Sports Online
NBC Sports Gold To Launch IndyCar Pass Package
“It will feature over 200 hours of programming, and is designed for some of the sport’s biggest fans.”

Published
4 years agoon
By
BSM StaffNBC has been betting on sport-specific packages lately to boost subscriptions to its over-the-top streaming platform NBC Sports Gold. The company has already launched Premier League Pass, Track & Field Pass, and two golf services: PGA Tour Live, and the lifestyle and instructional programming-focused GOLFPASS. Now NBC Sports Gold is giving open-wheel racing the same treatment.
Today NBC revealed that it is rolling out IndyCar Pass. It will feature over 200 hours of programming, and is designed for some of the sport’s biggest fans.
IndyCar Pass will provide coverage of practice sessions and qualifying events. It will also offer some shoulder programming for races carried on NBC.
What IndyCar Pass will not provide is streaming coverage of any races.
While IndyCar Pass is aimed at appealing to racing super fans, Awful Announcing’s Andrew Bucholtz says there is reason to believe not all of them will be happy to hand over the $49.99 NBC is asking for each month.
It’s interesting that NBC is promising to bring “television-quality production” to the qualifying and practice sessions, and that may be the main selling point for this. However, not all fans are going to be happy about many of these sessions moving to a premium subscription product “on an exclusive basis,” as a lot of this content was previously available on YouTube or Periscope broadcasts for free (albeit with lower production quality). And this won’t be a solution for those who want to watch live races, as they’ll still need access to NBC and or NBCSN.
Andrew Bucholtz, Awful Announcing
NBC Sports Gold will utilize the new platform around the Indianapolis 500. NBC is promising that fans will get 50 hours of Indy-specific coverage around the May 26 event.
Sports Online
Vox Media Layoffs Hit SB Nation Hard
“Not only are many writers and podcasters out, Awful Announcing reports that SB Nation’s coverage of hockey and soccer have taken major hits.”

Published
2 days agoon
January 20, 2023By
BSM Staff
More layoffs hit Vox Media on Friday. The company laid off 7% of its workforce. That amounted to nearly 130 employees. A number of SB Nation employees took to social media to announce they were victims of the cuts.
Yup, got laid off today. Gonna miss working with all the talented folks at @secretbase but I know they'll keep kicking ass.
— Ryan Nanni (@celebrityhottub) January 20, 2023
Not sure what's next! But if you wanna chat about something, email me at ryan.nanni@gmail.com
Some personal news… pic.twitter.com/PDkuI0hPmm
— Rob “Stats” Guerrera (@StatsOnFire) January 20, 2023
I've been let go by @SBNation / @voxmedia after 7+ years.
— Hector Diaz (@iamHectorDiaz) January 20, 2023
SB Nation had all-world talents throughout those years and it still does. I’m just happy to have played a small role in it.
Today I have been laid off. I always thought I would leave Vox and SB Nation of my own accord, but today they chose to move away from hockey coverage.
— Steph Driver (@StephaliciousD) January 20, 2023
I don't know what is next for me, I'm a little shellshocked tbh, but here we are. Steph Driver is on the market. https://t.co/Ncg3cZzlsX
i was part of today's layoffs. we did a lot of good shit in my 5+ years at sb nation and i'm really proud.
— hayleykat (@HayleyKArcher) January 20, 2023
social teams do so much more than people realize. they truly have their hand in every single part of a company. invest in your social team, then trust and believe in them. https://t.co/CDuHsRlTY2
Well, to this point I've dodged the emails and calls but apparently my luck has run out. My time at Vox has come to a close.
— Anthony F. Irwin (@AnthonyIrwinLA) January 20, 2023
I have been extraordinarily blessed to head the pod team @LakersSBN, a site I've helped grow into the monster it is today.
Today I have been laid off. I always thought I would leave Vox and SB Nation of my own accord, but today they chose to move away from hockey coverage.
— Steph Driver (@StephaliciousD) January 20, 2023
I don't know what is next for me, I'm a little shellshocked tbh, but here we are. Steph Driver is on the market. https://t.co/Ncg3cZzlsX
Woke up to an email that I’m part of the layoffs at Vox. Shout to my amazing coworkers @hmfaigen @PaulHudrick @AnthonyIrwinLA @BradyKlopferNBA @StatsOnFire the rest of the team and crew @Liberty_Ballers looking forward to what comes next!
— Jas Kang (@jaskang21) January 20, 2023
Hey fam. Kelly here. Just needed to say a couple of things. As you now know, Vox Media has decided to no longer support the existence of Broad Street Hockey. Why? Can't tell you.
— Broad Street Hockey (@BroadStHockey) January 20, 2023
I honestly don't know what this means. For the site. For our writers. For me. I don't know.
Not only are many writers and podcasters out, but Awful Announcing also reports that SB Nation’s coverage of hockey and soccer has taken major hits. Entire team sites have been gutted and/or shut down.
The Twitter account for Massive Report, an SB Nation blog covering the Columbus Crew, reports that the site is no longer hosting any MLS team blogs.
We have been made aware that VOX (which owns SB Nation) will no longer support MLS sites due to the economic climate. We are not sure what this means going forward and are working behind the scenes to figure out what's next. https://t.co/xVi7QjLkjc
— Massive Report (@MassiveReport) January 20, 2023
Jim Bankoff, CEO of Vox Media, told staffers that the publishing industry is facing a “challenging economic environment”. The cuts are being made to adjust to those realities.
Vox Media’s union addressed the layoffs in a tweet. The organization says it is “furious at the way the company has approached these layoffs, and are currently discussing how to best serve those who just lost their jobs.”
Sports Online
TikTok Testing Podcast Feature
“It also isn’t clear how podcasters would be able to take advantage of TikTok’s reach with their current shows.”

Published
3 days agoon
January 20, 2023By
BSM Staff
TikTok wants in on podcasting. According to Business Insider, the app is going about things very differently from competitors in the social media space.
Facebook and Twitter failed to gain traction by adding traditional podcasts to their platforms. TikTok is testing a feature that would allow users to experience content on the app as audio-only.
Video is at the core of TikTok’s appeal. It is hard to see how offering the content in an audio-only mode appeals to the average user. It also isn’t clear how podcasters would be able to take advantage of TikTok’s reach with their current shows.
Every iteration of media struggles with attracting a younger audience. If podcasters can crack the code, TikTok could be what opens up a whole new audience to them. While more than a third of Americans use TikTok, an Edison Research study found that 61% of Americans between the ages of 12 and 34 use the app regularly.
While many sports entities have relationships with TikTok, what they currently put on the app isn’t necessarily designed to be consumed as audio only. If TikTok podcasts catch on, it could open up a whole new world of content creation for sports brands.
Sports Online
Barstool Says Bussin With The Boys Podcast Banned From Radio Row
“According to rankings from Chartable, Bussin With The Boys is the 4th most-listened-to football podcast in the country.”

Published
3 days agoon
January 20, 2023By
BSM Staff
The long-running feud between Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell continues and it sounds like Glendale, Arizona is becoming ground zero for their companies’ latest standoff.
According to a tweet and subsequent blog post from Portnoy, Bussin With The Boys — a podcast hosted by NFL players Taylor Lewan and Will Compton — has been barred from entering Radio Row during Super Bowl week.
In a tweet, Compton — who has previously claimed he was kept out of the league in 2022 because of his association with Barstool Sports — purported to show a message from an NFL official that claimed “We credential current players but if this person has a contract with Barstool then we won’t be able to accommodate”.
Check out this message received a few minutes ago on getting access to Radio Row @ the Super Bowl
— Will Compton (@_willcompton) January 19, 2023
I don’t know why I still get surprised but you’d think that 9 years in this game & trying to represent it the right way would be worthy of credentials
The hate for Barstool is DEEP pic.twitter.com/fsmoaqS5Bw
Portnoy has been removed — sometimes forcibly — from NFL events over the course of the past few seasons. Barstool Sports led a large protest at Gillette Stadium during the 2017 season opener after the “Deflategate” scandal. The company also manufactured 70,000 towels with an image of Goodell with a bright red ball nose to insinuate that he is a clown.
Goodell has previously claimed – under oath – that he is not aware of a ban of Portnoy, even though Portnoy and members of the Barstool Sports staff have been removed from league events and have even been arrested at league headquarters during a protest.
According to rankings from Chartable, Bussin With The Boys is the 4th most-listened-to football podcast in the country, trailing only Pardon My Take, New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce, and The Herd with Colin Cowherd. It is the ninth most popular sports podcast according to those same rankings.