Marchand Sports Media

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.andrewmarchand.comThe New York Post lead sports columnist Mike Vaccaro may be one of the last of the legendary general sports newspaper columnists. From Jimmy Cannon to Dick Young to Mike Lupica, New York has been a sports newspaper town forever, led by the top columnists. Vaccaro has continued that tradition. He’s also a best-selling author with his latest, The Bosses of the Bronx: The Endless Drama of the Yankees Under the House of Steinbrenner out this spring.Vaccaro is the guest on the 52-minute “The Main Event with Andrew Marchand.”For access to our twice-a-week podcasts sign-up as a free or paid subscriber at AndrewMarchand.comThe Rundown …* How in the 1970s, Vaccaro first dreamed of being a sports columnist for the New York Post when his dad brought him to Shea Stadium* From Ian O’Connor to Mark Kriegel to Wally Matthews, Vaccaro had big competition * Former New York Post sports editor Greg Gallo told Vaccaro that “sometimes I have to hire a search party to get the point out of your column”* What type of athlete was Vaccaro growing up* How did he get Gallo to hire him at The Post* Jerry Izenberg, Dave Anderson and Steve Serby were all great mentors* How a college-aged Vaccaro wrote Lupica a letter and Lupica wrote back …* Later, the relationship changed * Vacarro said he wasn’t perfect either in the relationship when it was Post vs. News* His relationship with Harvey Araton, Anderson and George Vecsey were better* The great advice he received from Anderson and O’Connor* The St. Bonaventure connection from Adrian Wojnarowski, Chris LaPlaca, Tim Bontemps and more* Assessing Woj as the St. Bonaventure Men’s Basketball GM* What Vaccaro’s first jobs were like* How Vaccaro was fired in Fayetteville* His fight with Frank Broyles over Title IX that led to issues* He would annually call the guy who fired him with a profane message* How a Peter Hamill line stuck with him over the firing* Editor Bill Burr giving him a second chance* Marchand tells how he was almost fired from his first job in Texas* How Vaccaro gives credit to his father for how to act* In the Kansas City Star, Vaccaro had to compete with Joe Posnanski, Jason Whitlock and more in what was an All-Star staff* How he is happy for others, like Steve Politi, when they do award-winning work* His rivalry with Frank Isola …* How Isola should’ve been a 20-year newspaper sports columnist* Why Lou Lamoriello has been the best person to cover * A tremendous Lamoriello/Larry Brooks story* How Lamoriello gave Rick Pitino his break* What Vaccaro has learned in ripping Steve Phillips and Jeff Wilpon* Calling Wilpon, “Paris” as in Hilton* Yelling with Steve Phillips about making his wife cry … and a good line* Isiah Thomas appearing in a clown suit on the back page* His editor at Harper/Collins, Sean Desmond, hatched the idea for the Steinbrenner book* The new book is written in Vaccaro’s columnist’s voice* Steinbrenner calling Vaccaro in the middle of the night* Discussing the Yankee payroll today compared to yesteryear* Vaccaro goes through the process dealing with his leg amputation* How it has impacted his job* Vaccaro fears the Papa Clicker reviewRelated Sports Media Podcasts* New York Times Best Seller Ian O’Connor tells the stories of legends* How Woj became a Hall of Famer* Mike Tyson, Mark Kriegel & the making of the ‘Baddest Man’* How Joel Sherman became a New York baseball institution * Peter King’s legendary stories* How Adam Schefter became the most prolific NFL insider ever* How Chris (Mad Dog) Russo became the greatest sports talk show host of all-time* Frank Isola’s trip from New York sports media institution to the national spotlight* Kobe, Woj & Ramona* How Tyler Dunne made his NFL longform Substack work* Sponsor: WSC Sports … Tell them Marchand sent you* On Deck Tuesday: Marchand & Meterparel

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.andrewmarchand.comIn the 28-minute sports media podcast, Andrew Marchand & Jon Meterparel look at what’s ahead in 2026, which begins with Mike Tirico. Tirico will host the Winter Olympics, call his first Super Bowl and be the lead voice on NBA on NBC’s playoff coverage. We ring in 2026 on “Marchand & Meterparel: Everybody Loves Sports Media.”For access to our twice-a-week podcasts sign-up as a free or paid subscriber at AndrewMarchand.comThe Rundown …* Why the Mike Tirico signing by NBC in 2016 was one of the best sports media ones over the last decade* Rick Cordella and NBC have made the network and Peacock a year-round destination* The Great Rebundling and Peacock* People will pay a little more for convenience* YouTube TV’s graph is going up* People love a good interface* What are YouTube’s goals* The NFL will threaten or will opt out of its 11-year, $110 billion deals* Amazon Prime Video is ahead in the race for a potential Super Bowl on a digital platform, but …* The MLBPA will be very interested in what is happening with TV rights with labor strife potentially on the horizon* Why Marchand isn’t sure the World Cup will have as huge an impact on the United States * Why Marchand likes the NBA television and streaming deals* ESPN is going to be hyping its 2026-2027 Super Bowl* Who is on Marchand & Meterparel’s unofficial ESPN Mt. Rushmore* Meterparel’s New Year’s Resolutions for broadcasters * Bloopers!* On Deck: Mike Vaccaro is The Main Event* Subscribe at AndrewMarchand.com

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.andrewmarchand.comIn the 47-minute sports media podcast, NBC Sports Executive Vice President of Communications, Greg Hughes, provides insight and great stories into his nearly four decades in the business from TNT Sports to NBC. Hughes tells tales from the PR wars inside Rudy Martzke’s old USA Today column, his relationships with stars and how to deal with social media. Plus, much more on “The Main Event with Andrew Marchand.”For access to our twice-a-week podcasts sign-up as a free or paid subscriber at AndrewMarchand.comThe Rundown …* Hughes is tight with Charles Barkley and tells the story of how TNT Sports lured Barkley to Atlanta* Barkley is a very generous guy in a lot of different ways* As the EVP communications for NBC Sports, what is Hughes trying to accomplish* What do folks do right at networks * How you build relationships with the people who cover the media* What PR people have to be able to say to reporters* Hughes’ policy of never lying* The importance of Versant CEO Mark Lazarus on Hughes’ career* Why Lazarus had Hughes move his office next to Lazarus’* The media critics from Rudy Martzke to Richard Sandomir to …* How TNT Sports first had to punch up at the networks* Fighting with his friends and foes from Vince Wladika, Lou D’Ermilio, Chris LaPlaca, Ed Markey and Kevin Sullivan* The famous Mike Soltys quote on Keith Olbermann* Incredible Hughes’ USA Today line over a Fox Sports mistake* Hughes’ relationship with Martzke bonded over Wisconsin* Dealing with Warren Moon controversy as a player/analyst for TNT* How Hughes transitioned from TNT Sports to NBC Sports * “Being invited to leave” from TNT Sports, along with Lazarus* He only went to NBC because of Lazarus* How Hughes fostered relationships with Bob Costas and Al Michaels, etc. when he arrived at NBC* How does Hughes handle when NBC Sports is being criticized* How to handle highly critical social media* Hughes has been at two perfect games* Lazarus wanted to leave one, but Hughes wouldn’t* Bud Selig blasting the head of Time-Warner* How Hughes owns several restaurants and bars* He only would go to NBC if he kept the bars* Hughes says some nice things about his NBC colleagues* The All-Star-Super Bowl-Olympic itinerary with Rick CordellaRelated Sports Media Podcasts* How an ESPN Original navigated the Worldwide Leader in Attention* Rick Cordella explains NBC’s NBA logic & how sports drives Peacock* The dynamic ways Mark Shapiro sees the future of media* From Steve Jobs to Roger Goodell: Hans Schroeder & the NFL’s power in media* On Deck: Marchand & Meterparel* Subscribe at AndrewMarchand.com

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.andrewmarchand.comIn the 29-minutes sports media podcast, Andrew Marchand and Jon Meterparel talk about the best and worst of 2025. How ESPN, Fox One and the sports streaming wars will never have a U-turn after this year. Plus, the NFL top analysts, the Stephen A. Smith money, the Elle Duncan goodbye, the TKO/WME knockout deals and much more.It’s the 2025 look back.For access to our twice-a-week podcasts sign-up as a free or paid subscriber at AndrewMarchand.comThe Rundown …* With ESPN & Fox One going direct-to-consumer, there are no more U-turns on sports streaming strategies* Why Ernie Johnson is the sports media person of the year* Mike Tirico, Kevin Burkhardt, Ian and Noah Eagle could have been considered, according to Meterparel* Papa Holiday Clicker Book Review Buying Guide* How Tom Brady improved post-Super Bowl* Eagle and Watt are going to give you an excellent broadcast* The Jim Nantz and Tony Romo dynamic at play* The Lions-Steelers ending was a mess* The Elle Duncan ESPN goodbye* The significance of Netflix’s Duncan, NFL, MLB & women’s World Cup moves* Mark Shapiro & Ari Emanuel had the biggest deals of the year* How ESPN still means something for partners* Why Rob Manfred received the quote of the year award* Stephen A. Smith may make more than $40 million per year* How much is Smith worth to SiriusXM* Would you rather host afternoon drive time on WFAN or be the president of the United States* NBC Sports’ huge year* Fox vs. ESPN, Saturday mornings, the biggest rivalry in media* How Fox has made noon a big thing* McAfee’s kicking segment has been a big winner* Lee Corso says goodbye* Why Peter Schrager was a perfect fit for ESPN* On Deck: Greg Hughes is The Main Event* Subscribe at AndrewMarchand.com

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.andrewmarchand.comIn the 50-minute sports media podcast, one of the most important people in sports and media, Hans Schroeder, the NFL’s executive vice president of media distribution, is the guest on “The Main Event with Andrew Marchand.” Schroeder explains how the the league became so powerful, tells tremendous stories — including an incredible one about Steve Jobs — and answers what the parameters would be for Amazon Prime Video, Netflix or YouTube to have a Super Bowl.This recording is part of our series, “Off The Record with Andrew Marchand presented by WSC Sports”For access to our twice-a-week podcasts sign-up as a free or paid subscriber at AndrewMarchand.comThe Rundown …* Schroeder calls out Marchand on his wardrobe malfunction* Schroeder, who played at Princeton, explains how football was in his blood from the time he was a kid* What type of player was Schroeder * The NFL is the most dominant league in the world, why is it never complacent* Over his near quarter-century at the NFL, Schroeder is most proud of the connection that the league has made with its longtime partners* How to innovate and evolve to match the changes in technology* Incredible Steve Jobs, Roger Goodell, Steve Bornstein & Schroeder iPhone story from nearly two decades ago* How the NFL went to mobile and then to Amazon and YouTube, etc.* Eating In-N-Out twice in one a visit to see Google and how that eventually led to Sunday Ticket* In-N-Out or 5 Guys?* After meeting with Jobs, did Schroeder think the phone was the future* The NFL crystal ball says the future is ….* How a live-look in on NFL.com of a Packers-Cowboys game almost broke the internet* How NFL tries to grow its digital partnerships* Peacock is receiving 10 percent of NBC’s Sunday Night Football ratings* The thinking behind the Thanksgiving Cowboys-Chiefs matchup that led to 57-plus million Nielsen rating* One of the most fun aspects of Schroeder’s job is overseeing the schedule* How Howard Katz is a mentor for Schroeder * What is the campaigning by networks and all platforms like for Schroeder * Why the NFL made all 272 regular season games free agents* Why did the NFL do its deal with ESPN for 10 percent of the network* How ESPN wanted more games in 2021 and the MNF doubleheaders were born* What is the criteria the NFL will use if it should opt-out of its current $110 billion, 11-year TV deals at the end of the decade* The traditional partners business is hand in hand with the NFL, while the new trillion dollar streaming partners, the NFL, is just a part of their business, how does Schroeder look at that* Netflix with “Stranger Things” on Christmas & Amazon with Black Friday are a new version of the NFL’s promotional strength* How he sees the growth in the international packages* Why Flag Football is such an opportunity* What are the parameters to potentially put a Super Bowl on Prime Video, Netflix, YouTube or any of the new digital behemoths* Could we see one of them get a Super Bowl in the 2030s* How does Schroeder look at AI with the NFLRelated Sports Media Podcasts* The dynamic ways Mark Shapiro see the future of media* Jay Marine explains Amazon’s sports strategy* Rick Cordella explains NBC’s NBA logic & how sports drives Peacock* The future of sports radio with the most powerful executive in the business* On Deck: Marchand & Meterparel* Subscribe at AndrewMarchand.com