The Press Box

Bryan and David discuss takeaways from the first GOP political debate, from the moderator’s performance to Ron DeSantis’s approach to Chris Christie’s role in the race (8:56). Later, they touch on the news that the Texas Tribune has made layoffs, then review the death of the magazine profile and identify more only-in-journalism words (32:48). Plus, the Overworked Twitter Joke of the Week and David...

Bryan is back with Weekend Headlines to review a misquote from Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, then discuss sports docs' equivalence to memoir and Tucker Carlson’s biography (0:48). Later, Bryan is joined by Semafor's Washington bureau chief, Benjy Sarlin, to react to the first GOP debate. They discuss candidates’ approach to Ron DeSantis, talk through Nikki Haley’s and Mike Pence’s campaign...

Bryan and David begin the week by reviewing the new cast of 'Monday Night Countdown' (0:43) before discussing what to expect from the first GOP debate airing on Wednesday night without former president Donald Trump (8:22). Later, they talk through the ongoing situation between former NFL player Michael Oher and the Tuohys (28:30) and then touch on NFL aggregators and more! Plus, the Overworked Twi...

Bryan and David hit on the newly announced NBA ‘Countdown’ lineup and discuss its new potential format, before author James Andrew Miller joins the show to unpack the state of ESPN and how things could unfold after the Penn Entertainment deal (9:45). Later, they discuss the Hollywood Reporter’s recent incident involving an awards pundit asking for special privileges (27:07), then touch on a Kansas...

Bryan hits on headlines from the week from ESPN’s new billion-dollar deal with Penn Entertainment to the Orioles’ miscalculation with announcer Kevin Brown. Then, The New York Post’s Mike Vaccaro joins to discuss his career as a sports columnist for 20+ years. He talks about the power of a sports columnist, writing about sports in New York, and his relationship with Adrian Wojnarowski and experien...

Bryan and David begin this week by discussing the U.S. women’s national team’s loss to Sweden this weekend and how both current and former players responded to their elimination (0:41). Then, they weigh Fox News’ approach at encouraging Donald Trump to take the stage for GOP debates (12:00). Later, they state their case in defense of former NBA Finals team announcer Mark Jackson (30:00). Plus, ano...

Bryan is back with a new segment, Weekend Headlines, where he shares three stories that will get you through the weekend. Then, Matt Belloni joins to talk through Bob Iger's linear media strategy, and weigh the effects of the strikes on Hollywood and the media. Host: Bryan Curtis Guest: Matt Belloni Producer: Erika Cervantes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bryan and David preview the new NBA announcing team at ESPN (0:30) before they unpack the media face-off between 'Variety' and both 'The Atlantic' and 'Puck' (9:10). Then, they touch on Twitter rebranding to X (18:28), discuss Sean Payton’s recent comments in the media (23:40), and Ron DeSantis’s media approach. Later, they introduce a new feature, "Not About the Media," where they share a persona...

Bryan’s East Coast media tour stops off in Connecticut to sit down with ‘SportsCenter’ host Kevin Negandhi. They discuss show production and rundown (1:00), becoming a news anchor in an Indian American family (11:40), and his career path at ESPN (26:30). Host: Bryan Curtis Guest: Kevin Negandhi Producer: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bryan and David are joined by colleague Lindsay Jones to discuss her experience working at The Athletic. They review Bob Kravitz’s piece on Substack, touch on Jones’s experience at the site, and discuss how things are progressing after the merger with the Times (4:33). Later, they debate just how well our new member of the newsroom, Genesis, an artificial intelligence tool, could integrate into th...

Bryan is joined by New York Times reporter and podcaster Astead Herndon from ‘The Run-Up’ to discuss life on the campaign trail. They talk through the transition from print stories to podcasting, dive into the inner workings behind the stories reported for ‘The Run-Up,’ then unpack voters' response to candidates on the trail. Host: Bryan Curtis Guest: Astead Herndon Producer: Erika Cervantes Learn...

Bryan and David brainstorm how The New York Times and The Athletic could restructure heading into the new phase of coverage (3:40). Then, amid the ongoing strikes in Hollywood, they discuss a few more media side effects, including the loss of the celebrity profile, actor promos, and more (34:10). Plus, the Overworked Twitter Joke of the Week and David Shoemaker Guesses the Strained-Pun Headline. H...

Bryan and David discuss The New York Times replacing its sports section with The Athletic and what that means for their sports writers (2:10). Then, they talk about GQ’s column about Warner Bros. Discovery president David Zaslav (32:06). Later, they get into the latest round of ESPN layoffs and how it is now affecting the people we see on air (41:01). Finally, Bryan has some notes for David from h...

Bryan is joined by CNN’s Jake Tapper to discuss his upcoming thriller novel, ‘All the Demons Are Here.’ They begin talking through the writing process whilst being a lead anchor, discuss why Tapper chose to write a novel based in the 1970s, and touch on which characters in his novel were inspired by actual media members. Then later, they assess how CNN should define itself in the year 2023, and fi...

Bryan is joined by journalist Chris Jones to remember his 2010 piece in Esquire, "The Things That Carried Him," a true story about Sgt. Joe Montgomery’s last trip home. They discuss how Jones knew he was ready to write this particular story, the process of covering the death of a loved one, and how this story resonated with readers. Then, they touch on Jones's experience writing for Esquire Magazi...

Bryan is joined by Billy Ray, writer and director of ‘Shattered Glass,’ a movie that covers the Stephen Glass New Republic scandal, for the 20th anniversary of its release. They discuss Ray’s experience transitioning from writer to director, how he cast Hayden Christensen as the lead, what it was like writing for a protagonist such as Glass, how Tom Cruise received a producer credit, and much more...

Bryan is joined by journalist Tim Mak in Kyiv to discuss his time reporting from Ukraine. They talk through his time in the country when the invasion began, why he decided to return to Kyiv to continue war coverage, and his unique, journalistic style, which captures an immersive picture of life in Ukraine. Host: Bryan Curtis Guest: Tim Mak Producer: Erika Cervantes Learn more about your ad choices...

Ahead of the NBA draft, Bryan and David talk through the announcement from Woj that he will not tip the picks on Twitter before they’re made (0:25). Then, they discuss Trump’s outing in Miami and the media’s uncertain coverage of such events amid his second indictment (9:53). Then they touch on news of layoffs at The Athletic and consider what this means for the website and beat writers (25:55). P...

Bryan is live from the U.S. Open and dives into news of the LIV Golf–PGA Tour merger with Kevin Van Valkenburg (2:07). They discuss how the story broke, what the relationship is like between both entities, and what it’s like as a golf writer during these events. Later, NBC’s John Wood joins to talk about his experience as an on-course reporter, including inspecting the course, talking with the aud...

Bryan and David talk through CNN’s future and possible restructure (0:40), before jumping into the news of yet another indictment for former president Donald Trump (13:34). Later, they discuss the LIV Golf and PGA Tour merger and how it all unfolded in the media (31:02), and then touch on newspapers' role in the story of Ted Kaczynski, a.k.a. the Unabomber, back in the 1990s (39:58). Plus, the Ove...

Bryan is joined by Ryen Russillo to discuss Jokic’s impressive performance in the Finals and the media’s response to the Denver Nuggets. Then, they talk through Russillo’s theory on how we all get what we want from the media and how one prepares for the draft. Host: Bryan Curtis Guest: Ryen Russillo Producer: Erika Cervantes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bryan and David talk through the pronunciation of presidential candidate Ron DeSantis’s last name (0:41) before jumping into media news involving Chuck Todd leaving ‘Meet the Press’ (9:48) and Shannon Sharpe leaving FS1’s ‘Undisputed’ (21:02). Then, they dive into Tim Alberta’s piece about CNN’s Chris Licht and provide their top three takeaways (31:48). Plus, the Overworked Twitter Joke of the Wee...

Bryan is joined by The Ringer’s Tyler Parker to discuss Game 1 of the NBA Finals, how ABC’s commentary crew handled Denver’s blowout win and their praise of Nikola Jokic (02:43). Then, they discuss the media’s lack of coverage towards the Nuggets this season (12:08). After, they offer their praise to Kevin Harlan, discuss LeBron James’s retirement comments, their favorite postgame moment of the pl...

Bryan and David start the pod talking about why discussing the NBA Finals TV ratings doesn’t matter (00:39). Then, they discuss Gov. Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign launch on Twitter, its technical difficulties, and why the approach backfired on him (05:42). Then, they’re back with another segment of NBA2Day to discuss some of the best sound bites from Game 7, TNT’s cutting to commercial brea...

Bryan is joined by Politico’s congressional bureau chief, Burgess Everett, to discuss what it’s like to cover Congress in the midst of the debt ceiling negotiations and what’s at the heart of the discussions (01:19). Then, they discuss Everett’s experience working on the congressional beat, including his approach to getting politicians to talk, the kind of shoes he has to wear, and why the beat is...