House of Strauss

Casey Keirnan started from the bottom of standard NBA media before becoming a big success on Youtube. Today his channel has 203K subscribers and it’s growing. What secrets does this man hold? On the pod, we discuss:* How Casey turned his life around after nearly dying from a drug overdose in 2005* Why people get addicted* Is it okay that Youtubers rip off reporters? * Why he works as a Youtube creator* The allure of mystery in a video* What the formula for content success is* Why athletes aren’t best at telling their own stories 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

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.houseofstrauss.comWosny Lambre and Nate Jones know a lot about the sneaker industry, a massive business that casts a large shadow over the NBA. In this podcast, which was one of my favorites, we discuss:* Upshot of Kanye West’s public breakup with Adidas and Gap. * How Kanye West, a non basketball player, became a uniquely powerful sneaker salesman. * How much of fashion is bu…

All hail returning HoS champion Rob Henderson, astute analyzer of human behavior. In this episode, we look at the Work From Home revolution’s massive impact on our lives, plus discuss Our Decade of Tinder. Some topics broached: * Why Zoomer athletes got sad* Young people are detaching from sports* Whether I’m right or wrong about Work from Home* Are cities in trouble?* Can rurals make a comeback?* Looking back on Derek Thompson’s critique of American “workism” * Looking at this Tinder retrospective and others* Is game the great equalizer that Tinder prevents men from leveraging?* Was it better when men actually had to ask women out in real life? 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

Daman has two public roles: Helping out Ben Thompson with Thompson’s world-beating tech newsletter, Stratechery, and troll-fully supporting the Lakers on Twitter. He’s a brilliant guy, with a mind trained for optimization, so I hit him up when I have business questions. This discussion is in that vein. In it, we discuss: * Why do tech bros love narrated articles? * How Daman trained his mind to listen to pods at super fast speeds * Why are journalists afraid to go subscription model?* Going for Likes vs. Going for Dollars* Who’s winning the streaming wars? * On whether the Binge Model was a mistake * How does the NBA create events within its regular season? * On if ESPN is too big (a monopoly on tv rights) to fail* The NFL bullying the NBA* Is Woj too big to fail? * LIV as player empowerment in golf* Could LIV happen in golf? * Daman vs. Kevin Durant on the concept of leadership* Did Deadspinism kill the concept of character in sports? * KD as man without a country 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

First, a quick announcement: As of today, we’re number 1 in sports newsletters. Who knows how long that lasts, but I’m thankful to the subscribers who got us there, all within the span of a year. Though I almost always paywall narrated articles, I’m unlocking this one to celebrate, in the spirit of generosity/discoverability. Thanks again, readers and listeners. 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

First Things First host Nick Wright stopped by and didn’t hold back. We discuss:* How Colin Cowherd’s analogy game ruined local talk radio.* How Zach Lowe’s greatness led to failed imitators. * Nick’s take on Redick vs. Russo. * Nick’s take on Richard Deitsch vs. Skip Bayless.* Why Kevin Durant underestimates Nick. * Nick gets honest on his insecurities among writers. 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

Matt Johnson is press coordinator for Direct Action Everywhere, the organization behind the animals rights protests that are disrupting Minnesota Timberwolves playoff games. I asked Matt about the protests and about Wolves owner Glen Taylor, the factory farming tycoon whom the protests are aimed at. Matt’s is a subculture I’m not entirely familiar with, so I wanted to ask some questions and get his perspective. What’s it like to trying to outfox the authorities at Target Center? What are the moral questions involved in his work? We address these topics and a lot more. Enjoy. 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

For the longer pods, I’m trying my best to find the most interesting people I can, even if their purview isn’t necessarily sports. Culture writer Rob Henderson, who’s gone from Red Bluff to the military and onto to the Ivy League, is one such person, and he’d qualify even without that idiosyncratic biography. Rob’s a great writer and one aspect of his focus is, of all things, television. We get into why and also what he’s thought about after close reads of Mad Men, Succession, and The Sopranos. Think you’ll enjoy this one. 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

I recall Michael Moynihan saying that the benefit of working in journalism is that you can talk to anyone who fascinates you. It’s a good thing to remember, especially since, for all the modern era’s depravations, striking up a conversation is easier than ever. A few weeks back, I idly bought Chuck Klosterman’s new book on the Nineties and found myself fascinated by his insights and framing. Then, I figured I’d reach out and see if he wanted to chat. He was nice enough to oblige and the talk was great. Here’s our conversation, which I’ve decided to un-paywall. 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

The Fifth Column co-host + Paloma Media co-founder stops by to discuss HBO’s Winning Time and finding success between ideological worlds. 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

Free audio version of this article is up. 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

Non sports content here…Top level Substacker Freddie DeBoer is back on HoS, I’m happy to say. We covered a lot of ground in this one, such as:* The meaning of the San Francisco school board recall* How and why the system is discriminating against Asian students* Why the post-Gawker NYC media set can’t digest political rebukes* Why are many of these people more anti-anti-woke than woke?* Why don’t writers talk about writing on podcasts? * Why Freddie doesn’t do Strunk and White concision style* The lack of sincerity in media Twitter 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

Narrated version of this article. 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

Erich Schwartzel is a veteran film industry reporter who might have just written the most important book of the year (He’s a friend, but hey, the book is getting rave reviews). If you’re curious about the inside story of Hollywood getting coopted by China, by all means order “Red Carpet: Hollywood, China, and the Global Battle for Cultural Supremacy.” In this episode we discuss, among many other things: * China’s longterm thinking vs. our corporations’ short term thinking* What surprising kinds of content China’s government bans in films (Such as Jamie Foxx’s penis)* Does Erich respect the CCP? What are their strengths? * Why the NBA is different from Hollywood 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

Last time, we went serious. This time, we’re all over the place. We talked about, among other things:* Why Tjarks is an NBA lifer and I am not. * How basketball’s necessary unselfishness ironically inspires more selfishness.* Sports and warfare. * Kawhi Leonard and Gregg Popovich. * Chet Holmgren. 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

Here’s the free audio version of this article. 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

Ross Barkan is an extremely sharp journalist, independent thinker and seasoned Substacker. Offline we got to compare/contrasting political vs. NBA media and decided to make a podcast for ya out of it. I asked: Which world, political or NBA media, is more corrupt? 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

A pod about making sports television with Michelle Beadle. In it, we discuss: * Leaving the ESPN viper’s nest* Her uncommon comfort on camera vs. doing a pod* The time LeBron (allegedly) tried to get her fired* The odd ESPN/NBA tradition of women ousting one another* What a producer does to make a TV show pop* Beadle on The Beatles 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

Hey audience. Substack superstar Matt Taibbi stopped by HoS to share his no bullshit perspective on, among other topics: * The journalism industry* His critics * Whether sports are a net positive in life* His hypothetical existence as a Celtics beat writerI’m paywalling this episode sort of as a test run. Over the last few months I’ve been running the podcast for free and need to actually compensate my ever capable producer. Hypothetical pod plan going forward would be to fall into a “free pod, paid pod,” rhythm, with some wiggle room depending on circumstance. Also there could be more audio plans afoot in the near future. Stay tuned. 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

We are joined by Colin Cowherd, the preeminent sports talker in all the land. On this podcast we discuss:* Aaron Rodgers’ hamartia * Why Colin succeeded after leaving ESPN* What’s wrong with ESPN* Political misalignment between media and fans* Why younger sports talk personalities are struggling to find an audience 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

On this HoS Pod, we are visited by favorite guest Amin Elhassan and NBA agent Nate Jones. On the docket: * Real time reaction to allegations of Suns owner Robert Sarver using racist and sexist language.* Why NBA players need the hated media.* My article on Adrian Wojnarowski disseminating a social media résumé to potential sources. * Why Nate thinks the Warriors should get Ben Simmons. 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

Nancy Rommelmann is an excellent author, reporter and conversationalist. Here, we talk about the time she interviewed John Wayne Gacy, murderers, my Rachel Nichols article, Portland, and whether an adherence to Internet narrative is causing real life to collapse. Okay, I’ll admit it. My podcast isn’t really a sports podcast, least of all this one. 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

So, to warn the sports contingent of subscribers, this one isn’t a sports podcast (Even if we let Jesse talk Celtics to close the episode). It is, however, about the broader issue of how to deal with criticism. Our friend Jesse was the target of an insane amount of it, in response to his covering of fraught issues. Now he’s quite successful independently. Here’s his experience and his advice… 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

At age 33, with a wife and young son, The Ringer NBA writer Jonathan Tjarks was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. He’s reacted with remarkable stoicism to this news, even if he didn’t feel all too stoic at first. Jonathan’s a fascinating guy and someone who’s totally unique in sports media. I loved getting his perspective on life and hope you will too. 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

Wosny Lambre of The Ringer fame stops by the HoS to discuss the prompt, “Is Twitter real life?” I’m not sure we fully answered that question, but we got into a whole range of issues I wasn’t expecting, including Wos’ takes on AOC, Nancy Pelosi, and whether he’d actually broach his misgivings about Obama’s presidency to Barack in person. Obviously, if you aren’t much for the politics, this pod could be outside your wheelhouse. Still, I’d recommend it for all because Wos just happens to be so damned engaging, thoughtful and bullshit-free. Enjoy. 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

House of Strauss pod is back! This time, we welcome one of the best writers on the internet, Freddie DeBoer. We discussed, among other things, the fall of Deadspin in relevance and what that meant. Hope you enjoy it. For those who don’t know, future podcasts are going to hinge on one question as a jumping off point. In this case, the question is, “Why didn’t Drew Magary become the next Bill Simmons?” Happy to hear your theories on that one below. 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

Hey audience. So I keep hearing from people that, these days, they prefer the audiobook experience to reading. Rather than mourn how we’ve degenerated into philistines or whatever, I’m here to serve the damned need. Since this article appeared to strike a nerve, I wanted to start with it and make it free for all listeners. Future narrated articles will indeed require a subscription, though. And yes, this is my voice doing the reading, for good and for ill. I take a sick amount of pride in doing my own stunts. It’s your money and I intend to work hard for it. Thanks for reading, listening and supporting the site. 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