Two Writers Slinging Yang

On how influencers are corrupting reviews. On the joy of a delicious meal. On whether her city is corrupted by a celebrity restaurant. On Substack life.

On how the stupidity of this administration might save America. On the continued joy of the written word. On life at The National. On the awfulness of J.D. Vance.

On digging deep into the mythology of the Steinbrenners and the Yankee dynasty. On whether George knew whereof he spoke. On the joys of newspaper writing in 2026.

On covering one of sport's least-significant franchises. On why baseball still excites him. On the joys of spring training. On a furious Memphis State men's basketball coach.

On the impact gambling has on modern sports—and modern sports coverage; on rising from Walmart to ESPN to USA Today; on the wild nights and crazy days of Bristol, Conn.

On the golden days of covering the Dallas Cowboys. On the highs and lows of ESPN TV glory. On surviving in an unforgiving profession and showing up unannounced at Jimmy Johnson's home. On the demise of Skip Bayless.

On rising from covering horses in Florida to the Major Leagues for SI; on starting up ESPN The Magazine; on Michael Jordan and the issue that killed his relationship with a magazine; on writing a letter to a friend.

On the joys of covering an NHL team and the difficulty of not traveling on the beat. On the transition from college to a major newspaper. On what type of access hockey offers reporters in 2026.

On the joys and complications of writing a book on a reclusive dead man and a highly exposed living one. On finally landing an interview with Julius Erving. On life inside a publishing house.

On landing at The Athletic at age 22. On learning to be edited when it's not particularly fun. On avoiding career jealousy. On the benefits of Arizona State. On the saga of a young basketball phenom fighting back.

On what America misunderstands about Jackie Robinson and needs to understand about Paul Robeson. On what history can teach us about 2026 madness. On why the mythology of Branch Rickey is a departure from reality. On the modern approach to book PR.

On working with many of the greatest writers of the past century. On coming to Sports Illustrated with no ties and lots of questions. On how he views a lifetime in print. On the joys of the written word.

On the responsibilities that come with life as a trans author trying to impact trans readers. On what her life experience brought to the page. On how she landed her first book deal.

On attempting to take his own life with a gun—and living to tell. On the tragic loss of a son. On why Rodney Peete is cooler than Andre Ware and whether he could still throw NFL passes. On finding meaning in life.

On the step-by-step process of writing her new single, "For The Record." On what it means to make it in country music in 2025. On the impact of Eminem on her writing process. On writing for the Walmart shopper.

On the glory days of hip-hop media—and the decline. On what drew a young Rob to the genre. On writing about music when the creators aren't so happy. On the brutally honest CD review. On Tupac.

On the keys to capturing your own life via memoir. On why this multi-city book tour will likely be her last. On how it feels to have a book become a major motion picture. On turning 70 as a scribe.

On the terrifying AI path humanity has opted to stroll. On creating characters and giving them depth and voice. On how one comes up with an ending to a novel. On a career covering musical artists.

On why he thrashed me on TikTok for months and months. On the highs and lows of athlete representation. On why certain baseball execs make him sick. On the joys and pains of social media.

On voicing "Only God Can Judge Me: The Many Lives of Tupac Shakur." On the changing nature of audio book recordings. On transition from acting to news television.

On the changing landscape of basketball media. On what life was like covering Kobe Bryant. On the highs and higher highs of USA Today. On whether there's a future for this industry.

On how the decline of media has impacted political messaging and general news. On whether people should still have faith in America. On Speaker Mike Johnson and his steady diet of bullshit.

On the wild, wacky, weird joy of working with the 1984 Padres. On how he was plucked to help write Tony Gwynn's autobiography. On the highs and lows of life in baseball.

On the highs and lows of watching boxers live and die in the ring. On lessons learned from television. On the craziest boxer he's covered. On the old USFL.

On how she managed to track down Brenda's baby—and Brenda. On whether Ancestry is reliable. On how technology impacts family digging.