Breaking In with Kevin Fishbain: A Sports Media Podcast

In episode 69, Kevin chats with Adam Schein, host of "Schein on Sports" on SiriusXM Mad Dog Radio. He also hosts "Schein Time" on YouTube on weekday afternoons and provides in-game updates for the NFL on CBS. Schein is in the WAER Hall of Fame, the radio station at Syracuse where he helped launch a focus on sports talk radio. You'll hear about Schein's childhood as a sports fan, how he first learned he had a voice for broadcast as a second grader, how he carved a talk show path at Syracuse, and his first-ever solo hosting gig at WFAN. Schein has been talking sports on Sirius for more than 20 years and offers great advice and insight into the industry. Hear how Adam Schein broke in.

Interested in learning more about our sponsor, the NSMA, and how it can be a resource for young sports journalists? Head to nationalsportsmedia.org

In episode 68, Kevin chats with Christine Brennan, national sports columnist at USA Today and author of the New York Times bestseller "On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women's Sports." A pioneer in sports writing, Brennan's origin story begins in Toledo, where her diary entries read like AP game stories. She went on to Northwestern to study journalism, and an internship at her hometown paper led her to the sports section, where there were few women. She then interned at the Miami Herald which led to her first job, when she covered the Florida Gators. You'll hear stories about what it was like being the only woman in a locker room, how Brennan navigated the attention, what drew her to sports and her dad's influence, and the work ethic that's guided her career. Hear how Christine Brennan broke in.

Interested in learning more about our sponsor, the NSMA, and how it can be a resource for young sports journalists? Head to nationalsportsmedia.org

In episode 67, Kevin chats with Brittany Ghiroli, The Athletic’s senior writer covering Major League Baseball. She’s been covering the MLB for nearly two decades, and got her start with an MLB.com internship. You’ll hear how she grew up a die-hard sports fan, got her start in journalism at Michigan State, created an internship for herself in Orlando, and landed with the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays for MLB.com. Ghiroli’s origin story includes great examples of making the most of opportunities that eventually got her to the Orioles beat. Now, the 2019 Washington DC sportswriter of the year from the National Sports Media Association is an authority on the MLB. Hear how Brittany Ghiroli broke in. 

Learn more about our sponsor NSMA and what a membership can do for sports journalists at nationalsportsmedia.org.

In episode 66, Kevin chats with Ross Dellenger, senior college football reporter at Yahoo and the National Media Association's national sportswriter of the year. Dellenger has been with Yahoo since 2023 after five years covering college football for Sports Illustrated. He got his start in his hometown of Biloxi and worked his way through newspapers in the southeast before landing at the Clarion-Ledger. You'll hear about his brief stint doing news as an AP writer, covering Auburn, what it was like writing about college football in Mississippi, and a "welcome to the big leagues moment" covering LSU. Dellenber is now an authority on the biggest news in college football, and he had an impressive route to get there. 

To learn more about NSMA, our title sponsor, and the perks to being a member, head to nationalsportsmedia.org. Hear how Ross Dellenger broke in.

In episode 65, Kevin chats with Sean McDonough, broadcaster for ESPN and the Boston Red Sox Radio Network. McDonough has been at ESPN since 1989. He's currently the voice of the Stanley Cup Finals and he can be heard on one of college football's biggest games every Saturday. He calls a College Football Playoff semifinal before voicing the national championship for ESPN Radio. He also is the play-by-play broadcaster for ACC Big Monday on ESPN. During baseball season, McDonough can be heard calling Red Sox games, and that's where his origin story begins. You'll hear how being the son of Boston Globe legend Will McDonough helped shape Sean, what led to his big break in getting the Red Sox play-by-play gig, and what he's learned along the way. McDonough was named the National Sports Media Association broadcaster of the year, and the NSMA is this podcast's title sponsor. Head to nationalsportsmedia.org for more information. Hear how Sean McDonough broke in.

In episode 64, Kevin chats with Ryan Glasspiegel, media and entertainment reporter at Front Office sports. Prior to his time at FOS, Ryan wrote for the New York Post. One of the top sports media reporters in the country, Ryan explains why the sports media world is still undercovered, and offers his perspective of the landscape for those trying to break in. His own origin story includes working for a furniture store, starting his own blog, getting a gig with Sports Illustrated after a chance run-in, and how that all led to his opportunity at The Big Lead. Hear how Ryan Glasspiegel broke in.

In episode 63, Kevin chats with Joe Healy, writer at D1Baseball, co-editor of SEC Extra, D1Baseball's premium SEC subsite, and co-host of Highway to Hoover, D1Baseball's SEC-focused podcast. Healy has been writing about college baseball since not long after college, and he joined D1 Baseball in October 2022. You'll hear about Healy's unique journalism path, which included time at a tech job that allowed him nights and weekends to go write about college baseball for a variety of websites. Ahead of the College World Series, Healy's story is one of perseverance and passion for a relatively niche sport, but it's got him to Omaha every summer. Hear how Joe Healy broke in.

In episode 62, Kevin chats with Chris Herring, senior lecturer at Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism and author of "Blood in the Garden: The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks." Prior to his job at Northwestern, Herring covered the NBA for ESPN, his second stint with the network after writing about the NBA for them from 2016-21. Herring's first job out of college? The Wall Street Journal, and in this episode, you'll hear how he got his start in journalism in high school and used opportunities at Michigan to make connections and eventually land an internship at WSJ. With the Knicks in the NBA Finals, Herring has great perspective on what this means for the city. Hear how Chris Herring broke in.

In episode 61, Kevin chats with Paul Tenorio, senior writer at The Athletic covering soccer and author of “The Messi Effect,” available now. Before becoming one of the country’s authorities on soccer, Tenorio studied journalism at Northwestern, and you’ll hear about his internship at the St. Louis Dispatch and what he learned from trying to write about Jim Edmonds. Tenorio’s first full-time job was at the Washington Post, a dream for many journalists and he’ll detail how he got the job and what he learned getting started. Ahead of the World Cup, you’ll want to hear how Paul Tenorio broke in.

In episode 60, Kevin chats with Jon “Boog” Sciambi, television voice of the Chicago Cubs on Marquee and national radio voice of “Sunday Night Baseball” on ESPN Radio. Sciambi is also a play-by-play broadcaster for ESPN’s college basketball. His origin story begins as a high school baseball player who admired the Phillies’ Harry Kalas before he started doing sports radio at Boston College. Sciambi will detail a journey that goes to Bradford, Pennsylvania, including a one-night stint at a donut shop, and explain how he worked his way up in Miami from running the board to calling Marlins games. Hear how Jon “Boog” Sciambi broke in.