When it comes to ESPN, Dan Le Batard is no stranger to leaks. In the lead up to his exit from “The Worldwide Leader” three years ago, the former Highly Questionable host was the subject of several anonymously sourced reports regarding his uncertain future with the company.
“These people did this to us at the end with a series of strategic, orchestrated leaks,” Le Batard said on Monday’s episode of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz. “It’s obviously to control the narrative.”
So when it comes to Pat McAfee accusing ESPN Head of Event and Studio Production Norby Williamson — who he referred to as a “rat” — of attempting to sabotage his show with leaks in the aftermath of the Aaron Rodgers-Jimmy Kimmel controversy, Le Batard unsurprsingly had some thoughts. But whereas the former Miami Herald columnist believes he was viewed as disposable during his time at ESPN, it’s clear that McAfee already carries a different level of cachet in Bristol.
“This is not some scared insecure journalist in the vanity business who’s interested in respecting authority,” Le Batard said of McAfee. “This is a guy who’s got all his own power and is renting to them. He will be bigger the moment that he leaves there because he was too hot for Disney to handle than he was at any point before that.”
“This is a guy who has got all his own power and is renting from them. He will be bigger the moment that he leaves there…He has nothing to fear here, and that has to scare the hell out of them.”
Dan discusses the pattern of “orchestrated leaks” at ESPN and why Pat McAfee is… pic.twitter.com/aMFXSmjzPa
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) January 8, 2024
Even in Le Batard’s case, he managed to land a reported $50 million deal with DraftKings while building his own media company, Meadowlark Media, post-ESPN. While there are obviously benefits to being at ESPN, including the company’s reach and infrastructure, the reality is that the media landscape is changing in a manner that empowers personalities and talent.
That’s especially the case for McAfee, who had already established a sizable following prior to agreeing to lease his show to ESPN last year. If ESPN opts to part ways with the NFL punter-turned-media mogul, he already knows he’ll have plenty of suitors, allowing him to operate with a level of fearlessness not commonly seen in ESPN talents.
“He has nothing to fear here,” Le Batard said. “And that has to scare the hell out of them when the new media becomes about the Shannon Sharpes and the McAfees and the athletes who aren’t going to tolerate a middle manager or a vice president telling them how to do business when they’re not employees and they don’t need the money.”
[The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz]
