Here is the latest trio of Columbia University Sports Podcast (the CUSP Show) that we have had in the past few months. With NBA in full bloom, Super Bowl week here, and digital disruption always in the mix, we selected three that play to that group. These were again compiled by colleague Jessie Leeds Grant…
You can see a list and log on to all of the over 130 episodes from myself and my cohost Tom Richardson by clicking here. Take a listen, almost all are 45 minutes or even less.
John Kosner, President Kosner Media
Tom and Joe sit down with long-time media executive John Kosner. In the past, John built ESPN into the world’s leading digital sports destination– increasing traffic ten-fold and turning an unprofitable business into ESPN’s fastest growing one. Kosner and his team have a track record of innovation in streaming and video-on-demand, fantasy games, podcasting, online advertising, and third-party partnerships.
Kosner has hired and helped develop many of the top sportswriters of this generation including Wright Thompson, Bill Simmons, Zach Lowe, Ramona Shelburne, Bill Barnwell, and Sambit Bal as well as specialists like Adrian Wojnarowski, Matthew Berry, Henry Abbott, Jayski and Darren Rovell.
A 39-year veteran of sports media, Kosner interned at NBC Sports in 1978 followed by positions at CBS Sports (’82-87), the NBA (’87-94), SI (’94-96) and ESPN (’97-’17). He was graduated with distinction from Stanford University in 1982 with a BA degree in American History.
Some things to listen for, including touching on some of the lessons learned from failure…
“I’m a Student of The Unintended Consequence.”
“At CBS Sports we had the rights to the NBA, but it wasn’t a priority compared to the NFL, NCAA Tournament, and The Masters.”
“The idea was we were going to have a ESPN and Disney branded phones, and we had some elements of it right, but in order to make the numbers work for investments we had to make the original price over $400.”
“Companies that create products that have a really great user experience and do something that is worthwhile enough to pay for will succeed, I’m talking about Spotify, Netflix.”
Hear the full podcast here
Melissa Jacobs, The Football Girl
Melissa Jacobs, the Managing Editor and Founder of The Football Girl, joins Joe to discuss her path, entrepreneurial spirit, and finding her niche with the Football Girl.
She started TFG in late 2009 on the belief that female NFL fans deserve a community that goes well beyond Football 101, recipes and pink apparel. She has aimed to provide robust content ranging from fantasy advice to exclusive interviews that appeals to all fans of all levels. A veteran of sites like Sports Illustrated and ESPN, Melissa has embarked on a growing niche in all forms of media.
Some of the things to listen for…
“When you launch a site, you are paying for hosting fees, images, when problems arise, a lot goes into it.”
“I don’t believe in making contributors work for free, and luckily money came in from a few different angles.”
“Our content is a mix of featuring different women in the NFL and breaking down their career paths or signature segments of breaking down Aaron Rodgers offensive line or breaking down critical issues that come up in the NFL. My voice being authentic is very important.”
You can hear the whole episode here.
Jared Zwerling, CloseUp360
Joe sits down with Jared Zwerling, founder and president of CloseUp360. A media veteran with stops at Sports Illustrated, Bleacher report, Sports Illustrated and the NBAPA, the two talk about Jared’s new startup, working with the NBA, and how athletes can tell their stories. Listen in to learn about how CloseUp360 is telling the stories of NBA players form a guy who first became enamored with media…at age four!
A few things to listen for…
“Digital video is hot right now, Sports Illustrated wanted to have a larger presence online and in the digital space”.
“The NBA is soaring globally in popularity and fueled through the NBA brand off the court and I wanted to leverage that.”
“We think of ourselves as creating mini documentaries on NBA players off the court, sort of a unique niche about our brand.”
“Right now we’re trying to take advantage of the NBA, we’re a web/social destination and we want to be more than that”.
Listen to the full episode here.
Enjoy the listens and the learning!!
