“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 edit…

“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 s…

“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 …

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…

“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 …

Episode 10! This is our season 1 finale episode of The Moral Questions of Sports Intersection of Business, Law, and Philosophy Podcast. 2025 will bring in Season 2 with more episodes from fantastic guests! Today, John Camacho interviewed Kailyn Smith who is a Brilliant PhD Candidate in Philosophy at Boston University and she is also a Sports Column…

“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 b…

“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 w…

Darrell Lovell discusses his new book, “Name, Image, and Likeness Policies.” Darrell is one of the first in Academia to write a professional book on this topic. We discuss his book and the inner workings of academia. University Life is crazy and unpredictable, so listen to Darrell. He knows things.By John Camacho and Zack Hamilton

Kevin Bryant does another fantastic interview about his book, “Spies on the Sidelines The High-Stakes World of NFL Espionage.” Kevin brilliantly discusses NFL spy jargon like “honey pot” which describes sports tactics to steal information. These tactics repeat themselves including the 2024 Olympics. Kevin is smart and knowledgeable, so listen to wh…

Eric Magrum discusses his recent dissertation, “Emotional Intelligence in Coaching: Predicting Success of Collegiate Coaches.” Eric is a Professor at James Madison University. Listen to him! He’s doing cutting edge work!By John Camacho and Zack Hamilton

Brian Moritz, the Sports Media Guy, at St. Bonaventura talks about his 2014 dissertation, “Rooting for the Story: Institutional Sports Journalism in the Digital Journalism” and the current state of sports journalism. Brian is brilliant! Listen to him especially aspiring sports journalists.By John Camacho and Zack Hamilton

“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 o…

“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 …

“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 respon…

BONUS EPISODE!!!! ORIGINALLY RECORDED ON February 2024. Enjoy! In an age of sports journalism where ESPN canceled Bob Ley’s Outside the Lines and HBO/Warner Discovery canceled Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, and the recent New York Post report By Ryan Glasspiegel that Around the Horn will be canceled before the 2025 football season, sports journali…

In an age of sports journalism where ESPN canceled Bob Ley’s Outside the Lines and HBO/Warner Discovery canceled Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, and the recent New York Post report by Ryan Glasspiegel that Around the Horn will be canceled before the 2025 football season, sports journalism has been marginalized. In response, John Camacho and Zack Ha…

In an age of sports journalism where ESPN canceled Bob Ley’s Outside the Lines and HBO/Warner Discovery canceled Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, and the recent New York Post report by Ryan Glasspiegel that Around the Horn will be canceled before the 2025 football season, sports journalism has been marginalized. In response, John Camacho and Zack Ha…

In an age of sports journalism where ESPN canceled Bob Ley’s Outside the Lines and HBO/Warner Discovery canceled Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, and the recent New York Post report by Ryan Glasspiegel that Around the Horn will be canceled before the 2025 football season, sports journalism has been marginalized. In response, John Camacho and Zack Ha…

In an age of sports journalism where ESPN canceled Bob Ley’s Outside the Lines and HBO/Warner Discovery canceled Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, and the recent New York Post report by Ryan Glasspiegel that Around the Horn will be canceled before the 2025 football season, sports journalism has been marginalized. In response, John Camacho and Zack Ha…

“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 gatekeep…

“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 pande…

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 t…

“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 …

“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…

“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…

“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 tra…

“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 was…

Wendell Barnhouse joins Brian to talk about his long and storied career as a sports journalist. Wendell talks about what it was like to cover Duke-Kentucky in the 1992 NCAA men’s Tournament (the Christian Laettner shot), how doing layout and editing stories for 13 years helped him be a better writer, and why he views himself as more of a craftsman …

Joe Posnanski joins Brian this week to talk all about his new book, “Why We Love Baseball.” In the introduction to this book, Joe writes that "This is the book I always hoped would be on the shelf” of his library when he was a kid. In this episode, he tells Brian why this would have been the perfect book for him when he was 10 years old. Joe discus…

Sam Borden of ESPN joins Brian this week to talk about reporting, interviewing, and life as a foreign correspondent. Sam has probably the best job title of anyone we’ve had as a guest on the podcast — Global Sports Correspondent for ESPN. Sam talks about how he got that job, how he built a successful career as a sports journalist despite not being …

Dr. Jenn Billinson from Nazareth University joins us to talk about the state of social media, and what the heck is going on with Twitter and Twitter replacements. Short answer: It’s a mess Jenn and Brian talk about their reactions to Threads, why that seemed to fizzle out, and what’s next for space. Twitter/BlueSky/Threads. Jenn tells us how social…

How did a guy who started his career in radio become one of the most influential newspaper sports journalists in the history of Western New York? Chuck Pollock, Brian’s former boss and the longtime sports editor and columnist for The Times Herald in Olean, N.Y., joins Brian to talk about column writing, journalism, and his 50-year career. Chuck tra…

Bob Crawford, podcaster, history buff, and the bass player for The Avett Brothers (Brian’s favorite band), joins Brian this week to talk his new podcast series, Founding Son: John Quincy’s America. Bob and Brian talk about what made John Quincy Adams stand out as a story worth telling, how Adams is the bridge between Washington and Lincoln, a vesse…

Scott Nover, a technology and media reporter for Quartz, joins Brian to talk about AI, media economics, and why it’s so interesting to write about media. Scott takes a break from watching the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing on artificial intelligence for this episode. For real, though … politicians can’t understand Facebook. Scott discusses hi…

Arielle Beth Klein, a playwright and actor, joins Brian to talk about her newly published play, "My Shiksa Boyfriend," and all things writing and creative. Arielle tells us what it's like seeing her play for sale in the Drama Book Shop, and what it's like signing copies of her play to sell in the famed NYC book store. We bond over the awesomeness o…

Will Leitch returns to the show to talk all about the writing of his excellent new novel, "The Time Has Come." Will tells Brian how the writing of this book (“a feel-good book about a shooting!”) differed from his first novel, “How Lucky.” Will discusses how he structured the book, whether the plot or characters came first, and how he was able to m…

Dr. Jenn McClearen, an assistant professor at the University of Texas and author of the Substack newsletter Publish not Perish, joins Brian to talk about what makes academic writing so vexing, and some strategies to improve your writing and time management. They talk about the crazy coincidence of the both being at the same, relatively small confer…

For the record seventh time, Alysa Auriemma joins Brian to talk about writing. This time, the main topics are social media, making space for creative work, her next novel, and (of course) so much more. Alysa talks about the reaction her first novel, All Daughter’s Rise, received and what the self-publishing process was like on the back end. She als…

Evan Drellich joins Brian to talk about his new book, Winning Fixes Everything, about the Houston Astros' cheating scandal. Evan — who worked with Brian at the Press & Sun-Bulletin in Binghamton, N.Y. another lifetime ago — discusses how he and Ken Rosenthal broke the story of the Astros cheating scandal for The Athletic, what it's like when your r…

Tyler Dunne of Go Long tells us all about Damar Hamlin, what it was like to be in Cincinnati on Monday night, and about watching and covering football going forward. Why Damar Hamlins is exactly what the Buffalo Bills need The light in football’s most horrific hour Podcast: Damar Hamlin, life, and football The Chris Borland Effect The Chasing MS Fo…

Jeremy Littau, a professor at Lehigh University, an expert in social media with some unfortunate opinions about candy, joins Brian to talk about the present and future of Twitter and new social platforms. Jeremy talks about where things stood with Twitter as of Dec. 7, when we recorded this. He talks about the migration to Mastodon, why it’s Why it…

Pablo Torre, host of ESPN Daily, joins Brian to talk about interviewing, curiosity in reporting, and how podcasting sits at the middle of his professional Venn Diagram. After a brief delay in starting this episode, Pablo talks about the career path that brought him to ESPN. He tells Brian how he brings a magazine-writer’s sensibility to a daily spo…

In our first-ever live event, Tyler Dunne returns to talk about his new book, “The Blood and Guts: How Tight Ends Save Football.” Listen to this episode for your chance to WIN A SIGNED COPY OF TY’S BOOK. Tyler tells Brian why he decided to write a whole book about tight ends. Because, let’s face it, that’s an oddly specific topic. If, as Tyler said…

Jeff Pearlman is back for either his 83rd or 905th appearance, depending on who’s counting. Jeff is back to chat about “The Last Folk Hero,” his outstanding new biography of Bo Jackson that is out this week. Jeff describes what makes Bo Jackson so iconic and interesting, and why the first thing he did when he decided to write about Bo was to visit …

Denny Wilkins' story is that of a geology major from Massachusetts turned into a journalism professor at St. Bonaventure. It’s also the story of a professor who taught a generation of St. Boanventure journalism graduates — Brian included — to omit needless words. Denny and Brian, now colleagues at the Jandoli School of Communication, bring faculty …

Dr. Catherine Pearlman joins Brian to talk about her new book, “First Phone: A child’s guide to digital responsibility, safety and etiquette.” Catherine discusses her career as a social worker, parenting coach and writer, how she got a syndicated column, and the writing lessons she learned from writing two columns a week for several years. She talk…

What’s it like to be at the Tony Awards? How do you juggle being both a fan and a reporter? How do you go from being a TV reporter in West Texas to creating your own site to cover Broadway? What’s it like to spend an entire day wearing a fushsia ballgown around New York City? Shoshana from BWaySho joins Brian to answer those questions and more. Sho…

Grace Aki, a playwright and performer, joins Brian to talk about her one-woman show, To Free A Mockingbird. Here’s the secret. Grace didn’t actually “write” her one-woman show. Well she did. She talks about how she incrementally developed her show over a number of years, and how she used voice memos as her main tool to get material down. Grace and …

Dr. Chris Mackwoski, an author and professor of communication at St. Bonaventure University, joins Brian to talk about writing, the Civil War, the secrets to productivity, and more. Chris and Brian, who are colleagues at the Jandoli School of Communication, talk about Chris’ long and winding career path. Chris talks about how spending time as a rad…