This Week in Startups

E1003: The Athletic CEO & Co-founder Alex Mather is building a paid online sports media publication, shares insights on attracting investors in a seemingly dying industry, managing 500+ remote writers, creating interesting angles through unique coverage &


Listen Later

1:05 Jason intros Alex Mather
2:08 Why did Alex launch a paid subscription publication in a seemingly dying industry?
4:32 How & where did The Athletic start? What was their thesis?
6:32 What was early feedback like from investors?
15:57 Changing approach from ad-based to subscription-based writing
21:34 Why the NHL & MLB are great for The Athletic
22:43 How do they manage young writers?
26:52 What % of their spend goes to editorial?
33:00 Managing 500+ writers
36:20 What are some ways they manage engagement?
39:08 Twitter's impact on journalism
43:39 Scouting new talent & capitalizing on layoffs
50:10 What has the inflated valuations of BuzzFeed & Vox done to the digital media industry?
55:20 How is The Athletic handling Apple's app-store subscription explosion?
58:20 Apple's impact on the boom of incredible products in our society and how The Athletic translates that to editorial
1:01:56 Alex asks Jason: "Mayor of San Francisco or owner of the Knicks?"
1:03:47 Alex shares his thoughts on the NBA/China situation
1:12:01 How does Alex go about re-activating users who have churned?
1:12:42 What does The Athletic think about the prevalence of sports gambling in America?
1:14:55 Who is the most interesting NBA player right now?
1:16:01 Jason & Alex pick who they would start an NBA franchise with today
1:17:50 Jason plays "good tweet/bad tweet" with Alex
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

This Week in StartupsBy Jason Calacanis

  • 4.2
  • 4.2
  • 4.2
  • 4.2
  • 4.2

4.2

1,241 ratings


More shows like This Week in Startups

View all
a16z Podcast by Andreessen Horowitz

a16z Podcast

1,000 Listeners

The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch by Harry Stebbings

The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

508 Listeners

The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | Investors by SaaStr

The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | Investors

172 Listeners

Invest Like the Best with Patrick O'Shaughnessy by Colossus | Investing & Business Podcasts

Invest Like the Best with Patrick O'Shaughnessy

2,293 Listeners

Equity by TechCrunch, Mary Ann Azevedo, Kell, Theresa Loconsolo, Rebecca Bellan, Kirsten Korosec, Devin Coldewey, Margaux MacColl

Equity

344 Listeners

Y Combinator Startup Podcast by Y Combinator

Y Combinator Startup Podcast

206 Listeners

All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg by All-In Podcast, LLC

All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg

8,768 Listeners

ACQ2 by Acquired by Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal

ACQ2 by Acquired

188 Listeners

The Logan Bartlett Show by by Redpoint Ventures

The Logan Bartlett Show

190 Listeners

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups by Conviction

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

128 Listeners

The Ben & Marc Show by Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz

The Ben & Marc Show

121 Listeners

BG2Pod with Brad Gerstner and Bill Gurley by BG2Pod

BG2Pod with Brad Gerstner and Bill Gurley

432 Listeners

AI + a16z by a16z

AI + a16z

32 Listeners

Lightcone Podcast by Y Combinator

Lightcone Podcast

20 Listeners

Training Data by Sequoia Capital

Training Data

37 Listeners