The Yang Slinger: Vol. LXXXVI

OutKick is a wildly popular and successful website that employs some of the crumbiest crumbs in the business. So is it worth taking a job there?

It is not an easy time to enter journalism.

That’s not me expressing an opinion. It’s fact. And if you don’t believe me, or think I’m exaggerating, Google “layoffs” with “NFL Network” or “Sports Illustrated” or “ESPN” or “Washington Post.” Scan the job boards, the help wanted lists.

It’s pretty fucking ugly out here.

And, with ugliness, comes limited opportunities. There are still thousands upon thousands of aspiring journalists entering the workforce each year, seeking gigs in an ever-shrinking marketplace. Last I checked, The Athletic and ESPN weren’t hiring. The New York Times ditched its sports section, and Deadspin (No. 2) closed its doors to start raising rabbits.

Which leads to the grim, sad, painful, real topic of this week’s Substack: Should one apply for a job at OutKick?

Should one swim with the demersal fish?

Odds are you didn’t miss this, but last week—in the leadup to the women’s national championship game—South Carolina coach Dawn Staley held a requisite press conference. It was a fairly run of the mill affair, with questions about an undefeated season and Caitlin Clark and zone defenses, until this happened …

The man asking the question was Dan Zaksheske, a writer, reporter and content creator for OutKick and a dude with a pretty long resume in mainstream media. A 2012 Penn State grad, Dan (according to his LinkedIn page) spent the first 11 years at ESPN serving as a producer on The Sporting Life with Jeremy Schaap. According to a piece he wrote for OutKick, following the 2016 election of Donald Trump he noticed a shift in the philosophy. “The company lost its mind,” he wrote. “‘Stick to sports’ was out the window and left-wing talking points became the norm. And, let me be clear: it wasn’t just the on-air hosts espousing these beliefs. Many of my co-workers behind the scenes expressed their liberal beliefs with impunity. When I offered counterpoints, I was labeled ‘difficult to work with.’ In fact, after an incident regarding my opinion on the Bubba Wallace fake noose ‘incident,’ I was told by management that several colleagues ‘refused to work with me.’ They put me on an undesirable shift and basically dared me to quit.” Dan wrote that his dream job had “officially become a nightmare.” But, because the pay was solid, he sucked it up. Which, in his defense, is something we all do from time to time.

Ultimately, Dan was laid off (along with others in one of ESPN’s endless bloodlettings) and he held some small gigs before, in 2022, OutKick came calling and all his Kimberly Guilfoyle-on-a-unicorn dreams came true.

Wait.

I need to back up. Just for a second.

OutKick, for those who might now know, is a website founded by Clay Travis, a veteran moderate/liberal/Obama-voting conservative journalist who began his career as an attorney, then—in the mid-2000s—switched lanes and started writing for CBS Sports. And Clay … man, Clay was really good. I know that might surprise some to hear (from my mouth), but the dude was a helluva reporter who seemed to fully understand and grasp the culture of Southern football. Why, he’s the author of a book—“Dixieland Delight: A Football Season on the Road in the Southeastern Conference”—that was start-to-finish tremendous, and his follow-up (“On Rocky Top: A Front-Row Seat to the End of an Era”) was good enough to draw a jacket blurb from a certain (cough) former Sports Illustrated writer who looks like Brad Pitt. There was nothing (or at least, little) in Clay’s writing that led to me to think he’d wind up being … well, Clay Travis.

Anyhow, Clay started OutKick (called OutKick the Coverage back then) in 2011 as a right-wing sports news alternative, and the thing took off. If you think about it, the idea was pretty brilliant. There are plenty of (mostly white, male) sports fans who fuckityfuckfuck … just don’t wanna deal with that “other” shit. Put different: Don’t kneel in protest, don’t release a rap single, don’t tell me why you love Obama, don’t wear an Oscar Gamble-sized Afro—just fucking play the game and let me sit on the couch and drink my Miller and eat my Pringles and cry to some Lee Greenwood B-sides. And while that’s not an outlook I share, it’s a popular viewpoint among certain genre of fanatics.

So OutKick The Coverage launched, shortened to OutKick, added Jason Whitlock, lost Jason Whitlock, grew and grew and grew. Three years ago, Clay sold the company to Fox Corporation (Variety wrote that Fox saw OutKick as an answer to the wildly popular Barstool Sports empire), but stayed on as its president and biggest name. Since then, it’s been blowing up.

I’m swiping this from Wikipedia, but the information checks out …

In short, OutKick is a financial success.

So now it’s a few days ago, and Dan Zaksheske is covering March Madness for OutKick. And while a handful of people surely asked why, oh why, would the NCAA grant racist grifters like OutKick a credential, I have little problem with it. Factually, it’s a big site with large readership numbers, and what I (liberal Californian) consider racist grifting someone else might see as, oh, clear-eyed reporting.

I guess.

Anyhow, at some point in Stanley’s press conference Zaksheske tossed out the question about trans athletes competing in women’s sports. It had literally nothing to do with March Madness, nothing to do with South Carolina or Iowa, nothing to do with the moment at hand. I mean, there are a tiny fraction of trans athletes in collegiate sports (32 total—across all divisions. Meanwhile, 480,000 students compete as National Collegiate Athletic Association athletes, according to the NCAA).

Zaksheske and OutKick have maintained it was an important question, but they know it wasn’t. He and OutKick have maintained it needs to be asked, but they know it didn’t. He and OutKick have now said 7,876,443 times—in one form or another—that the mainstream media is afraid to tackle this life-or-death issue, but OutKick’s staffers (well, some staffers) are smart enough to know this is nonsense.

The truth is, Zaksheske asked Dawn Staley about trans athletes because OutKick is—more than anything—a website and entity that traffics in cultural warfare. It’s a place that wants you mad at them, and them mad at you. It wants you to not merely watch the video, but get angry watching the video. It wants you to see how unfair the world is. Why is that big colored fella kneeling? Why are those dykes inside the locker room when the National Anthem is playing? Why is that trans swimmer with the Adam’s apple—the Division III one at the school no one has ever heard of—cheating our precious daughters out of their glory?

And for Staley, Zaksheske’s question was one of the most devilish/conniving media traps ever set. Answer honestly, as she did, and the culture warriors on the right destroy you. Say trans athletes don’t belong in women’s sports, you’re the new Jason Whitlock to the right (Black person who makes racists and xenophobes and homophobes and transphobes feel comfortable in their ugliness). Say nothing, and you’re a coward.

In the aftermath, of course, Dan Zaksheske had his few days in the sun. He did the right-wing media circuit, Tweeted a lot, held up the trophy that was Dawn Staley’s scalped liberal head. It had to be an enormous boost to his OutKick cred.

And yet …

Is this good for him?

Would anyone outside of OutKick hire Dan Zaksheske?

In case you haven’t been reading this Substack since 2022, or in case you missed it, a long time ago I devoted a piece to Bobby Burack, OutKick’s racist media douche.

If the name fails to ring a bell, squeeze the blood out of one of your plantar warts, then boil it in vinegar. That’s Burack—a shit stain on the foreskin of Hitler’s fossilized erectile tissue. He writes to be racist. Or maybe he’s racist to write. He also lives with his parents in Michigan, probably longs to join a militia and watches Alf re-runs on an endless loop. Either way, I’ve never come across anyone (employed by a non-KKK-sanctioned outfit) who is as chillingly hateful and prejudiced with a pen as Burack. If you think I’m exaggerating, here is a quick listing of some recent headlines …

GILBERT ARENAS SEEMS TO HAVE REAL PROBLEMS WITH WHITE PLAYERS

ANTI-WHITE SPORTS MEDIA BIAS COSTS NIKOLA JOKIC HISTORY IN QUEST FOR 4 STRAIGHT MVPS

JEMELE HILL COMPLAINS CAITLIN CLARK RECEIVES MORE COVERAGE THAN BLACK PLAYERS

And while Burack is the DJ Yella of OutKick¹, he’s hardly alone. From the once seemingly-sane Travis spreading all levels of Covid misinformation to women-exploit-rape-for-publicity spokesperson David Hookstead tweeting this level of bullshit to the always dependable Tomi “Beyoncé’s Super Bowl performance was an attempt to prove that ‘black lives matter more’” Lahren to Zaksheske throwing down his nonsense trans inquiry, the website is a one-stop-shopper’s bonanza of lowest-common-denominator white grievance. And it’s hardly a secret. Outside of the tiny conservative media landscape that rubs lotion into its MAGA-poxed back, OutKick’s reputation rests somewhere between O.J. Simpson and bloody diarrhea. Poor writing, little-to-no original reporting, an allergy to accountability, an ordinance to never, ever, ever criticize Herr Trump. Why, people I’ve spoken with who work/worked there describe OutKick life as a constant need to get attention, to get clicks, to get enough people in an uproar to earn a gold star. Clay, the smartest guy in the room, is a nominally involved right-wing celebrity. Gary Schreier, the site’s VP, is apparently an editor’s worst nightmare. Morale inside the Nashville office is low.

However …

To peddle his I-will-never-back-down-even-though-I’m-built-like-Jerry Golsteyn Twitter tough guy spewings, I’ve been told Hookstead makes in the range of $130,000.

To play the role of Goebbels ‘24, Burack takes home (again, an offered educated estimate) between $150,000 and $170,000.

The average starting OutKick writer begins at roughly $50,000 and a dude like Zaksheske pulls down in the $60k range.

In other words, it’s pretty good loot for a declining industry.

So … is it worth it?

Let’s say you’ve just graduated from college, and you’re seeking a job in media. You’re not overly political, but you love writing and there’s an open OutKick staffer position. It sounds promising—$50,000 plus benefits, and you can live wherever you’d like (writers mostly work remotely). You’ll have your own byline, built-in followers, a supportive staff of right-wing lunatics enablers. You don’t want to be at OutKick forever, but it’s a first job.

Again—is it worth it?

Will it provide necessary experience, or tar your career?

Will it boost your resume, or destroy it?

Will it send you on your way, or leave you mired in quicksand?

I reached out to a dozen newspaper and website editors I know—some sports, some general news. I offered anonymity, because few things spark Internet trolls like an angry OutKick writer nursing diaper rash.

And the take was … mixed.

Very.

Very.

Mixed.

On the one hand, a job is a job. And OutKick, for its flaws does some things very well. “It depends on the role really, and the interview,” a longtime sports editor told me. “OutKick has built some success from scratch (and FOX investment), so there's an argument that says the strategy has worked. Someone is responsible. There is talent there.”

Added another sports editor: “I’m a believer that no one who works there (or Barstool, for that matter) has hands that are completely clean, but I think there is a difference between the young blogger doing, say, WrestleMania updates from the weekend and the Bobby Buracks and David Hooksteads who are using the platform to fight culture wars. So let’s consider the first camp. I’d imagine the bulk of them are in the first jobs out of college, which is to say they are walking into the worst job landscape in modern journalism history and have probably heard no shortage of people with established journalism careers hammering into them that they shouldn’t get into the profession because of how rough it is. So are they really going to turn down a job at a national outlet, in their field of choice, knowing full well that the odds of landing those directly out of school are so slim these days? And if they’re just doing grunt work that could run on any number of other sites, is it fair to hold their first employer against them forever when they themselves are not actually doing work in line with the worst elements of that site? I can totally buy that there are young people there who grew up conservative without knowing what exactly that means, who aren’t as red pilled as the people who make that site what it is, who take a job there because it’s a national job and it’s a cool outlet among right wing folks, who may grow out of that as they get older. Are we to hold their 22-year-old selves against them forever?”

On the other hand—yuck. Just, yuck. One editor referred to OutKick as “shtick, a gimmick.” Another, a veteran managing editor, said OutKick’s quality—on a 1-to-100 scale—is somewhere around a four. Which might be high. All these years into his career, Burack still doesn’t seem to know sentences don’t start with numerals. And that commas work a certain way. And that sentence structure is a thing. “My bigger worry would be that the person doesn’t know how to do quality journalism,” the editor said. “Generally, OutKick aggregates and does surface-level, look-at-me analysis that is poorly written.”

The biggest criticism—across the board—was the worry that hiring an OutKick veteran would serve as a slap in the face to any sense of compassion, empathy, decency in your newsroom. That staffers would look at the new person and ask, “What the fuck?” That readers would pick up on his hostilities and ask, “What the fuck?” That OutKick doesn’t just say OutKick. No, it says racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic.

“In theory, the most compelling argument someone in those shoes could make to try and get hired by a legitimate journalism outlet is ‘Hey, it’s a job, it’s what was required of me to succeed there, it’s not really what I want to do or who I want to be, and I’d rather do real work,’” an editor said. “Except in practice, anyone who is willing to do that work and then turn around and proffer that explanation for it is treating truth—the most important aspect of journalism—with such malleability that there’s no way I could ever trust them, which means there’s no way I could ever ask our readers to, either. Hence, it’s impossible for me to hire someone like that. Because the work speaks for itself, and the only subtext that could ever redeem the folks doing it doesn’t make them any more employable.”

As for Zaksheske—whose presence has never loomed larger—I asked seven of the editors how they felt about his job prospects.

None recognized the name.

Ask Jeff Pearlman a fucking question(s)

From: Trouty: Am I wrong In thinking the Angels might be OK this year?: I live in Southern California. I follow the Angels fairly closely. They will not be OK this year. They will lose 105 games. The organization is a mess. Sorry, man.

From NoahZuss: Hi I hope you are well I would like to note to this author and the person I’m sure who is paid to monitor the account Jeff felt the need to direct message me with profanity. Thank you.: Noah—I’m pretty sure you’re the guy who replied to my, “My son is going to Northeastern and I’m so proud!” Tweet with something along the lines of, “Nobody cares.” Which was weird: A. Because I care; B. Because if you didn’t care you wouldn’t have responded; C. Because you’re an actual writer with a pretty long resume. Maybe you were just having a bad day.

Oh, and it was me. Jeff. I monitor my own account. And I curse a lot.

The Quaz Five with … Patrick Montgomery

Patrick Montgomery is an actor, writer and author of "Baseball's Great Expectations: Candid Stories of Ballplayers Who Didn't Live Up to the Hype." You can follow him on Xitter here.

1. Patrick, you're the author of "Baseball's Great Expectations: Candid Stories of Ballplayers Who Didn't Live Up to the Hype." What makes someone want to write about perceived failures and disappointments?: I always enjoyed the radio spots of Paul Harvey, “And now you know the rest of the story.” I always wanted to know the “And?” after the stories I was told. All the players in the book still had meat on the bone of their story to be told, and for each it was a way for them to put into their own words years after the spotlight faded.

2. Who do you consider the player from your book who most didn't meet expectations? And why?: It would have to be Brien Taylor. I thought he was going to be better for the Yankees than Ron Guidry. People forget Guidry and his 25-3 1978 season. Taylor was the left-handed answer to the cross-town Mets and Dwight Gooden. So many bad decisions led to his demise. Yes, he was injured, but the circumstance, mystery, and sad results are the most haunting, as well as the way his life seemed to detour.

3. Is it hard approaching people and saying, "Hey, I'm writing a book about disappointment. And I've come to you!"? How do you navigate it?: Surprisingly not so much. I didn’t approach each player that way, it was more of a looking back, how do you think it went for you, and why? How do you feel about your baseball career, years removed, and are you okay with it? The idea of the book was not to look down on the player, their career, but to answer the questions honestly and let fans inside the game, and how it can feel after the career for the player. There were few regrets from the players, and a sense of happiness and pride for their baseball opportunities prevailed.  

4. Who was your most challenging/difficult interview? Why?: Brian Cole, he tragically died just as his star was ascending in 2001. Albert Pujols, thought Cole was a HOF potential player, his teammate Heath Bell even went as far as saying his potential was even more than that, as truly an All-Time great. The Mets were planning their Major League outfield around him, and he could have been a catalyst for a nice Mets run with David Wright, and Jose Reyes. The way he died, so quickly, and with so many questions, lawsuits with Ford made the healing even harder for his friends, teammates, and family. There were emotional stains, angst, and even more than 20 years later bitterness, resentment, even some outlandish conspiracy thoughts with the Brian Cole story. He could easily be an entire book to himself.

5. You play a football referee in the NF video, "Clouds." Um, what? How did that happen?": I enjoy life and letting serendipity guide me. I have been an actor for years, I have my SAG card. How could I not take a part like that? Fun story, I couldn’t get myself to call him “NF” so I called him Nathaniel, it was funny to see his reaction to that. A quiet, respectful guy. The Director before the first take said to give NF a hard push in the shot, I guess it surprised him because it sent him flying onto his back, he hopped up like WTF, and the Director yelled cut and for me to be more gentle. The next take, instead of the planned staged punch, Nathaniel belted me hard in the jaw for real. We both kind of laughed, and we were all square for the next 15 or so takes.

Bonus (rank in order—favorite to least): Jim Zorn, Six Flags Great Adventure, kids kicking the back of your airplane seat, hemorrhoids, Atlanta Braves hats, Luciano Pavarotti, Drake, Claudell Washington: 1. Great Adventure, but shout out to Action Park!. 2. Jim Zorn—Loved him and Steve Largent. 3. Claudell Washington, batted .308 for the 1988 Yankees. His 1980 Topps card was disturbingly amusing. 4. Luciano Pavarotti—Meh, give me Bernadette Peters. 5. Hemorrhoids, better than kidney stones. 6. Atlanta Braves hats, the white/royal blue Phil Niekro style was nice. Anything is better than an Astros or Red Sox cap. 7. Kids hitting the back of my airplane seat. I already hate to fly, so it is throwing fire on fire for me. 8. Drake—I only have him as my least favorite because I have his Cell Phone song now in my head.

A random old article worth revisiting …

According to this piece from the June 24, 1963 Springfield Leader and Press, a new book will solve America’s gang problem. So … goodbye gangs. Hello reading!

The Madness of Tyler Kepner’s Grid …

So unless you’ve been living beneath a pebble beneath a rock beneath a big hunk of cheese, you’re aware of Immaculate Grid, the daily game that’s drawn thousands of nerdy sports fans (guilty!) to its ranks. And while the NBA grid, NFL grid, NHL grid and WNBA grid are all fun, this game is at its best when it comes to baseball—where the names are endless and the transactions ceaseless.

Over the past few weeks I’ve often discussed the grid with Tyler Kepner, the Athletic baseball writer. And now, for kicks, every week I’m gonna feature one of Tyler’s bonkers grid results. He’s the ultimate baseball geek (I say this with great affection), and his outputs blow my mind.

So …

Tyler thoughts:

• Chad Moeller played for the Yankees in 2008, when I was a Yankees beat writer. A couple of years later I wrote a really fun story on him where he gave little insights on pitchers that only a catcher would know. He played all over, which was the hook to the story, so I remember his teams well.

• Ron Washington, we all know Wash. I remember him as a utility guy with the Twins in the 80s.

• Juan Rincon had one of the greatest quotes of all time after giving up a big home run in a season-ending playoff loss to the Yankees in 2004: "Nobody wants to be in my pants right now."

• Steve Sparks is a knuckleballer I covered with the Angels in 1998, now an Astros broadcaster. We share Immaculate Grid scores every day.

• Mick Kelleher was a Yankees coach when I covered them, utility infielder in the 1970s and 80s. I remember him as a Tiger from 1982 Topps.

• Felipe Lira gave up Eddie Murray's 500th home run in 1996.

• Andrew Lorraine pitched for the Mariners in September 1998, when I moved to Seattle for a job covering the team. He had brief stints with seven teams and I decided to remember them because he's great for this game.

• Gary Scott went to Villanova. I was in high school in the Philly area when he was called up to the Cubs, which got a lot of attention.

• Sandy Martinez was the Cubs' catcher the day Kerry Wood pitched his 20-strikeout one-hitter in 1998.

This week’s college writer you should follow on LinkedIn …

Gianna Terrarosa, Seton Hall University

I’m pretty sure, with this entry, Gianna becomes the first freshman scribe to ever be noted on this Substack. But I really loved her recent piece for for the Setonian, headlined, LOOKNG INTO SOME OF THE FIRST WOMEN OF THE SETONIAN. Though neither flashy nor groundbreaking, it’s a really lovely, smart look back to the late 1960s, when women were first allowed into the then-college and the newspaper staff started filling up with females.

Writes Gianna:

“During the research process for this article, it became clear that the female-dominated majors when Seton Hall first became co-ed were education, nursing and (to a lesser extent) English. Seton Hall is now 54% female-identifying students, a majority; and they can be found in every major and discipline the university has to offer.  

“In celebrating the 100th year of the Setonian, we must not forget to commemorate these trailblazing women who contributed so much to Seton Hall’s newspaper nearly from the moment they were allowed to attend the institution. Their efforts have laid the foundation for the Setonian as we know it today, and the passion they had for it will enable this newspaper to last for years to come.”

One can follow Terrarosa on LinedIn here.

Bravo.

Journalism musings for the week …

Musing 1: If the story of the Colorado GOP kicking a reporter out of its state assembly doesn’t piss you off, I’m not sure what will. Sandra Fish, a veteran scribe who has chronicled the state for decades, was told to leave because state party chair Dave Williams doesn’t like her work. Really. It’s sorta like, “Yeah, bad news, buddy—you’re not gonna like everything journalists write about you. That comes with a free press.” Plus, Fish is a pro’s pro. Have some respect.

Musing 2: I found the aftermath of South Carolina’s win over Iowa in the women’s basketball title game to be a merging of weird and troubling. Weird because, even though the Gamecocks wrapped an undefeated season, 95 percent of the attention went to Caitlin Clark. Troubling, because, were South Carolina mostly white and Clark Black, such would not be the case.

Musing 3: For the second-straight week, I’m throwing mad props at Maya A. Bodnick, an opinion writer for the Harvard Crimson. This time, it’s her fantastic column for the Harvard Crimson, A WITCH HUNT IS TARGETING BLACK HARVARD FACULTY. Writes Bodnick …

Musing 4: I’m late to this, but what a shameful story out of Kentucky, where a legendary local basketball coach was fired after 38 seasons at Wayne County High School—and received word of his dismissal via letter. Jessica Umbro at at WKYT website did an excellent job relaying the sad saga. Wrote Umbro: “Despite winning 22 district titles and nine trips to the state tournament. Coach Woods says that didn’t matter. He says the superintendent had a grudge against him. ‘When you make enemies as a coach, they’re usually for a lifetime,’ Woods said. ‘they don’t last for six months, and they’re gone.’ As news spread, those who knew Coach Woods expressed their shock at the decision.”

Musing 5: There are bad headlines, there are awful headlines. And there’s this, from the Associated Press …

Musing 6: Speaking of O.J., would an O.J Simpson biography sell? Like, a deep, deep, deep dive into this life, birth to death? Or are people over it?

Musing 7: Dawn Staley gets it, times 1,000,000. Following the Gamecocks’ title, the South Carolina coach did one-on-one interviews with the local reporters who cover her team for well over a half hour. Bravo.

Musing 8: The new Two Writers Slinging Yang stars Richard Hoffer, former Sports Illustrated senior writer …

Quote of the Week …

1. Least-talented or worthy.