defector-orange-no-empty-space

lede_post_card_default

lede_post_card_stacked

lede_post_card_featured_post

lede_post_card_featured_posts_hero

lede_post_card_featured_posts_sidebar

lede_post_card_highlighted_post

lede_post_card_horizontal_a

lede_post_card_horizontal_c

lede_post_card_related_post

lede_article_featured_16x9

lede_article_featured_3x2

lede_article_featured_flexible

lede_article_content

lede_article_content_wide_width

lede_article_content_full_width

lede_byline_avatar_post_card

lede_byline_avatar_highlight

lede_profile_coral_avatar

lede_logo

lede_logo_banner

lede_logo_footer_banner

lede_logo_simple_header

lede_sponsorship_logo

lede_sponsorship_logo_river_card

lede_sponsorship_homepage_card_logo

lede_sponsorship_homepage_card

Footer Legal

Header - Categories

Header Menu

The last good website.

Topics

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-no-empty-space

Defector

The Defector Crewneck Sweatshirt Is Back In Stock

back-in-stock-for-a-limited-time

Merch v3

<div id="1695913206.579009" class="c-virtual_list__item c-virtual_list__item--initial-activeitem" role="listitem" data-qa="virtual-list-item" data-item-key="1695913206.579009">
<div class="c-message_kit__background c-message_kit__background--hovered p-message_pane_message__message c-message_kit__message" role="presentation" data-qa="message_container" data-qa-unprocessed="false" data-qa-placeholder="false">
<div class="c-message_kit__hover c-message_kit__hover--hovered" role="document" data-qa-hover="true">
<div class="c-message_kit__actions c-message_kit__actions--above">
<div class="c-message_kit__gutter c-message_kit__gutter--compact">
<div class="c-message_kit__gutter__right" role="presentation" data-qa="message_content">
<div class="c-message_kit__indent">
<div class="c-message_kit__blocks c-message_kit__blocks--rich_text c-message_kit__blocks--inline">
<div class="c-message__message_blocks c-message__message_blocks--rich_text c-message__message_blocks--inline" data-qa="message-text">
<div class="p-block_kit_renderer p-block_kit_renderer--inline" data-qa="block-kit-renderer">
<div class="p-block_kit_renderer__block_wrapper p-block_kit_renderer__block_wrapper--first">
<div class="p-rich_text_block p-rich_text_block--inline" dir="auto">
<div class="p-rich_text_section">Tom Scocca is the editor of <a href="http://indignity.net">Indignity</a>, a subscription-supported newsletter of news, essays, and commentary.</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div id="1695913224.677889" class="c-virtual_list__item" role="listitem" data-qa="virtual-list-item" data-item-key="1695913224.677889">
<div class="c-message_kit__background p-message_pane_message__message c-message_kit__message" role="presentation" data-qa="message_container" data-qa-unprocessed="false" data-qa-placeholder="false">
<div class="c-message_kit__hover" role="document" data-qa-hover="true">
<div class="c-message_kit__actions c-message_kit__actions--above">
<div class="c-message_kit__gutter c-message_kit__gutter--compact">
<div class="c-message_kit__gutter__left" role="presentation"></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>


8b2c55a3-643f-49c0-b14a-0e4470463bef_1200x1200-1

Tom Scocca

Attorney Peter Angelos talks about his law practice and his hopes about buying the Orioles.

Peter-Angelos

Peter Angelos Was The Ultimate Team Owner

authorpic1294q9q7qfnn

Soraya Roberts

Still image of actress Katy O'Brian using gym equipment, taken from the movie Love Lies Bleeding.

love-lies-bleeding

Defector At The Movies

In ‘Love Lies Bleeding,’ The Body Scores

<p>Dan Gentile is a writer, editor, and DJ based in San Francisco by way of Austin, TX. He works as the culture editor at SFGATE and has freelanced for publications like The Ringer, Rolling Stone, Texas Monthly, Wax Poetics, and more. Find more of his work at <a href="http://dangentile.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://dangentile.net&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1711040620694000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3XTZa73tUKo0JIWhdqylUa">dangentile.net</a> and on that <a href="https://twitter.com/Dannosphere" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://twitter.com/Dannosphere&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1711040620694000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3jvqFxajyG27FDs81Ssg-S">terrible social media site</a>.</p>


tinydangentileheadshot

Dan Gentile

sixstringsoldiers

Arts And Culture

Partying With The U.S. Army At South By Southwest

Felix Kent

watching football

Life Lessons

Why Can’t I Turn Off The Game?

<p>Sam Eagan is a freelance reporter and documentary producer based out of Brooklyn, by way of the high plains of Wyoming. He was a Division I wrestler for the University of Wyoming.</p>


sam-eagan-headshot

Sam Eagan

Wrestlers warm up on the mat during the 2017 NCAA Wrestling Championships in St. Louis.

2017-ncaa-wrestling-championships

College Wrestling

The Blood Round Is Where College Wrestlers With Nothing To Lose Have Something To Win

Agents of the Texas National Guard struggle with a migrant man after he crossed across the Rio Grande river to reach the US side, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico on March 20, 2024.

texas-border

Margin Of Error

Amy Coney Barrett’s Charm Offensive

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


IMG_1801 (1)

Nicholas Russell

Wooden and iron spoons lie on the table at the folk museum, Kovpakivka village, Mahdalynivka district, Dnipropetrovsk Region, central Ukraine.

Museum in Kovpakivka village

The Fork And Spoon Method To A Better Life

<p>I am a freelance writer who has covered a wide variety of topics over the years. I’ve written about sports, crime, technology, fitness, and entertainment for a variety of outlets.</p>


headshot

Trent Reinsmith

BE-Logo-Banner

The Fights

How Bloody Elbow Lost Its Soul

<p>Hamilton Nolan is a journalist based in New York City. Subscribe to his work at <a href="https://www.hamiltonnolan.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.hamiltonnolan.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1687350200913000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0naFbUVOe-5ZgtPDtIM3gz">HamiltonNolan.com</a>.</p>


R1byyuOh_400x400

Hamilton Nolan

Callum Walsh punches Dauren Yeleussinov during their junior middleweight fight at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on March 15, 2024 in New York City.

Callum Walsh v Dauren Yeleussinov

Small Nations In Big Wars

TV Personality Jonathan Van Ness attends the Build Series to discuss his new book "Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love" at Build Studio on September 25, 2019 in New York City.

Celebrities Visit Build – September 25, 2019

Of Course My Favorite TV Host Is An Asshole

<div dir="ltr">
<div>Zach Buchanan has covered Major League Baseball for more than a decade, for the <em>Arizona Republic</em>, <em>Cincinnati Enquirer,</em> and most recently The Athletic. He also has been published in <em>The New York Times</em>, <em>Washington Post</em>, FanGraphs and <em>Baseball America</em>. He lives in Phoenix, where he prepares for the inevitable water crisis by living off Dr Pepper instead.</div>
</div>
<div class="yj6qo ajU"></div>


zb_background

Zach Buchanan

terryfranconaarizona

College Basketball

Terry Francona’s Next Act: Arizona Hoops Superfan

<p>I am an independent writer/journalist based in New Delhi, India. I mainly work on long-form reportage on conflict, gender, climate, culture, intersection of technology and human agency. Published with the Al Jazeera Journalism Review, Aljazeera Digital, Defector, C S Monitor.</p>


IMG_20220202_141357_Original

Meher Qadri

Two divers jump into the foamy Yamuna River

Divers

Climate

The Yamuna River’s Treasure Divers Fight More Than Poverty To Survive

<p>Stefan Fatsis is the author of <a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/word-freak-heartbreak-triumph-genius-and-obsession-in-the-world-of-competitive-scrabblep-layers-stefan-fatsis/11648962"><em>Word Freak</em></a>, <a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/a-few-seconds-of-panic-a-sportswriter-plays-in-the-nfl-stefan-fatsis/7891278"><em>A Few Seconds of Panic</em></a>, and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Wild-Outside-Renegade-Baseball-Heartland/dp/0802712975"><em>Wild and Outside</em></a>, and is a co-host of Slate’s weekly sports podcast, “<a href="https://slate.com/podcasts/hang-up-and-listen">Hang Up and Listen</a>.” He used to write about sports for the <em>Wall Street Journal </em>and talk about them on NPR. His daughter has a much higher Scrabble rating than he does.</p>


stefan fatsis

Stefan Fatsis

Scrabble World Champion Nigel Richards holds up a trophy and shows the final winning board in London in 2018

World Scrabble Championship

Games

From TED To PERNOCTATED, Scrabble’s Best Player Knows No Limits


<p>Corey Atad is a freelancer writer based in Toronto with an unhealthy Air Bud obsession.</p>


IMG_7322

Corey Atad

Actress, Vita Vargas, Carla Hernández, Sayaka Yokoyama, Myriam Behar in Claquetazo Braulio Lopez Producer of a Scene from the filming of the film (Nudus) by director Gibran Bazan on October 26, 2020 in Mexico City, Mexico.

The Blackboard And Press Conference Of The film (NUDUS)

Good, Bad, Or Invisible, CGI Makes Movies Unreal

The rostrum of the U.S. House of Representatives, with the entire chamber empty.

House Of Representatives Allows Media Rare View Of House Chamber

My Fellow Americans

<p><span style="font-weight: 400">Danny Sullivan writes </span><a href="https://theunderline.substack.com/"><span style="font-weight: 400">The Underline</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400">, a newsletter covering books, movies, and ideas. He lives in Santa Fe. </span></p>


DS headshot

Danny Sullivan

dunebooks

‘Dune’ Novels, Ranked By Unfilmability

Englishmen in Paris gathered in Galignani’s library, 1820. English gentlemen read books, newspapers and periodicals. Doctor Syntax discovered by his wife in a bookshop. Handcoloured copperplate drawn and engraved by Charles Williams from Doctor Syntax in Paris; or a Tour in Search of the Grotesque, W. Wright, London, 1820.

Englishmen in Paris gathered in Galignani‚Äôs library, 1820

Interviews

“It Really Matters If Somebody Has Bad Taste”: An Interview With Book Critic Becca Rothfeld


<p>Jay Willis is a writer who covers law and democracy. His work has appeared in GQ, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Slate, and more. He is the editor-in-chief at Balls &amp; Strikes, an outlet for progressive commentary on the legal system.</p>


IMG_0065

Jay Willis

Giant portraits of the news anchors at Fox News headquarters building in New York City. Very cursed image.

Giant portraits of the news anchors at Fox News

Journalismism

Tim Burke’s Indictment Is A Political Choice Disguised As A Legal Act

<div>
<div dir="ltr">
<div>Casey Taylor is a writer living and working in Pittsburgh. He is currently writing a book for St. Martin&#8217;s Press about cannabis religions, Haile Selassie I, and the Cold War in the Caribbean. He also writes a free newsletter called <a href="https://weedchurch.substack.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://weedchurch.substack.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1709306863919000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1mVH2xiID6S0zvlyj6yHco">Weed Church</a> covering foolish spiritual things that occur to him. His work has appeared in The New Republic, WIRED, New York Magazine, and a sports blog he can’t currently recall the name of. You can <a href="mailto:caseyt7@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">email</a> him if you’d like.</div>
</div>
<div class="yj6qo ajU"></div>
</div>
<div></div>


casey

Casey Taylor

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 27: A person holds a sign during a vigil for U.S. Airman Aaron Bushnell at the US Army Recruiting Office in Times Square on February 27, 2024 in New York City. Bushnell died after setting himself on fire outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC on Sunday. In a video that was posted to a social media account showing the act, he stated that would “no longer be complicit in genocide," before pouring an unknown liquid over himself and igniting it while yelling “Free Palestine” repeatedly. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Vigil Held For U.S. Airman Aaron Bushnell Who Died After Setting Himself On Fire In Protest Of Israeli’s Actions In Gaza

Politics

Why Did Aaron Bushnell Burn?

<p>Jen Ramos Eisen is a Central California-based minor league baseball writer.</p>


Jen Ramos Eisen

A cartoon of an outfield wall with an encroaching shadow over the player standing looking at it. It feels dark and desolate. The baseball stadium is empty.

Minors

The Life Of An International Minor League Baseball Player Has Never Been Simple

<p>Aaron Gordon is a reporter covering transportation, infrastructure, and the environment. Most recently, he was a senior staff writer at Motherboard, VICE News’s tech and science website.</p>


Aaron Gordon

A general overall aerial view of Arrowhead Stadium on December 25, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri.

Arrowhead Stadium

Soccer

The Good, The Bad, And The Unreachable: A World Cup Transit Report Ranking

In this photograph a group of townsfolk descend on a disciple after it was discovered that the ritual he participated in left a person dead during an Epoch Event in Toronto on August 6, 2011

larp

Fantasy Convention

<p><span style="font-weight: 400">Dennis Young is the news editor at Front Office Sports.</span></p>


Dennis Young

Amy Cragg from Portland, Oregon, celebrates at the finish line after winning the US Women's Marathon Olympic Team Trials with a time of 2:28:27 in Los Angeles, California on February 13, 2016. Highlighted Joanna Zeiger behind her, who finished last, the image is a GIF and zooms into her

last-place-2

Olympics

At The Olympic Trials Marathon, DFL Means Pain Over Regret

<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>
<div></div>


wT9kOU-Q_400x400

Nate Jackson

A football is being balanced on top of a syringe and vaccine vial.

Vaccine balancing football

My NFL Career Ended With A Needle And A Scam

Madeleine Sami as Eddie Redcliffe in Deadloch

fl