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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.

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Defector

NYC: Come To Our WNBA Comedy Show On May 16

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Live Event

Normal Gossip: portraits

Alex Sujong Laughlin

An adaptation of the "Oh, the Places You'll Go" cover with a Robert Moses statue.

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Life's Rich Pageant

Oh, The Power You’ll Broker!

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Albert Burneko

A wide view of the desolate Martian landscape, captured by the Perseverance rover.

Science

Neither Elon Musk Nor Anybody Else Will Ever Colonize Mars

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David Roth

A picture of Donald Trump at the first presidential debate next to a rendering of a trading card which includes a swatch of the suit he wore in that debate, taken from the website selling those cards.

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Politics

Donald Trump Is Still Selling NFTs, Now Also Selling Trading Cards With Bits Of His Suit Embedded In Them

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Samer Kalaf

Boar's Head deli meats Recall notice at Deli counter in grocery store, Queens, New York.

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“Heavy Meat Buildup,” And More Alarming Phrases From A USDA Inspection Of A Boar’s Head Plant


<p>Richard Staff is a <a href="https://twitter.com/RichardStaff" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">weapons-grade Twitter goblin</a> and hostage of the Mets. That is his real name.</p>


Richard Staff

An illustration of several baseball mitts trying to catch the same ball

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The Minor League Shrink And The Growing Gap Between Triple-A And The Bigs

<p>Alex Shultz is a journalist based in Brooklyn.</p>


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Alex Shultz

The lobby of the Javits Center during Fanatics Fest

Javits_Center

Capital

Three Days At Fanatics Fest, Michael Rubin’s Hollow Monument To Sports And Culture

<p>Staff Writer</p>
<p>Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.09</p>


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Chris Thompson

Cinderella’s Castle

A Disney World Pervert’s Take On: Wrongful Death At A Themed Irish Pub

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Patrick Redford

espn-bet

Gambling

‘ESPN Bet’ Is A Black Hole

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


Typing

Sabrina Imbler

A neopet dragon broods over its hoard of gold.

Neopets

Is It Ethical To Be A Billionaire In Neopets?

A woman sticks her thumb down next to a skincare product and records the scene with an iPhone (posed scene). Product tips on Instagram or Tiktok are often paid advertising. "Deinfluencers" actively advise against buying if they are not convinced of the quality.

Deinfluencer

Under The Influence

Local Girlbosses Lose Pyramid-Shaped Business Model

DraftKings Abruptly Shuts Down NFT Operation, Panicking Collectors With Vast Holdings Of Digital Tokens

<p>Nicholas Russell is a writer from Las Vegas.</p>


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Nicholas Russell

Chief Technology Officer of X Elon Musk speaks onstage during the "Exploring the New Frontiers of Innovation: Mark Read in Conversation with Elon Musk" session at the Lumiere Theatre during the Cannes Lions International Festival Of Creativity 2024 - Day Three on June 19, 2024 in Cannes, France.

Cannes Lions International Festival Of Creativity 2024 – Day Three

Elon Musk Keeps Digging In

<p><a class="sc-1out364-0 hMndXN sc-145m8ut-0 kGbjEv js_link" href="http://demause.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;External link&quot;,&quot;http://demause.net/&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]"><em>Neil deMause</em></a><em> has covered sports economics for more publications than even he can shake a stick at. He’s co-author of the book </em><a class="sc-1out364-0 hMndXN sc-145m8ut-0 kGbjEv js_link" href="https://www.amazon.com/Field-Schemes-Stadium-Swindle-Private/dp/1567511384?ascsubtag=c9dca64cfbbd6c35085d286f4423ee39b8350b2f&amp;rawdata=%5Br%7Chttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F%5Bks%7Cgoogle%5Bt%7Clink%5Bp%7C1800657108%5Ba%7C1567511384%5Bau%7C5722120546910826704%5Bb%7Cdeadspinascsubtag%3D4eba2da0f6cc83fe1f221e8d8ca5894cd93bf2a7ascsubtag%3D33f4f2a16c1eda72859c34ee8aa577410b04a0d8&amp;tag=deadspinamzn-20" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-ga="[[&quot;Commerce&quot;,&quot;deadspin - Baseball Doesn't Need Collusion To Turn Off The Hot Stove&quot;,&quot;1567511384&quot;]]" data-amazonasin="1567511384" data-amazontag="deadspinamzn-20" data-amazonsubtag="[r|https://www.google.com/[ks|google[t|link[p|1831644811[a|1567511384[au|5722120546910826704[b|deadspin[lt|text" data-commerceready="true">Field of Schemes: How the Great Stadium Swindle Turns Public Money Into Private Profit</a><em>, and runs </em><a class="sc-1out364-0 hMndXN sc-145m8ut-0 kGbjEv js_link" href="http://fieldofschemes.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-ga="[[&quot;Embedded Url&quot;,&quot;External link&quot;,&quot;http://fieldofschemes.com/&quot;,{&quot;metric25&quot;:1}]]"><em>the website of the same name</em></a><em>.</em></p>


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Neil deMause

A rendering of the future Willets Point soccer stadium.

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How NYC Gave Hundreds Of Millions To The Yankees And An Oil Baron Sheikh For The Willets Point Soccer Stadium—No Questions Asked

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Wings Week

BuzzFeed Is The Reason It Can’t Sell ‘Hot Ones’

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Justin Ellis

The super yacht of Russian billionaire businessman and oligarch Roman Abramovich sitting in dock at the Marmaris Port in Turkey in December 2023.

Roman Abramovich Yahct In Marmaris Port, Turkey

This Is So Stupid

We Are Honor Bound To Commandeer Mark Zuckerberg’s Megayacht

Gourmet specialty donuts are being displayed at a shop in Unionville, Ontario, Canada, on June 03, 2023.

Daily Life In Unionville

Podcasts

100 Foods To Throw In The Garbage, With Megan Greenwell

Google CEO Sundar Pichai speaks during the Stanford Business, Government, and Society Forum at Stanford University in April of 2024.

Fed Chair Powell And Google CEO Sundar Pichai Speak At Stanford University

The Machines

Google’s Got Nothing But Wrong Answers

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 12: Sam Altman speaks onstage during A Year In TIME at The Plaza Hotel on December 12, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for TIME)

A Year In TIME

Sam Altman’s Scarlett Johansson Whoopsie Is The True Future Of AI

A Tesla Cybertruck electric vehicle sits parked next to a garbage truck in Los Angeles.

cybertruck-dump-truck

Have You Seen A Cybertruck Yet?

<p>Nick Zarzycki is a Toronto-based writer whose work has appeared in the <i data-stringify-type="italic">Washington Post</i>, <i data-stringify-type="italic">Deadspin</i> and <i data-stringify-type="italic">Toronto Life</i>.</p>


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Nick Zarzycki

A wizard dressed in a suit looks upon a fortress on a hill as lightning bolts and dollar bills dot the sky

Games

The Creator Of ‘Magic: The Gathering’ Knows Exactly Where It All Went Wrong

<div dir="auto">
<div dir="auto">Corbin Smith is a writer and photographer from Vancouver, Washington. His work has appeared in Deadspin, The Daily Beast, and <em>Rolling Stone</em>. He is also the host of <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-pacific-northwest-insurance-corporation-moviefilm/id1712416222"><em>The Pacific Northwest Insurance Corporation Moviefilm Podcast</em></a> a podcast about movies.</div>
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Corbin Smith

Joe Montana attends the FanDuel Fantasy Golf Classic on July 11, 2017 in New York City.

FanDuel Fantasy Golf Classic

Sports Is Betting It All On Gambling

<div>Nate Jackson is a former NFL tight end and author of <a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/slow-getting-up-a-story-of-nfl-survival-from-the-bottom-of-the-pile-nate-jackson/6430451?gclid=Cj0KCQjwpc-oBhCGARIsAH6ote9JzWMngZDpSjF2eoL1_JlyPm2QhDfkNgOzqvaB4n9ic0qqUNQ4iCwaAsasEALw_wcB"><em>Slow Getting Up</em></a>. He lives in Denver.</div>
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Nate Jackson

Drawing of cannabis industry people chasing after a football player.

NFL Weed

I Wish I’d Never Become The NFL Weed Guy

George McCaskey

Bears’ New Stadium Proposal Includes A Lifetime Of Public Debt

<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>


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Drew Magary

MADRID, SPAIN - APRIL 22: Tom Brady seen arriving at Palacio De Cibeles on April 22, 2024 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Alberto Gardin/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)

2024 Laureus World Sport Awards Madrid

I Learned It By Watching You, Tom Brady

Atmosphere at the Nike Air Innovation Summit held at the Palais Brongniart on April 11, 2024 in Paris, France.

Nike Air Innovation Summit

The Fanatics Disaster Is Also A Nike Disaster