JNPO: Inside the launch of The Athletic’s MMA vertical
(Note: This is a free edition of the show. Just click below to listen or right click to save the mp3. You can also find this show in our free show RSS feed.)
Every since Whizzered broke the news that The Athletic was adding an MMA vertical, I was intrigued. Who would they hire? What type of approach would they take? What would it feel like?
Less than a week into it, we already have an idea, but I wanted to know a lot more.
On this edition of Josh Nason’s Punch-Out, I talk to two of the inaugural staff — managing editor Dann Stupp and staff writer Shaun Al-Shatti — in two separate conversation to get a baseline of what brought them to this project and what readers can expect in the weeks ahead.
Among the topics covered:
– What did Dann learn in previous roles that he hopes to bring to The Athletic?
– What attracted him to this opportunity?
– Does he expect a friendly competition between the staff writers considering their previous roles at other media companies?
– Why did Shaun leave MMA Fighting for this opportunity and what scares him about it?
– How do they overcome challenges in getting MMA fans to pay for another form of content?
Get all that and more in this hour-long edition of JNPO. Just click below to listen:
Since 2011, Josh has been a contributing editor to Wrestling Observer/F4WOnline.com and also hosts the Punch-Out podcast. He has also written for Fight Magazine, Bloody Elbow, Bleacher Report, and other websites. He's a 2000 graduate of the University of Maine, worked in pro sports, and once was an indie ring announcer.