Sports Media with Richard Deitsch

Did CBS Sports telegraph the fate of Tony Romo; ESPN's terrible decision on Damien Woody, and Jimmy Traina makes a surprise appearance on the podcast

Episode 647 of the Sports Media Podcast with Richard Deitsch features a roundtable with Jon Lewis, editor and founder of Sports Media Watch, Chad Finn, sports media columnist for the Boston Globe and a surprise appearance from Jimmy Traina, who is leaving SI after 20 years for a sports media startup. In this podcast, we examine CBS Sports president David Berson's comments about Tony Romo during CBS Sports' NFL Media Day; how we saw Berson's specific use of the words image and brand; whether CBS and Romo would engage in buyout talks; how J.J. Watt might do with Jim Nantz; the promotion of Ross Tucker to the Ian Eagle team; Traina's decision to leave Sports Illustrated; what he will do next; ESPN parting with Damien Woody; Fox's NFL announcing teams and what we think of them; why Greg Olson might be Fox's biggest NFL story this year; NBCUniversal carrying a tripleheader on NBA Opening Day October 20; the NBA's Christmas Day lineup; why the NBA decided to do Knicks-Spurs so early on Christmas Day; the Field Of Dreams game versus an NFL preseason game on NFL Network, and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more.

The NFL isn't leaving CBS or Fox anytime soon — and evaluating ESPN's college football roster

Episode 646 of the Sports Media Podcast with Richard Deitsch features a roundtable with Jon Lewis, editor and founder of Sports Media Watch; Armand Broady, the co-host of the Sports Media Watch podcast and a contributor to SMW, and Derek Futterman, a multimedia writer and producer for Sports Media Watch. In this podcast we discuss Bloomberg reporting that the NFL has agreed to pause its media rights negotiations with CBS while the network’s parent company Paramount deals with the multi-state lawsuit challenging its proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery; the Fox Corporation announced it will not pursue an early renewal or renegotiation of its NFL broadcast rights deal; what it means longterm; we analyze ESPN's college football announcer lineups; the NFL Kickoff between the New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks on Sept. 9; and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more.

CBS Sports places Tony Romo on leave

Episode 645 of the Sports Media Podcast with Richard Deitsch features a roundtable with Austin Karp, the media writer for Sports Business Journal and Jon Lewis, editor and founder of Sports Media Watch. In this podcast we discuss CBS Sports placing Tony Romo on leave following his arrest last week on suspicion of driving under the influence; JJ Watt joining Jim Nantz and Tracy Wolfson as CBS Sports' lead NFL team during Romo's absence; what could happen next with its NFL teams; whether there is a scenario where Romo would be let go; what if Watt has the greatest broadcasting stretch on the No. 1 team; how LeBron James to the Sixers impacts the 2026-27 TV schedule; DirecTV and EverPass signing a new multiyear deal that will keep DirecTV for Business distributing NFL Sunday Ticket to bars, restaurants, hotels, casinos and other commercial establishments in the U.S; Jon attending the WNBA All Star Game and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more.

Linda Cohn and Neil Everett

Episode 644 of the Sports Media Podcast with Richard Deitsch features two guests: Linda Cohn announced her retirement from ESPN after 34 years last month and you can now find her at "Linda Cohn Sports" on YouTube where she is building that channel. She is joined by Neil Everett, who worked at ESPN for 23 years as well as television studio host on Portland Trail Blazers games from 2021 until 2026. In this podcast, Cohn and Everett talk about working together at ESPN; Linda's ESPN departure after 34 years and starting her own YouTube channel; the ESPN layoffs; meeting famous musicians as a result of their jobs; why they were disgusted with how things were handled with some of their former colleagues who were laid off; Everett learning of his own dismissal from the Blazers from an online column at Forbes; surviving previous ESPN layoffs over the years; why leaks happen out of Bristol more than other media places; Cohn always trying to keep hockey at the forefront at ESPN; advice for young people who want to be in front of the camera, and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more.

The ESPN layoffs — and the media impact of LeBron to the Sixers

Episode 643 of the Sports Media Podcast with Richard Deitsch features a roundtable with Austin Karp, the media writer for Sports Business Journal and Jane McManus, an editor at Storied Sports and the author of "The Fast Track: Inside the Surging Business of Women’s Sports." In this podcast Karp and McManus discuss the ESPN layoffs; why they happened; ESPN once being in more than 100 million and now being in a touch below 55 million; Linda Cohn having a great take and mentioning 150 people behind the scenes; why people still care about ESPN still in 2026; what is the ESPN fundamental brand; institutional stalwarts such as Stephanie Bell and David Lloyd being part of this; WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert faces the press; what LeBron going to Philadelphia mean from a media perspective; the NBA's thinking on opening night and Christmas Day; the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina drawing an audience of nearly 63 million across English and Spanish broadcasts for the Final and Fox averaged 7.737 million viewers for the 104 broadcasts on Fox, FS1 and Tubi; ESPN’s cost structure and more. You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more.