What goes around comes around…
Three years back when former Kansas City Star sports scribe Jason Whitlock imploded and left town amidst a flurry of acrimony and accusations (ranging from editor Mike Fannin having an affair with a married subordinate to W nearly landing a gig as co-sports editor at the newspaper) he managed to convince 610 Sports Nick Wright and a handful of sports bloggers that he was leaving town with a $2 million three year deal.
Which maybe seemed reasonable were Whitlock to have been able to pyramid his part time blogging on Fox Sports into some additional radio and/or TV gigs.
Never happened.
Leading Craig Glazer to conclude that talk of his pal Whitlock making the big bucks was untrue.
“I know many online bloggers with names as big or bigger than Whitlock’s, including ex KC Star guy Jeff Flanagan,” Glazer wrote. “And blogging for Fox just doesn’t pay that much. At this point in time, it is mostly a sideshow to help support one’s career on TV/radio…And without more on-air noise, there is no payday.”
At which point the Scribe did the math:
“Most guys like like Jeff Flanagan are getting paid per article/blog. From maybe $200 to $1,000. If Jason gets near the top of that pay, at four to eight articles a month that’s around 50 grand a year. That said, he would have to be top of the key. And Whitlock is not a big national household name in sports, like Jay Glazer.”
Well, times have maybe changed.
With Fox Sports set to launch it’s new Sports One cable network Saturday, the word was that Whitlock at long last might finally be on the verge of getting some face time on the 24/7 sports channel. A channel that plans to fill its hours with everything from NASCAR, boxing and UFC to Major League Baeseball and college sports.
So hey, why not Whitlock? ESPN used to air curling in its early days.
In other words, it was a direct torpedo strike into the broadside of the all-mighty ESPN.
Like ESPN’s gonna take something like that lying down…
Instead ESPN’s been on the move snatching up Keith Olbermann first and then Nate Silver – the acclaimed baseball and political analyst and statistician from the New York Times.
Nate Silver
Now comes word ESPN has lured Whitlock away from Fox on the very eve of its big launch.
Which comes as little surprise to Bob Zuroweste, Whitlock’s former boss at 610.
“I gotta say, Whitlock is the world’s best self-promoter,” Zuroweste says. “He totally believes that he’s the world’s best at what he does, no matter what he does. And he doesn’t give up because of his self confidence. He really believes he’s the best in the world and anybody else who doesn’t is stupid.”
Now about that seven-figure paycheck Whitlock was looking for three years back…
Flannagan’s as big an online name as Whitlock? That’s Glazer’s dumbest quote yet
Wow, coming from a fat guy, if Green Peace came through the room, they would gbo on full alert and be pushing his ass all the way to closest ocean, hoping to save this whales life!
I can hear them now, “WET YOUR HANDS before you touch his skin, he only has 5 minutes to live outside of water…. push, push, push, push….” Hopefully they could save his life without getting his new kicks wet!
Sure, Flanagan’s not a big name now, but if he parlays his connections into a plum part in Glazier’s soon-to-be-a-major-motion-picture, he will be huge.
““I know many online bloggers with names as big or bigger than Whitlock’s, including ex KC Star guy Jeff Flanagan,”
Glazer truly knows very little about sports. Holy shit. Whitlock has been on fucking Oprah. Bob Costas quoted him on Monday Night Football. Whitlock used to be on tv when he was with ESPN on the Sports Reporters. Deadspin and The Big Lead pretty much post about him anytime he takes a dump.
I’d like to see how long Whitlock and Oberman would last in the same room. Both of those guys have brobdingnagian egos and frequently start yapping at the slightest offense.
I read somewhere that Oberman can’t talk about politics, it is in his contract.
Emasculation is thy name Keith, welcome back sh*theel. I think we are gonna need some new urinal cakes in the sh*tter pal, lets get after it!!
I wish I could answer this question by simply saying “fat chance” (pun intended), but in this idolatrous society in which we live where far too many Americans are totally absorbed by sports and the overpaid athletes they’ve given us, it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if Mr. Whitlock had somehow managed to land a sweet deal with ESPN and soon will be doing “The Bristol Stomp” right there in front of his couch (once he wakes up from his nap). Hey, I’m just glad he’s no longer associated with The Star. Compared to him, Sam the Messenger and the Gregorian Chanter are halfway tolerable these days.
all you guys at the bottom of the breeding line wish you had whitlocks
money and name. Maybe then you guys would not have to sell boxes…
clean pools….have police records (hahahaha) and not be the
losers like you are.
good luck. wish upon a star. Maybe you’ll be half the personality
whitlock is. He’s now with espn…probably takes over Douglas’s place
making the big buck while you guys drive beater trucks and try to
act like you’re something living in section 8 housing!!!!!! hahahahaha
Harlinator…… you have
such a ….
way with words, ….must be the
faux j school sheepskin
you taut along with the
rest of your……. faux life.
Must be rooted in the ….anger you feel
on the bottom
looking up
at us who are doing what ……you claim to do, ……but inside
you know you’re a …….farce.
And you wonder why you’re so….. disliked.
I await your next syllable with great expectation.
hey cheech…get $10,000 cash and I can prove everything!
the house…the lifestyle…the j degree…whatever you need
to see proven….get your cash together…we’ll give it to
an impartial party and you’ll see that Harley is 100%
on the money. Winner takesall…..if you’ve got any money
jealousy…hate….whatever consumes youand the rest of the
haters on kcc…i’ll put my money where my mouth is.
get a collection from the boys here…we’ll see who
has the good life.
and see the realstory on those thatclaim to be so
rightful and good upstanding people (get it boys….
)
bring it on….i’m ready!!!!!!
hope to see Wilson/stupid dave/chuckles the sad clown…
cheech…..mike…..etc all poolyour bucks and lets get down
to the real story and the real business of who’s bullshitting
and who’s the real deal.
lets go ….if you’ve got the balls!!!!!
none of you got a pot to piss in…so I’mwasting my
time….
good luck getting $100 together between the kcc
boys!!!!!!
Good for Jason. As for who was bigger, Jason or Jeff, or course Jason. He had much more national attention and had been on several network TV sports shows as a guest as well as Jim Rome many times. Jeff was pretty much local, but had a couple books and a few other national spots. So yes Jason was the bigger name. Now maybe he gets that bigger payday. He’s good as what he does, so is Jeff. All the best to both.
I still like Whitlock. You have to give him credit. He was the ONLY person who take on Carl Peterson in print. He also called Pioli correctly from the get-go.
I believe everything Glazer said about Jeff Flanagan being bigger than Jason Whitlock. Just one question: Who’s Jeff Flanagan?
I don’t care if he is fat or not, that doesn’t really effect a person’s ability to write. It’s just that Whitlock is just not very good or interesting. He is not insightful. He basically takes a ridiculous antagonistic take on a story or issue to make up for his inadequate ability to make a story interesting any other way. He’s basically a worse version of Stephen A. Smith (who also sucks balls). So sick of “reporters” interjecting themselves into the story trying to make it controversial. I will now go all “Whitlock” on this.
His constant pulling of the race card is just getting tired. Good luck making the “Black Grantland.” No friggin way he compares himself to Bill Simmons? Oh, no you didn’t!!! What a joke. I mean, Whitlock the new black Bill Simmons? No. Fucking. Way. And for all the race bs he spouts he has no problem dishing his own racism out, a la making fun of Asians last year with the whole Jeremy Lin scoring streak. Straight for the dick joke? Stay classy Whitlock. Stay classy.
The only reason Whitlock is even relevant still is because Costas quoted his ridiculously obvious article on Jevon Belcher after his murder/suicide, which basically stated that if Belcher didn’t have a gun the murder/suicide would not have happened…. Really? NO shit. How insightful. Blaming “gun culture?” Take the easy road on that one? No investigative reporting or anything, just blaming “gun culture” and you get on Costa’s bullshit segment on SNF. Wow. How about the dude was an asshole and a coward and leave it at that.
The only thing bigger than Whitlock is his ego. A predict a giant (insert Whitlock weight joke here) fail.
someone thought he had some talent or he would not be getting on
espn. See boys…when you’re digging holes…repairing TV’s…..cleaning
pools or yards…that’s not gonna get you anyplace.
Jason…congrats …hope things work out well for you at espn.
these guys left in the dust behind who try to take you down aren’t
going anywhere…except to the mailbox for their disability checks!!!hahahaha!
There’s no question Jason has some talent or he wouldn’t have made it at the Star or Fox Sports either.
The question is, how much talent. Two million dollars worth blogging on Fox the past three years? Obviously not.
Just as obviously, Whitlock wanted Cowtowners to BELIEVE that’s what he would make.
This probably isn’t anywhere near a seven figure deal either – the Fox gig was probably five figure – this may take him up to six.
And if he can pyramid it into something more, who knows?
Just because “someone” thinks that he has talent and will give him a job doesn’t equate that he does. If you want a sports analogy, as we are on the subject, just look at how many first round first draft pick busts there have been over the years. Point is he’s just not interesting. The race card has been played out, and played often by Whitlock. No substance, no style, and you can’t continue to play the race card and then make racist comments. You lose your credibility, and that is what journalism is based on (or used to be).
I don’t get the disability check reference. Are you making fun of the disabled? I don’t get the joke.