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Jason Whitlock Pulls No Punches Discussing Sports Media Personalities

“When Deadspin and those people were out to get to me, I think Dan was my friend and did have my back, but there’s a level of heat that not everyone can take.”

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Since 2002, Jason Whitlock has had the opportunity to work for places such as ESPN and FOX Sports and with many different personalities. Now, he co-hosts a podcast with James Dodds (“Uncle Jimmy”) called Fearless with Jason Whitlock on Blaze Media.

On the latest episode, Whitlock gave his thoughts on some of the people that he has worked with over the years. For a while, Whitlock’s closest friend in the industry was Dan Le Batard. However, due to some comments StuGotz made about Whitock back in 2017, their relationship ended up changing. Whitlock ended up saying to Le Batard that it is nothing to joke about. He also understands that Le Batard might have wanted some distance from Whitlock because of the criticism Whitlock was taking from different websites:

“When Deadspin and those people were out to get to me, I think Dan was my friend and did have my back, but there’s a level of heat that not everyone can take. He’s not built for that kind of heat and that’s not a knock on him…He did some things to give himself some distance to make sure that the same people that were out for me didn’t come after him. I think this goes on a lot when you are a public figure, particularly in this cancel culture.”

Whitlock did not have many kind things, if at all, to say about Jemele Hill at the end of the episode and he said “she’s passing herself as a journalist.” Here’s what else he had to say about Hill:

“She has an interesting Twitter feed and Twitter is the right depth for her. 280 characters is about all she can handle. Launching a career as a Twitter influencer is smart. This has nothing to do with anything personal, this is just fact…No one can name any piece of journalistic work she has done that’s of any significance or any good. People talk about her missteps. She doesn’t have any work to stand on. I don’t like Jemele Hill.”

When he was at ESPN, two people that were always supportive of Whitlock  were Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon from Pardon The Interruption. Whitlock listed them as two of his idols in the industry:

“Those guys are the godfathers. Those guys are the reason you and I are sitting right here in Nashville in these studios about to do something monumental. Tony and I are two guys that have been really good to me over the years. Even before we were on TV, those guys were idols of mine and have treated me with nothing but respect my entire career. I love those guys.”

Another person he spoke kind words about was one of his former co-host of Speak For Yourself, Colin Cowherd. Whitlock refers to Cowherd as the “Jay-Z of this business” and called him “one of the most interesting people I have ever met in the business.” While the two of them had disagreements on things, Whitlock appreciated that nothing ever was personal between the two of them:

“Those two years we did Speak for Yourself together, he was great. Wasn’t the exact show I wanted to do, but it was great to work with someone who is that talented, that accomplished, that far along in the business. I don’t think we ever had a cross word or a passionate disagreement about anything. We disagreed about some things, but it was never personal. I appreciate how Cowherd handled the end of our show. The process of working with Cowherd was terrific for me.”

In addition to Cowherd, Whitlock spoke kindly of other FOX Sports personalities such as Skip Bayless and Marcellus Wiley. Wiley, who was Whitlock’s other former co-host on Speak for Yourself, Is viewed by Whitlock as “a great American success story” and Whitlock believes Wiley has the chance to be impactful beyond sports:

“He’s trying to tell other people how you can go get the American dream and I just love it. He’s an important voice in the sports world who has the chance to be an important voice beyond sports.”

As for Bayless, Whitlock appreciates the passion Bayless has for debating on-air and his work ethic. While Bayless may be different from Whitlock, Whitlock still respects that Bayless’s way has been successful for him:

“I think Skip treated me well when I was at FOX Sports. I think Skip is one of the hardest workers I have met in this industry. I think his passion for debating on TV is authentic. He’s completely different from me. He actually believes in debate television. People think it is some schtick, but Skip actually wants to win the debate and actually thinks he’s in a legitimate, authentic debate with Shannon Sharpe. I respect his work ethic, his passion for debate and doing that style of television. I had to come to grips with the fact that my way isn’t the way for everyone. You have to respect that it is his way and it works for him.”

Throughout the episode, Whitlock wasn’t afraid to give advice to people in the industry that he feels need it and one of them was Jalen Rose. While Whitlock thinks Rose is a “solid broadcaster”, he feels he has the chance to be that much better if he fixes some things and says the advice he is giving him is something he learned from past experiences:

“I think Jalen is a solid broadcaster who can be a great broadcaster if someone helped him clean up some of the annoying things he does that he thinks are funny. If someone tapped him on the shoulder and said I love you man but quit singing on NBA Countdown. Overall, Jalen is a talented guy who is a Detroit survivor. Look at all of the different roles he has had on ESPN. He’s good, he can be great. Some of the advice I am giving him is that sometimes my sense of humor has gotten me into trouble.”

On this episode, you’ll hear Whitlock say what he believes is the number one thought most broadcasters have in the industry as well. If this is more of what the podcast is going to be like, most people will appreciate the honesty Whitlock brings to the table on this new show when episodes are released daily beginning July 6. 

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Joe Buck Misses Calling Baseball But Says He’s Already Called it for “A Lifetime”

“People go, ‘Do you miss calling baseball?’ — I did it for 35 years, that is a lifetime in broadcasting…I feel like I put my time in.”

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Credit: Richard Shotwell AP

Longtime sports broadcaster Joe Buck gave up calling baseball when he made the switch to ESPN and, while he says he misses the sport, he’s called 35 years’ worth of the sport. On the latest edition of Nothing Left Unsaid with Tim Green, Green asks his former broadcast partner about the lack of baseball in his life. While Buck says he misses parts of baseball, he doesn’t miss all of it.

“People go, ‘Do you miss calling baseball?’ — I did it for 35 years, that is a lifetime in broadcasting…I feel like I put my time in. I did 24 World Series — that’s a lot, 24 more than I ever expected to do on national television. What I do miss is calling the game for the home crowd. I do miss the local stuff, where you go into the booth, and you’re the Cardinal announcer, and when the Cardinals win, ‘Yay,’ and when the Cardinals lose, ‘Boo.’ When you do the network stuff, it’s like death by 1000 cuts. It’s, ‘you hate my team, screw you,’ and it gets in your head and it takes a little bit of the fun out of it…I don’t miss the stress that comes with all that, but I do miss calling baseball for [a local team]…You show up, you’re not just there for an organization, but for their fans, and you’re kind of rooting along with them. That’s fun. And so, I miss that, but as far as the national stuff, I don’t miss a lot of that.”

Buck reiterated points he made months ago on 810 WHB with Jason Anderson. “I miss doing local baseball. I miss putting on a headset and being the eyes and ears of Cardinal fans, Royal fans, Rangers fans, whatever,” Buck said back then. “That’s more fun than being Switzerland and getting all the junk that comes with it.”

He stopped calling baseball when he and longtime football partner Troy Aikman moved from FOX to ESPN to call Monday Night Football. While he said publicly that he would miss calling the World Series, he also said the 2022 World Series would have been his last anyway. Buck says he may one day feel compelled to call baseball again, though, saying, “I’ve never said that before, but I just feel like I’m 53, basically 54, [and] I think it’s too early to say nevers at this point in my life. I think at some point, I’ll get the itch again.”

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Former Red Sox Pitcher Jonathan Papelbon Joins Roster of ‘Foul Territory’ Hosts

“I am joining the Foul Territory podcast full-time, no more guest spots…I’m coming in and I can’t wait to pop a bottle on this year’s baseball season.

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The already-stacked roster on Foul Territory just got its closer. Jonathan Papelbon, formerly of the Boston Red Sox, Washington Nationals, and Philadelphia Phillies, announced today that he was joining fellow former All-Stars A.J. Pierzynski, Todd Frazier, Adam Jones, Lorenzo Cain, Brock Holt and Jason Kipnis on the show.

The podcast also features former MLB Network host Scott Braun and former 11-year MLB catcher Erik Kratz.

“I am joining the Foul Territory podcast full-time, no more guest spots,” Papelbon said in a video posted to his X account. “Whether it’s a big Ohtani gambling scandal or me giving you baseball gambling winners…I’m coming in, no bulls—-, real talk, and I can’t wait to pop a bottle on this year’s baseball season.”

Papelbon has been a contributor to the show in the past as a guest but will now join in an official capacity. He has also contributed to linear and digital content for NESN since 2021 and will reportedly head to the booth this year.

The former closer will join Alanna Rizzo on the Foul Territory network, who was brought on just a week ago to co-host the podcast’s live program, Fair Territory, with baseball insider Ken Rosenthal.

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Sage Steele Debuts Episode 1 of ‘The Sage Steele Show’ Through Bill Maher’s Club Random Studios

“The Sage Steele Show” is the first show on Bill Maher’s Club Random Studios podcast network and episode one features UFC CEO and President Dana White.

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Sage Steele is back in the sports media space with her own YouTube show, The Sage Steele Show. It comes courtesy of Bill Maher’s Club Random Studios and features UFC CEO and president Dana White in Episode 1.

Steele announced the move via her X account, saying that she was, “THRILLED to announce [her] new show! Genuine convos with fearless people who are unafraid to tell their stories & speak their truths in this crazy world!”

Steele left ESPN after 16 years and one First Amendment lawsuit, after claiming the company and her colleagues wanted to suppress her rights to free speech after making public comments about COVID-19 and former President Barack Obama. Steele says she lived in fear during her last few years at the company because of her beliefs and the potential clashes they would have with her colleagues. She made appearances on other programs in the time since her ESPN departure but now finally has a new home.

Steele’s show is the first on Bill Maher’s new Club Random Studios podcast network. She will join other hosts like Billy Corgan and Fred Durst with shows on the network. According to Variety, Club Random will also partner with Kevin Garnett on his KG Certified podcast and develop new shows in-house.

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