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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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Music

Arts And Culture

Tom Ley

Rays Week

Ray Velcoro Was The Truest Detective

Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.

Dan McQuade

Turns Out ‘Ray Donovan’ Isn’t A Cop Show

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 Point B. Handsomest man in the world.

Drew Magary

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 26: &lt;&gt; at 230 5th Ave on May 26, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images) (NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 26: &lt;&gt; at 230 5th Ave on May 26, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by B

Funbag

‘Stranger Things 4’ Is A Masterpiece

Interviews

An Anonymous TV Writer Offers An Inside Look At Why Special Effects Seem So Bad Right Now

Nicholas Russell is a writer from Las Vegas.

Nicholas Russell

Who Does A True Crime Convention Really Serve?

Soraya Roberts

US actor Ben Stiller attends the premiere of Apple TV+'s "Severance" at the DGA (Directors Guild of America) theatre in Los Angeles, April 8, 2022.

Ben Stiller Explains How ‘Severance’ Became The Rare Streaming Show That’s Actually Good

Israel Daramola

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson, as seen in the HBO series "Winning Time"

HBO’s ‘Winning Time’ Is Overstated, But Says What Other Sports Entertainment Won’t

Felix Kent

American actress Dagmar (1921 - 2001) reading a book of 'Comic Characters of Shakespeare' by John Palmer, circa 1950. (Photo by Graphic House/Archive Photos/Getty Images)

Reading Is Easy, TV Is Hard

Staff Writer
Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19

Chris Thompson

Media Meltdowns

Here Are Two Utterly Unbearable Minutes Of TV Sports Debate

Albert Burneko

Life's Rich Pageant

I Don’t Like This At All

Screenshot from the TV show 'And Just Like That..."

And Just Like That, I Watched An Entire Season Of ‘And Just Like That…’

Diana Moskovitz is Defector&#8217;s investigations editor. You can contact her at diana@defector.com or dfmoskovitz@protonmail.com. She&#8217;s also on Signal @dmoskovitz.99

Diana Moskovitz

A photo of Jerry Harris from the Netflix TV show Cheer

‘Cheer’ Was Never Going To Be Able To Adequately Address Jerry Harris

We Don’t Need Joss Whedon’s Cover Story

Promo picture of the stars of the TV show Yellowjackets.

In ‘Yellowjackets,’ The Old Eat Their Young

David Roth

Diana Russini of ESPN, about to speak with a very powerful New Jersey accent.

Local Sports Broadcasters Should Have Regional Accents

Defector Staff

Year In Review

The Best Things We Watched In 2021

Giri Nathan

Salute To The Smiling Killer From This Season Of ‘Survivor’

Logan Roy Is An American

Colin Kaepernick at the Los Angeles premiere of his 2021 Netflix limited series "Colin In Black & White"

Who Is Colin Kaepernick’s New TV Show Actually For?

I Have Seen The Lowest Bowel Of Hell, And It Is This MLB Network Hype Video [Updated]

<a href="mailto:tara@taraariano.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tara Ariano</a> co-hosts the podcasts <a href="https://www.extrahotgreat.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Extra Hot Great</a>, <a href="https://listentosassy.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Listen To Sassy</a>, and <a href="https://www.againwiththis90210.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Again With This</a>. She is also the co-author, with Sarah D. Bunting, of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Very-Special-90210-Book-Absolutely/dp/1419747460?tag=decider08-20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">A Very Special 90210 Book: 93 Absolutely Essential Episodes From TV’s Most Notorious Zip Code</a>. Her byline has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, GQ, Vanity Fair, New York, Slate, Vulture, Salon, and The Awl, among many others. She lives in Austin.
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