Eric (@HLinsight) is a real life pro sports gambler. He also has profound reservations about sports gambling’s introduction to the mainstream. I can confidently say that the conversation you’re about to listen to isn’t happening at any of the other mainstream sports media sites. This is a candid look at why betting sports, as fun as it is, is mostly a sucker’s bet. Topics include… * Parlays and other tricks apps use to keep you hooked * How the limiting of winners makes sustained success...

In addition to being co-host of the Light Years podcast, Saam is tasked with running Creator Growth at Playback, an interactive sports streamer app. This means that a lot of this millennial’s waking hours are spent on trying to figure out the sports viewership habits of Zoomers. This is the foundation of our conversation in this pod: What’s up with young people? What programs are they gravitating to and why? And are their habits upending traditional notions of what “mainstream” media even...

My live video with Chris Best is available here as well, so it seems. Great talk, enjoyed being the one who answers the Qs this time. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.houseofstrauss.com/subscribe

Your guy Big Wos is back, with candid takes on the state of NBA media. This was a great conversation wherein we discussed the following: * A variety of ESPN NBA moves (Woj leaving, Lowe ousted, Shams hired) * Shams on First Take shows why we didn’t really need Woj anymore * Why does ESPN value news breaking so much! * I can now freely say that Brian Windhorst is great * The friendly fire of an ESPN article attacking ESPN host Kendrick Perkins over his NIL business * Is Perkins’ business...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com When Tim Kawakami and I get together, we’re going to talk sports media. Considering that Tim just recently left the Athletic, where used to be my boss, and joined the ambitious SF Standard, we’ve got much to discuss. Also, for those who like Niners talk, we’ve got a whole lot of it in the back half of this pod. My teaser is that Tim dispels a commonly believed false notion or two. Enjoy!

Nate Jones, NBA agent and footwear entrepreneur at Move Insoles, is here to discuss a shocking corporate ouster at Nike. We get into how Nike modernized at its own expense, lost core customers, and ultimately fired a CEO they were just recently so enamored with. What lessons can be learned from the shoe apparel giant’s issues? What parallels do we see to recent problems at Disney and overall entertainment? Is this what happens when a corporation sacrifices art in pursuit of efficiency? Oh,...

Big content Friday at HoS! Today we’ve got YouTube superstar Saagar Enjeti on to discuss content trends. Saagar has been steadfast about not doing ads to support his business. What’s behind that philosophy? And why is he thrilled about the prospect of legacy media’s demise? Also, Saagar asks me some questions about what’s going on in the sports media space. Enjoy! House of Strauss is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com Had a fantastic time catching up with our friend Moynihan, co-host of The Fifth Column and all around podcasting force at The Free Press. This podcast is roughly two hours, one of which we’re making free. For whatever reason, we found the World War 2 revisionism controversy of Daryl Cooper on Tucker Carlson to be a fruitful subject. Why did the political horseshoe arrive at trashing Winston Churchill?...

Sports Analytics King Neil Paine is on to address some of the questions on our mutual minds. Am I correct that people are less into politics this election? Is Kamala Harris a classic backup QB promotion? Is baseball back in American culture (Thanks to Judge and Ohtani)? Is Ohtani paradoxically more fun now that he’s not pitching? Is Aaron Rodgers too old to be good? Is a “system quarterback” even a real thing? What NFL players have “shadow value”? We discussed these subjects and much more in...

Ryan Glasspiegel is back, and we’ve got many a media topic to discuss. Did politics influence the Samantha Ponder ouster at ESPN (I say ‘no’)? What do we make of the presidential betting odds? How do we feel about how politics is all “vibes” and no substance these days? Topics include but aren’t limited to… * Sam Ponder: Was there any politics aspect to the ESPN firing? * Defending Pat McAfee against Awful Announcing * Trump/Kamala gambling odds * What's more important in elections: vibes or...

Warning: This is a very football-heavy podcast. The NFL is back, and so is Warren Sharp with his massive 2024 Football Preview. Given that Warren is so well versed on NFL data and trends, I wanted to pick his brain on what America’s most analyzed league is currently missing. Obviously NFL coaches are highly informed, but is there something they’re doing wrong? Is football in its early stages Moneyball era, like baseball in the early 2000s? And why the hell have teams stopped scoring in this...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com Kat Rosenfield is an author and Free Press columnist who often boldly covers matters of cultural controversy. I was fascinated by her “What the Childless Among Us Leave Behind” essay, which anchors a lot of the pod. We also got into Nike’s new direction and a range of other subjects related to the modern gender wars. Topics include but aren’t limited to… * Is there such a thing as objectively good style? *...

Big Wos and I were interviewed for The Spoils documentary, which examines how the AAU business is changing as the money in the NBA and NCAA explode. Director Mike Nicoll sat down with us to discuss that plus so many related topics of mutual interest. For instance, in recent years, American youth basketball has become something between a sport and exercise in social media brand building. Team USA just won gold in spectacular fashion, but is this the last truly dominant American basketball...

I believe you’ve heard of Nate Silver, whose fame is well earned. Sometimes, it’s almost too bad that his reputation as a data/politics guy precedes him. Nate, the writer, is highly underrated. I was reminded of this once again while reading his new book, On the Edge: The Art of Risking Everything. It’s an engrossing exploration of risk and probability, as applied to those who live with making difficult choices. We get into many of its fascinating topics and also discuss what had just...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com OK, I’m back from vacation, leaping out of cold Lake Tahoe and into this particular hot water. The women’s Olympic boxing controversy is an absolute mess from a media perspective. When Angela Carini of Italy quickly tapped out against Imane Khelif of Algeria, it kicked off a cultural firestorm. Initially, some of those outraged by what they witnessed in the match were operating off of incomplete...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com Nate Jones, current NBA agent and insole entrepreneur, has a lot of smart thoughts on our favorite topics. Today we discuss the big news in NBA media: Warner Bros (Turner Sports) is insisting it has the right to match a TV rights deal and the NBA says it doesn’t. Is this about to get ugly? Why must fans be deprived of Inside the NBA? Topics include but aren’t limited to... * The dispute between beloved fan...

I saw NBA Youtube tycoon Jason Timpf out at Vegas Summer League and we got to talking about this exact topic: Do you need to truly love basketball to be a winner at its highest levels? That conversation led to this podcast, which includes Jason’s keen observations on Team USA. Enjoy.. House of Strauss is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com Glass man alert! Our favorite sports media expert has broken news, and so we discuss his stories, plus a range of other topics. To copy Ryan’s notes, here’s our loaded topic docket: * Skip Bayless leaving FS1 * Success after ESPN * Shannon Sharpe’s ascension and impact as a megastar * NBA TV deal scuttlebutt with some informed speculation on big news * New York Knicks owner James Dolan's warnings about...

Cowherd alert! Colin and I did our yearly summer conversation, which I thoroughly enjoyed. We started by discussing the sports media mogul era and of course got into a range of interesting topics. Subjects include but aren’t limited to… * Colin on being not just a businessman, but a business, man * Colin reflects on Barstool’s success * How does Colin know who’ll work out as a podcaster? * Twitter/X is easy; Making content is hard * When is OK to talk politics in sports broadcasting? * Colin...

I’m a fan of Neil Paine’s data driven sports Substack and you should be too. Neil’s got a gift for finding sports mysteries and probing deeper. This conversation went so many places and I could have kept it going hours longer but for the hard out. Topics include but aren’t limited to… * The data driven case for Caitlin Clark getting left off Team USA * If Clark’s teammates are consistently dropping the passes, are the turnovers her fault? * Differences between the WNBA and NBA * Was Tim...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com Freddie’s back, after writing a glorious rant titled F**k the Modern NBA. For once I get to be the guy defending the league (and some of my friends). We also discuss the current potential Biden succession chaos. Topics include but aren’t limited to… * Why f**k the modern NBA? * Why has criticism of the NBA sharpened after the announcement of its big TV deal? Does the money mean the league is on the right...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com This month, Jesse Singal’s beloved Boston Celtics won the NBA championship, and he was made happy forever. In between discussing the 2024 title and his widely hated Boston fan base, we of course talked about The Media. Topics include but aren’t limited to… * Jesse was at the Game 5 Finals clincha (This is how Boston people talk, right?) * We saw Game 2 together at a Boston sports bar. Does the guilty...

Thrilled to have Chris on for the first time. Like me, he’s a former NBA beat writer. Unlike me, he’s the co-host of a successful sports debate show. Chris is a very grounded guy who resisted the life as newsbreaker for his current role as commentator. We get into why he made that choice, his call on LeBron’s 2010 Decision, what it’s like to be repped by Klutch, the Harrison Butker controversy and baseball’s current status in America. Topics include but aren’t limited to… * Broussard was...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.com In this visit from our favorite sports media critic, we stop worrying and learn to follow the WNBA. Or Ryan does. I, like many a casual, mostly track the Caitlin Clark aspect. Seems like she’s…really good? Topics on this pod include but aren’t limited to… * A nerd could have predicted that Caitlin Clark was better than the initial numbers * The decision to keep Clark off the Olympic team is starting to look...