Madness: The Rise and Ruin of Sports Media

Sportsline anchor Hebscher (The Greatest (Athlete You’ve Never Heard Of)) delivers a spirited history of modern sports journalism, blending personal insight from his 45-year Canadian broadcasting career with sharp industry analysis. Beginning with early-20th-century radio announcers who described baseball games they didn’t attend, Hebscher traces a lineage of media manipulation from ethically compromised newspaper coverage to AI-generated content. Along the way, he highlights pivotal figures and institutions including Howard Cosell, whose polarizing presence made Monday Night Football a cultural juggernaut, and Sports Illustrated, which elevated sports journalism with quality long-form reporting before succumbing to cost-cutting measures. Hebscher’s analysis is often nostalgic but never rose-tinted, critiquing 20th-century sensationalism as readily as the performative punditry and click-driven narratives of contemporary coverage. The strongest sections link sports media’s decline to broader journalistic trends, with shrinking newsrooms and vanishing local coverage leaving good stories untold. Hebscher’s sobering conclusion—that it’s a golden age for fans but a bleak one for journalists—rings true. The result is a perceptive and entertaining chronicle of an industry that’s weathered its fair share of home runs and strikeouts. Agent: Brian J. Wood, Brian J. Wood Literary. (Nov.)