Episode 195: Throwbacks with Michael Weinreb

Author, journalist and screenwriter Michael Weinreb joins Brian to talk about newsletters, carving out a writing career in the digital world, the intersection of sports, politics and culture and the value of works in progress. We start out by talking about Michael’s time writing for Grantland and how that site was almost our generation’s version of The National Sports Daily. Michael talks about what it was like to write for Grantland and be a part of a site that let writers indulge in the topics they wanted to write about, This evolves into a broader and frank discussion about a writer’s life and how Michael carves out writing and a career space in this current media environment. The main topic is Throwbacks, Michael’s excellent newsletter on Substack. He describes how it began during the COVID pandemic, how and why he started writing though a historical lens, and how forcing himself to write every week has helped him in his other writing projects. Links Throwbacks: A Newsletter About Sports History and Culture Move Fast and Break Things (2012) Michae’s books on Amazon Grantland The Greatest Paper that Ever Died The Bronx is Burning One Party Town podcast The Genius: How Bill Walsh Reinvented Football and Created an NFL Dynasty by David Harris (the best thing Michael’s read lately) Philip Bump columns at The Washington Post (the best thing Michael’s read lately) Support Follow us on Instagram. Apple Podcasts Spotify