The Big Lead

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The Big Lead
Type of site
Blog
Available inEnglish
OwnerMinute Media
Created byJason McIntyre
David Lessa
URLwww.thebiglead.com
CommercialYes
RegistrationOptional
LaunchedFebruary 24, 2006; 18 years ago (2006-02-24)
Current statusActive

The Big Lead is an American news blog. The website mainly covers sports news, although it also touches on a varying degree of other news topics ranging from politics to pop culture. Launched on February 24, 2006, it was co-founded by former sportswriter Jason McIntyre and his college friend David Lessa. In June 2010, McIntyre sold the site to Fantasy Sports Ventures for "low seven figures."[1] Gannett purchased Fantasy Sports Ventures on January 24, 2012, integrating the site into the digital network of USA Today.[2]

As of 2009, the site averages over 8 million monthly page views.[3] Since 2012, McIntyre has hosted a weekly radio program on Fox Sports Radio named after the website, The Big Lead With Jason McIntyre.[4]

In March 2019, Gannett sold The Big Lead to Minute Media, owner of 12up.com; McIntyre and several other writers were laid off.[5]

Format and content

The site is usually updated ten to fifteen times a day between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

NCAA men's basketball tournament. Readers are allowed to vote one time for each match up until a winner is decided. In 2008, ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews beat out actress/singer Jessica Simpson.[6] For the 2009 edition, Megan Fox was crowned champion narrowly over Andrews.[7]

Gaining notoriety

The Big Lead first gained notoriety after it obtained interviews with syndicated sportswriter and ESPN Poker commentator

Kansas City Star and Fox Sports columnist Jason Whitlock. The interview with Whitlock generated controversy when he proceeded to trash his then-ESPN colleagues Scoop Jackson and Mike Lupica,[8] the fallout of which ended Whitlock's association with the network.[9]

The Colin Cowherd incident

On April 5, 2007,

Speak for Yourself with Cowherd & Whitlock.[12]

References

  1. ^ Weprin, Alex (June 2, 2010). "The Big Lead Sold to Fantasy Sports Ventures". Adweek. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  2. AllThingsD
    . January 24, 2016.
  3. ^ Bryan Armen Graham (December 11, 2009). "Best of the Decade: Movies, TV Shows, Books, Blogs". Sports Illustrated. Time Inc. – via CNN.
  4. ^ "The Big Lead with Jason McIntyre". Premiere Networks.
  5. ^ Marchand, Andrew (March 14, 2019). "Sale of The Big Lead leaves website founder Jason McIntyre out". New York Post. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  6. ^ "2008 Culture Bracket". The Big Lead. Fantasy Sports Ventures. Archived from the original on 2010-01-05.
  7. ^ "2009 Culture Bracket". The Big Lead. Fantasy Sports Ventures. Archived from the original on 2010-01-05.
  8. ^ McIntyre, Jason (September 22, 2006). "Oh Damn, Did Whitlock Really Say That? A Q&A with Jason Whitlock". The Big Lead. Fantasy Sports Ventures. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  9. ^ Richard Deitsch (March 12, 2008). "Anonymous No More". Sports Illustrated. Time Inc. – via CNN.
  10. ^ McIntyre, Jason (April 9, 2007). "On Cowherd, Our Site, and the Ombudsman's Swift Response". The Big Lead. Fantasy Sports Ventures. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  11. ^ Schreiber, Le Anne (April 8, 2007). "Cowherd's 'Attack' on blog: 'Zero tolerance'". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  12. ^ Draper, Kevin (May 26, 2016). "All Takes Matter Signs Blogger To Join Colin Cowherd And Jason Whitlock". Deadspin. Retrieved October 27, 2019.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Big_Lead&oldid=1162565600"