Sports insiders continue to get more attention and money as 24/7 content takes over the sports media business. However, Fox Sports NFL insider Jay Glazer reviles the competition fans have created between reporters.
Early in his career at CBS, Glazer drove himself crazy trying to be first to every scoop. Around the time Twitter made news even more instantaneous, Glazer tapped out. He told The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz that it helped his mental health immensely.
“As crass as I am, my feelings get hurt easily,” Glazer explained. “I don’t have the mental health capacity to deal with all that stuff.”
Glazer shared that being a one-man team at Fox also contributed to his stress and anxiety. Fox execs encouraged him to pursue being an on-air talent and developing that skillset rather than staying solely in the world of news-breaking.
“I’ve tried to change the way I see my role, what my job is,” Glazer said.
Glazer befriended the likes of Adam Schefter and Chris Mortensen and understood it was all for the betterment of the sport and that it was OK to get beaten with breaking news, so long as his bosses were happy.
“I kind of realized a long time ago, we all kind of need each other,” Glazer said.
Glazer now has multiple side projects working with veterans, training with mixed martial artists, and creating content around mental health and depression. He is still doing well at Fox and breaking plenty of news.
The parasocial way NFL fans pit insiders against one another is not unique to football, but it clearly can be damaging.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.