Richard Deitsch

Toronto

Host at The Sports Media Podcast With Richard Deitsch

Father of twins; fan of Toronto, NYC and Buffalo; Writer @theathletic; host of Sports Media Podcast; Sports Illustrated/Prime Time Sports alum.

Articles

Caitlin Clark, Fever nearly match viewership records for LeBron James preseason games on ESPN

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

Caitlin Clark continues to produce record viewership for ESPN, and now the Indiana Fever star joins an exclusive sports TV company with LeBron James. The WNBA's first nationally televised exhibition game, which featured Clark returning to Iowa as a member of the Fever against Brazil's national team, averaged 1.3 million viewers on ESPN. Only two of ESPN's 57 NBA preseason games since 2010 have drawn a higher audience, according to Flora Kelly, ESPN's vice president of research.
What is the future of 'College GameDay' after Lee Corso? Richard Deitsch's media mailbag

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

Welcome to the 41th media mailbag for The Athletic. Thanks for sending in your questions via the website and app. There were close to 100 questions, so this is the second of two parts. Here was Part I. Note: Submitted questions have been edited for clarity and length. How should programming for "College GameDay" change after Lee Corso retires? Does that open the door for something or someone new? - Justin F. Let's say Rece Davis did leave "GameDay" for (Fox's) "Big Noon Kickoff." Who replaces him?
'Sovereignty to rule!'

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

With Sovereignty handling the slop at Churchill Downs to win the 151 st Kentucky Derby, we offer seven takeaways on NBC's Derby coverage from the dry comforts of our home. 1. Race caller Larry Collmus, the first person to call the Kentucky Derby for 15 straight years, delivered the goods down the stretch. Here are the words he chose - incredibly precise:"Journalism and Sovereignty, nose to nose, down to the last 1/16 of a mile.
NFL Draft viewership soars on Day 3 with 4.3 million viewers, the most watched to date

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

Who benefited most from Shedeur Sanders lasting until the fifth round of the NFL Draft? The NFL's television rights-holding partners. The Day 3 NFL Draft coverage across ESPN, NFL Network, ABC, ESPN Deportes and digital channels averaged 4.3 million viewers based on fast nationals from Nielsen. That is the most-watched Day 3 on record and up more than 40 percent over last year's final day.
Submit questions for Richard Deitsch's next Sports Media Mailbag

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

By Richard DeitschHow would you feel if the NFL Draft extended from three days to four? Which college football game on August 30, 2025 would you like to see ESPN's Lee Corso don his last headgear selection? Will Rory McElroy's Masters win lead to more people watching golf? Which people in sports do you admire as a leader and why? Have questions about anything in sports media? Leave them below and senior writer Richard Deitsch will answer some in an upcoming mailbag.
2025 WNBA Draft draws 1.25 million viewers, its second-largest audience ever

4 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

Paige Bueckers might not have topped Caitlin Clark when it comes to viewership, but she did take out her fellow UConn alum Diana Taurasi. ESPN announced on Tuesday that the WNBA Draft averaged 1.25 million viewers. That's the second most-watched WNBA Draft in history, only behind the 2.4 million viewers who watched Clark, Angel Reese, Cameron Brink & Co. last year.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. becomes a Blue Jay for life, cementing a legacy in Canada

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

TORONTO - About 10 minutes after the formal ceremony to announce a contract extension that will keep him in Canada for 14 more years, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and his extended family made their way to centre field at the Rogers Centre. The group was about two dozen deep, including Guerrero's wife, Nathalie, and 8-year-old daughter, Vlaimel. Wearing his No. 27 Blue Jays jersey over pink dress pants, the $500 million man posed for photos with his closest people.
Rory McIlroy 'has his masterpiece,' and CBS can celebrate a memorable broadcast

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

It was about 70 minutes after one of the most memorable Masters broadcasts in history, and Sellers Shy, the lead producer of the event for CBS Sports, was asked what he planned to do in Augusta for the rest of the evening. His voice was hoarse. The pollen in Augusta had taken its toll. He was ready for a drink.
'It's immortality in golf'

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

Golf is a sport rich with iconic numbers - 82 wins for Sam Snead and Tiger Woods; 18 majors for Jack Nicklaus; 15 sub-60 rounds shot in PGA Tour history. So here's a golf broadcasting number that is really impressive:This will be the 70th consecutive year CBS broadcasts the Masters, the longest-running sports event on any one network. "This relationship is super deep," CBS Sports president David Berson said of the partnership with Augusta National Golf Club.
Put the women's NCAA Tournament championship game on ABC in prime time

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Richard Deitsch

Start times matter in sports when it comes to championship game viewership. The World Series, the NBA Finals, the Stanley Cup Final, the NCAA men's basketball title game and college football national championship game, just to name a few mega-events, all commence in a prime time (on the East Coast) television window. The Super Bowl airs slightly earlier (roughly 6:30 p.m. ET) but concludes in the middle of prime time.