In 2018, the US Supreme Court struck down a law that prohibited sports gambling outside of Nevada. In the years since, more and more states have legalized sports betting, and sports media has fully embraced 'the line' as content. Steve Rubenfaer, CEO of BettorTakes, walks us through the trends in the industry and outlines his BettorTakes app -- a product that analyzes your betting history to make you a better bettor.

The video game industry did $235 billion in revenue in 2022, and that number is expected to jump to $321 billion by 2026. Six of the 20 best-selling games in '22 were sports titles, and two of the top 7 in sales are produced by Electronic Arts, or EA. Ray Almeda, a former gaming journalist, is now the Global PR Lead for EA's sports portfolio, overseeing the NHL and PGA TOUR franchises, among several others. He joins the podcast to talk about his career path, the scope of his duties now, the mind-bending technology behind the games, and where he thinks the gaming industry is heading.

You're watching a tournament on Golf Channel, and a celebrity drops by the booth for a visit. Maybe you're watching Live From early in the week at a major championship, and Dustin Johnson or Rory McIlroy joins the announcers on set. Ever wonder who sets that up? Alex Russell is part of a two-woman team at NBC / Golf Channel responsible for contacting and booking those guests, as well as maintaining communication with golf's governing bodies. In this episode, Alex explains how it's all about personal relationships and trust. She also tells a few stories about her father, Mark Russell, who spent 40 years with the PGA Tour until his retirement in 2021.

Dan Ballister is a Naval Academy grad and former Surface Warfare Officer who has diverse experience in business. He oversaw digital media for the NBA as part of 20 years in digital media and internet advertising. He tells the story of how a compliment at an Army-Navy tailgate turned into The General's Hot Sauce, a brand that creates employment opportunities for Veterans and donates a meaningful percentage of its profits to help military and Veteran families.

As a kid growing up in Miami, Alex Gimenez dreamed of working in baseball. That dream carried him to Cornell University, where he faced a crossroad: pursuing a career in broadcasting, or choosing a path that would lead him into a front office. Now the Manager of Major League Operations and Professional Scouting for the Boston Red Sox, Alex recounts how his love for the game developed and how his entrepreneurial spirit left a legacy for aspiring broadcasters who followed him at Cornell.

My guest on this episode is a 7-time Emmy winner as a sports journalist. A three sport star in high school, he played college football and later had a brief stint in minor league baseball. Today, he teaches media and production at the college level while also hosting a nationally syndicated podcast and running youth sports camps, and is prominently featured in a recent Netflix documentary. By any measure, that’s a full life. Now, what if I told you he was born without legs? Dave Stevens is my guest on Media Credentials.

Previous episodes of "Media Credentials" have covered directing live studio shows (with Eric Rutledge) and producing live events (with Ray Jacobs). Now, a new combination -- directing live events. Peter Esposito started his broadcasting career at a small college in New England, moving to an entry-level position at ESPN, and then joining Golf Channel at the network's inception. Golf has taken "Spo" all over the country and around the world as he "paints the picture" for the viewers at home. We talk about his upbringing in a tiny corner of Massachusetts, his introduction to the big leagues in Boston, his path to Bristol and then Orlando, and the nuances of directing golf versus other sports.

My guest on this episode is a hockey guy, but like most hockey guys I’ve met in my career, he’s also a golf guy. Ray Jacobs is the senior coordinating producer for the National Hockey League’s production arm, a staff job he took in 2023 after 20-plus years on the road as a freelance golf producer. We touch on that familiar theme -- freelancing versus staff -- and delve into his experiences at golf’s major championships and the Olympics, and why he ultimately left the road life. He explains how remote production has taken some of the fun out of sports TV, and turns the tables to ask me a few questions. Plus, memories of our time together on the Korn Ferry Tour, and some of the sneaky great cities we got to visit.

With over 40 years of experience in the NFL and nearly 30 years with the PGA Tour, Rick Odioso has collected some stories. He's the Media Director for the Valspar Championship, while also freelancing as a statistician for the NFL on FOX, the Tampa Bay Rays, and the Tampa Bay Lightning. As the former PR Director for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Rick managed media relations for luminaries like Doug Williams, John McKay, and Steve Young; as a statistician and spotter, he's shared the booth with legendary broadcasters like John Madden, Pat Summerall, Dick Stockton, and Dewayne Staats, among others. Fun stories here about all of these characters, plus an examination of our industry and advice for newcomers.

Kristi Hujik is a certified health coach and Senior Producer for PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM. We shared newsrooms together for over two decades at both ESPN and Golf Channel, a bizarre overlap in our careers that neither one of us can truly explain. Kristi talks about her journey in sports media, starting at a local radio station in Pennsylvania and continuing to Bristol and Orlando. We discuss common connections and random pathways, how a phone call or a chance encounter on an airplane can alter the direction of our lives. I also dedicate this episode to a former ESPN colleague who had a significant impact on both Kristi and me.

For many in sports media - particularly those who work behind the scenes - freelancing is a way of life. Staff jobs are often hard to come by, even more so in the post-Covid 'gig economy.' Julie Hoddy forged a long career as a freelancer in sports television before pivoting to a corporate role outside the realm of sports. We talk about her transition from road to office, her fondest memories of gigs at Golf Channel and the Big Ten Network, among others, and her advice for women who might be contemplating a career in media.

Nathan Strack is the Production Designer for the Pinehurst Resort and Country Club. Pinehurst is one of the most prestigious golf complexes in the United States, home to nine golf courses and the host site of numerous major championships, including the 2024 US Open. Nathan talks about his experience there, how his golf background meshes with his skills as a graphic designer, and why Pinehurst is the ultimate golf destination.

Dan Pearson is a veteran sports PR executive with experience in college athletics, Arena Football, the XFL, baseball, and more. A longtime Central Florida resident, he continues to work in semi-retirement as a sportswriter for local weeklies. Dan is a storyteller, and offers sound advice for those considering a career in sports media. Great stories here about the raucous days of the Orlando Predators, and the now-vanished Boardwalk and Baseball theme park.

Marc Daniels has been the Voice of the UCF Knights for nearly 30 years, and hosts a daily radio show on Orlando's 96.9 The Game. We discuss the explosive news in college football regarding conference realignment, and how sports other than football might be affected. We also delve into UCF's entry into the Big 12 this fall, and the impact it will have for the athletic program.

George Galante joined the Orlando Magic as a PR intern while still in college. Nearly 30 years later, he is still part of the team. As the Senior Director of Communications, he's a managing editor for the team's media guide, a daily contributor to game notes, a coordinator of interviews for players and coaches, and a stat guru who travels with the team. As he puts it, his department is the gatekeeper between the Orlando Magic and the local and national media. In this episode, we talk about how the NBA has changed during his career, how the Magic have grown and improved recently, and his career path -- which includes an unexpected foray into minor league hockey.

My guest on this episode is my former Golf Channel colleague Justin Ray, who is now the Head of Content for Twenty First Group, a company that bills itself as a "sports intelligence agency." From their website: “Performance analytics enables us to drive sporting success for athletes, teams, leagues and investors, and enable brands, broadcasters and rightsholders to tell unique stories to their fans." Justin and Twenty First Group help those entities turn data into an action plan.

Eric Rutledge got his start as a TV sports director in college, and eventually made his way to Golf Channel, where he spent nearly 20 years, primarily doing studio work. He explains what a director does, and we go deep into all the different jobs in the control room, and the remote production truck. Eric currently directs live golf for PGA TOUR LIVE, the tour’s streaming service, but his day job finds him in the role of educator. Eric teaches a class at the Dan Patrick School of Sportscasting at Full Sail University, a specialized school for entertainment media and emerging technologies located in Orlando. He shares his philosophy on teaching, and the fulfillment of watching his students grow.

Mike Bianchi is a sports columnist for the Orlando Sentinel and one of the most influential voices in the Southeast. His 20-plus years with the Sentinel coincides with a lengthy career as a sports radio host in Orlando, and he was also a regular TV talk show panelist with me in the old days of Sun Sports (now Bally Sports Sun). A proud native Floridian, Mike talks about his early writing influences, his studies at the University of Florida, and his stops at newspapers in Gainesville, Cocoa Beach, and Jacksonville before coming to Orlando. We cover a little bit of everything -- college football, the NFL, the NBA, golf, and Major League Baseball. Mike presents his take on the current state of the newspaper industry and where sports journalism is headed, and shares memories of Tom Coughlin, Steve Spurrier, and many other luminaries he's covered. Don't miss the story of how (and why) we shaved his head on live television.

Keith Hirshland is an Emmy-winning TV sports producer whose path started in Hawaii, passed through Orlando as he helped launch Golf Channel, and now finds him in the producer’s chair for live broadcasts of the upstart LIV Golf League. LIV is backed by the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia. On June 6th, 2023, the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour announced that they were going into business with the PIF, a move that has been termed a "merger." It's not that simple. While the scope of this historic agreement is still developing, it was apparent that my conversation with Keith needed an update, and he was gracious enough to come back for a second chat. The result is the first ever two-part episode of Media Credentials -- a few minutes dedicated to the seismic shift in professional golf, and a longer dive into Keith's lengthy career as a TV producer and author.

Michael J. Whelan is an Emmy-winning former television executive, a veteran of CBS and HBO Sports, who was a driving force in the creation of Golf Channel. He’s also living proof that sometimes the story behind the executive bio is complicated. In this episode, you’ll hear about his biggest events, including Wimbledon, the Olympics, and the Buster Douglas - Mike Tyson fight in Tokyo in 1990. Mike also describes the monumental task of getting Golf Channel on the air, a frantic effort in a very short time frame… he also goes deep into his own struggles with mental health, and more recently, his bouts with cancer. Raw and unfiltered, Mike Whelan takes us in a slightly different direction on this episode of Media Credentials.