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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Kelsey McKinney

Arts And Culture

You Don’t Have To See Everything In The Museum

Giri Nathan

Doug Gottlieb reacts while coaching the Green Bay Phoenix.

College Basketball

Doug Gottlieb Is Immersed In The Grim Men’s Lifestyle

Brandy Jensen

Life Lessons

I Will Take An Annoying World Over A Sterile One

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<div>Abigail Segel is a contributing writer at Defector. She is also an editor for The IX Soccer and the Equalizer. Her work has been published in the Guardian and the Montreal Gazette.</div>
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Abigail Segel

USA's forward #9 Ally Sentnor celebrates scoring her team's first goal during the SheBelieves Cup football match between USA and Japan at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, California, on February 26, 2025.

Soccer

Emma Hayes Shows Us The USWNT She Believes In

Dave McKenna

Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr. High School boys basketball coach Louis Wilson

High School Sports

High School Basketball Team Forfeits Season Over Violation, Is Still Eligible For State Championship

Israel Daramola

Steph Curry dribbling the ball in a game against the Orlando Magic.

Steph Curry Still Has The Nuclear Button

Matene Toure

‘Nickel Boys’ Deserves Best Picture


<p>charismatic megafauna (they/them)</p>


Sabrina Imbler

Clark's anemonefish​ Amphiprion clarkii in a bubble-tip anemone Entacmaea quadricolor

Creaturefector

Clownfish Fatten Up Their Best Buddies To Upgrade Their Homes

Dennis M. Hogan

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - FEBRUARY 19: People including researchers from Chicago area universities gather on the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) campus to voice concerns about the potential loss of federal funding for medical research on February 19, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. The researchers are worried about the future of their projects as the Trump administration cuts grant funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Politics

The NIH Cuts Are Part Of An All-Out War On Higher Education


<p>Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.</p>


Dan McQuade

Boxing

The Tale Of The Early-Round KO Of Muhammad Ali’s Champburger

Barry Petchesky

There Are Other People In The World

Tennis

With Everyone Watching Women’s Sports, The WTA Tries Another Rebrand

David Roth

Twitch CEO Dan Clancy attends TwitchCon 2024 San Diego on September 20, 2024 in San Diego, California.

Podcasts

Streams And Nightmares, With Nathan Grayson

Defector Staff

A camera operator stands by as director Rouben Mamoulian speaks with Greta Garbo.

Staff Chat

Lights, Camera, Staff Chat! Let’s Talk Movies.

Billy Haisley

Pedro Gonzalez 'Pedri' of FC Barcelona competes for the ball with Julian Alvarez of Atletico de Madrid during the Copa del Rey semi-final Leg One match between FC Barcelona and Atletico de Madrid at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on February 25, 2025 in Barcelona, Spain.

Pedri’s Got The Whole World At His Feet

Ray Ratto

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 12: Former NFL Player Tom Brady looks on prior to the NFC Wild Card Playoff between the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on January 12, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Nuisance Is That Which You Cannot Escape

<p>Becky Ferreira is a science reporter based in Ithaca, N.Y. She writes <a href="https://www.404media.co/author/becky/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.404media.co/author/becky/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1740083778769000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3_mk31dNhas5lklZb38a6k">The Abstract</a>, a weekly science column for 404 Media. Her book <em>First Contact</em>, about the search for alien life, <a href="https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/becky-ferreira/first-contact/9781523527755/">is available now.</a></p>


Becky Ferreira

Science

Which Pests Shall Inherit The Earth?

Sarah Brouillette

A collage of covers of books. A Court of Thorns and Roses, Barbarian Lover, Fourth Wing, Ice Planet Barbarians, The Serpent and the Wings of Night, and The Games Gods Play

Alien Pleasures

Lauren Theisen

Zack Ostapchuk #38 of the Ottawa Senators and Moritz Seider #53 of the Detroit Red Wings battle during a game

A Quick And Dirty Guide To The Eastern Conference Wild Card

<p>Columnist. Author of many <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Drew-Magary/e/B001JS8R52/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1">fine works of literature</a>, including <em>Point B</em>. Handsomest man in the world.</p>


Drew Magary

Food

Primanti Bros.: The Defector Review

Patrick Redford

A canyon and waterfall in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

The Great Outdoors

What Are Public Lands For?

Rachelle Hampton

Alex Sujong Laughlin

A woman walks in front of a mural depicting writer Octavia Butler in Nairobi, Kenya. The Defector Reads A Book badge is at upper right.