)Moneyball by Michael Lewis (the other best thing Matt’s read recently.)Everyone On This Train is a Suspect by Benjamin Stevenson  (the best thing Brian’s read lately)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy) and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram and Threads. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“I feel like my place as a writer is sort of that place between what happened and the mythology of what’s happening.” Joe Posnanski joins Brian for a deep dive into his new book, Why We Love Football: A History in 100 Moments. Joe talks about how he started with a list of more than 300 football moments and the process of whittling those down. It’s an honest and super nerdy discussion about how early drafts of the book weren’t working, what Joe did to work through those struggles, and how writing about The Drive unlocked the book for himJoe also talks about how we was able to write a collection of essays while maintaining a central theme, how the Don Beebe-Leon Lett play is the perfect example of why we love football, and what kind of athlete “Brian Moritz” would be. “For me as a writer, the moment where the book came alive for me was when I started to think of it as a football game … every play is its own little universe in football.”LinksWhy We Love Football: A History in 100 MomentsJoe BlogsThe PoscastDestiny of the Republic: A Tale Of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard (the best thing Joe’s read lately.)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy) and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram and Threads. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“I think those fans deserve the truth. They don't need to be pandered to, they don't need to be misled.”Tyler Dunne, the man behind Go Long and the best NFL feature writer working today, joins Brian to talk about Sean McDermott, Zay Jones and so much more. Ty talks about the aftermath of his Sean McDermott series, how the coach and the team responded to that explosive series and reached out to him and how he’s now credentialed by the Bills. Tyler talks about the conversation he had with McDermott at the NFL Combine and what it felt like to walk into that meeting. We then do a deep dive into his feature on Zay Jones that won him a first place award in the APSE National Writing Contest. Tyler talks about his tools for gently steering a conversation in an interview, how to handle the elephant in the room, and the value of doing extra reporting beyond the main interview. He also discusses how he protects his own mental health when writing and reporting heavy features, and how these stories make him want to be a better person.“It's a people business, it's a human business, and you just want to have conversations and you just want to treat people like human beings.”LinksGo LongThe McDermott ProblemI’m Still Alive: The Zay Jones storyBuffalo Bills Memory Lane with Chuck PollockThe Infinite Game by Simon Sinek (The best thing Tyler’s read lately.)County Highway (The other best thing Tyler’s read lately.)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“I think the role of the critic is to bring that nuanced understanding and historical context to explain the music.”Dr. Jenn Billinson from Nazareth University joins Brian for a deep, deep dive into Cowboy Carter, The Tortured Poets Department, and the role of music writing in today’s media world. Jenn talks about her recent research into gatekeeping in country music and specifically the reaction to Beyonce’s new album. What is it about country music that brings out such strong gatekeeping tendencies? Jenn talks about her role as a white woman writing about her reaction to Beyonce’s music.Jenn and Brian discuss the role of a journalist or an academic in writing about music in 2024, especially in a world where fans are doing incredible analyses and album breakdowns on TikTok. Rabbit holes include their favorite song on each album, the new Pearl Jam record, and staying up past midnight in your 40s.LinksAbout Jenn Billinson Jenn Billinson on ThreadsDaddy Lessons (Beyonce and The Chicks, 2016 performance.)A Complete Review of Beyonce’s New Album on The Right TimeRaw Dog: The naked truth about hot dogs (The Best Thing Jenn’s read lately.)He turned his garage into a nightclub. Now the city wants to shut it down and kick him out (the best thing Brian’s read lately.)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“When in doubt, choose not to harm somebody.”Jen Moritz, senior editor and inclusive language specialist (and Brian’s wife) joins us to talk about inclusive language. What is inclusive language?So glad you asked! Jen defines the term for us, and also describes how she got interested and involved in this area of editing. She tells us how the pandemic influenced her interest in inclusive language, how editing for inclusive language is an extension of her “Grammar Tingle” and what she does when that is activated by word or phrase, and how inclusive editing can help connect us back to our humanity in an increasingly digital world. We also go down a rabbit hole about the phrase “rule of thumb” and what to do when people think you’re wrong but you’re actually right. Other rabbit holes include dragon smut, fairy smut, banned books and Maintenance Phase.Also, as far as we can tell, “flying by the seat of your pants” is not problematic. As a phrase, at least.  “You will always be learning. You will never have perfect language and perfect representation. You’re just doing your best.”LinksJen Moritz on LinkedIn Maintenance PhaseThe Conscious Language Newsletter Rabbit with a Red PenAbraham PiperFlamer (the best thing Jen’s read lately.)Other Words For Home (the best thing Jen’s read lately.)Rebecca Yarros Empyrean Series (the best thing Jen has read lately.)Sarah J. Mass books (the best thing Brian has read lately.)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

Next week, our regularly scheduled episode with Jen Moritz will be out. We’ll be talking all about inclusive language. However.  Early in April, the Associated Press announced updates to its style book. Including new guidance on writing about “obese, obesity and overweight”We, um, we have some thoughts. And so, a bonus episode. Enjoy! And be sure to listen to our non-bonus episode with Jen next week.This was largely inspired by the work of Maintenance Phase. SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify

“We all experience loss differently, but there’s common ground for all of us to find in that.”Jared Paventi joins Brian this week to talk all about his excellent Substack, Dirt Nap. Jared discusses how he came to write a weekly blog/newsletter/Substack/whatever we’re calling it about death and grieving, how watching his oldest daughter grieve the loss of her grandpa inspired him, and how he uses writing to work through what he’s thinking and feeling.Jared talks about how he’s looking to create a space for conversations about grief through his excellent Griever’s Digest series, how grieving can be about more than just the death of someone, and how the writing of A.J. Daulerio and The Small Bow inspired Dirt Nap, especially the tone. We also talk about what happened to his food blog, Blog Al Dente, and what you do when a project starts to feel more like work than fun. Rabbit holes include HJ Magazine, how a deadline without a consequence is meaningless, and Brian’s move out of the basement. “This is some shit that’s going on in my head and my world. Maybe it’s happening to you too.”LinksDirt Nap by Jared PaventiThe Griever’s Digest series at Dirt NapThe Small Bow by A.J. DaulerioThe Other 51 Episode 13: Anti-Federalists with Jared PaventiI’m Glad My Mom Died by Jeanette McCurdy (The best thing Jared’s read lately.)Jean Hanff Korelitz books (The best thing Jared’s read lately.)The Last Boy by Jane Leavy (The best thing Brian’s read lately.)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify

“Come in for the show, stay for the tears.”Alex Brightman joins Brian to talk about Broadway and writing, including a deep dive into his play “The Life and Slimes of Marc Summers.”A two-time Tony Nominee (for School of Rock and Beetlejuice), Alex tells Brian how a YouTube series, a production of Grease, and a shared affinity for Old Hollywood led to him writing a one-man show for Marc Summers based on the Double Dare host’s life. What exactly is a “part interactive game show, part memoir?”Alex describes the process of writing the show, including the ah-ha moment that made him realize there was something special here.Alex also tells the story of how he and Drew Gasparini met, became fast friends and writing partners, and how they work together. Alex also discusses how he fits writing into an already busy acting schedule and some of the projects he’s working on now.Rabbit holes include our shared reverence for calendars, and how Simon’s mom reacted to his message (IYKYK).LinksAlex on InstagramThe Life and Slimes of Marc Summers (through June 2, 2024)Spamalot (through April 7)A Little Bit, sung by Alex Brightman, written by Drew GaspariniBoom Town by Sam Anderson (the best thing Alex has read lately)A Strange Loop AND Ain’t No Mo (the best shows Alex has seen lately)Alex’s coming appearances: LvlUp Expo in Las Vegas April 26th-28thGalaxyCon in Oklahoma City May 24th-26thRhode Island Comic Con November 1st-3rdSupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“Oh, I wrote a musical about me. I really did. This is just me.”Joe Iconis, one of the best writers on Broadway and one of Brian’s favorite people, joins us on The Other 51 to talk all about The Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson Musical. Yep, that’s the name of Joe’s most recent show, which debuted at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego in 2023. Joe tells the story of the name and why it’s so appropriate for a show about Hunter S. Thompson. Joe also discusses why the show is unauthorized, what that meant for him trying to write a show without being able to use a famous writers’ words, and why it was scary but ultimately rewarding. Joe and Brian also discuss the show’s multivolume coffee table book trip from an idea in 2007 to the stage 16 years later, what’s next for the show, and the difference for Joe between writing music and writing a script.  Rabbit holes include the coming Broadway Thinkpieces and Huey Lewis and the News. We also get a Diane Kitten update. “Let there be things that are weird and strange. And good and true.”LinksJoe Iconis on the internetJoe Iconis on InstagramAnd Joe on TwitterThe Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson MusicalBuy Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas from The StrandOh Mary (the best show Joe’s seen lately)Days of Wine and Roses (the best show Joe’s seen lately)The Untold Stories of Broadway Vol. 4 by Jennifer Ashley Tepper (the best thing Joe’s read lately)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“Do the work. Show Up. Show you care by listening.”Liz Robbins joins Brian to talk about her remarkable career as a journalist, covering everything from the NBA to U.S. immigration policy. Liz tells stories about what it was like to cover sports in Cleveland in the late 1990s, including how she broke the news that the WNBA would be forming and traveled on a private jet with Tim Couch. This was the last golden age of traditional newspaper sports journalism, and Liz describes what that was like. Liz also details how broke a story for The Times that led to the U.S. government literally changing one of its immigration policies. Writing topics include how Liz knows she’s done reporting and ready to write, how to build a network of sources, and how to protect your mental health while covering tough stories. Rabbit holes include the only time in Liz’s career that she was star struck, Susan Sarandon in Rocky Horror Picture Show, Larry Brown yelling at her, and the St. Bonaventure-Kentucky NCAA Tournament game in 2000. LinksLiz Robbins official websiteLiz on TwitterLiz at The New York TimesPost Office Fails to Deliver on Time, and DACA Applications Get RejectedA Record Breaking 2023 in SportsSt. Bonaventure-Kentucky 2000 NCAA First RoundAll the Sinners Bleed by Y.A. Cosby (the best thing Liz has read lately)Roman Stories (the other best thing Liz has read lately) Criminal Record on Apple TV+ (the best thing Liz has watched lately)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on Facebook the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site. Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify 

“I ended up throughout the midst of the pandemic feeling like I couldn’t write anything anymore.”Dave Karpf, author of the must-read “The Future, Now and Then” on Substack, joins Brian to talk about writing, the internet, and more. Dave and Brian discuss this week’s news about Bluesky opening itself to the public, and why the years where there wasn't a lot of money in it was when the internet was the best.Dave, a political science professor at George Washington University, talks about how he built a weekly writing practice on Substack, and how it helped him unstick as a writer. He talks about his writing about the intersection of technology and society, what we can learn about the present and the future by the stories tech evangelists told us in the past, and the most bonkers thing he’s read in the Wired Magazine archives.“This is what happens when you give a guy like me tenure” LinksThe Future, Now and Then by Dave KarpfDave on BlueskyBrian on BlueskyBrian on ThreadsLost Tempo by Matt (Best thing Dave’s read lately)Dumb Money by Gary Wolf and Joey Anuff (Best thing Dave’s read lately)Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin (Best thing Brian’s read lately)SupportThe Other 51 is and will always be free, but if you like my work (and the stuff I do at Sports Media Guy and want to kick me a few dollars, you can do so here. I really appreciate your support. Follow us on Instagram. We’re on the decaying corpse of Twitter, but only because for some reason sports media won’t abandon the site (looking at you, ESPN folks). Subscribe:Apple PodcastsSpotify