Joe Buck Clarifies Clickbait Story on Drinking in the Booth: TRAINA THOUGHTS
1. My favorite thing about someone complaining about clickbait is that I then get to turn that into clickbait for Traina Thoughts. It all comes full circle. Enter the always-amusing Joe Buck. The veteran Fox play-by-play broadcaster said on a podcast this week that he would occasionally enjoy an adult beverage while calling games.
During baseball games, Buck said he would get a runner to grab “the biggest beer the stadium sold,” which he would gradually drink throughout the game.
“I had it sitting there and I would sip it from time to time to remind myself to relax and have fun. I’m just doing a game,” Buck said. And I brought that over to football, but because Troy [Aikman] is a man of finer tastes, beer somehow became tequila, Grand Marnier and grapefruit juice.
“We haven’t done it in a long time now, but it was good for a stretch and I feel like it’s a good mental trigger to just chill and remind yourself that you’re not refueling an F-16 in midflight. You’re doing a sporting event and if you treat it like anything other than that, you’re doing yourself a disservice.”
Naturally every site ran with this quote and, in some places (not SI, of course), the story got turned into Joe Buck doing some heavy boozing while calling games on television even though his exact quote was, “I would sip it from time to time.”
Buck took to Twitter on Wednesday night to clarify his comments and express his frustration with clickbait and how the story was reported.
Buck was right. He should’ve just left this alone because the story would’ve been over, but now it gets another 24–48 hours of life.
This is where podcasts are tricky. Guests feel loose and comfortable; they don’t envision their words becoming headlines and tone and context are completely lost when quotes are read instead of heard. I’ll also pull back the curtain here to let you know that the p.r. company for the podcast Buck appeared on sent out the drinking quote to media people, including yours truly. That was the angle they wanted outlets to push.
So while Joe Buck was frustrated with the clickbait, the podcast he appeared on was thrilled with the clickbait.
2. If you're into the current trading cards craze, or if you just want to get educated on the trading cards boom, you will enjoy the latest SI Media Podcast that features an interview with Darren Rovell.
The main focus of the episode is the explosion in the trading cards business. From why the boom happened and whether it will last to the process of getting cards graded and selling them for profit, Rovell goes in-depth on explaining many of the aspects of this phenomenon. He also explains that people are buying and selling more than cards. Game tickets, VCR tapes and checks are also in high demand. In addition to discussing the trading card world we also talk about the Super Bowl streaker who claims he won $375,000 on a $50,000 bet and the possibility of Twitter adding a pay service.
You can also watch the podcast on YouTube.
3. This is an outstanding piece by The Ringer's Bryan Curtis on the Jim Nantz situation at CBS.
4. Sixers coach Doc Rivers had some pandemic postgame press conference fun Wednesday night when he got a question from reporter Jackson Frank.
5. I don't know why Tom Brady would ever pay attention to sports talk radio or hot take shows, but apparently he does.
6. It's giveaway time. The first person to email me (jimmy.traina@si.com) the correct answers to the following four questions from my recent SI Media Podcast with Erin Andrews and Kyle Brandt will win this Seinfeld box from CultureFly. You must email me (jimmy.traina@si.com) the answers. Please do not send them to me on Twitter or Instagram.
• What is the name of Erin Andrews's dog?
•. Who did Erin Andrews say she'd like to interview?
•. What did Kyle Brandt call his version of Tom Brady's TB12 Method?
• What did Kyle Brandt suggest the NFL do for Super Bowl halftime entertainment?
7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: In honor of today's Seinfeld giveaway, here's Jerry doing standup in 1977.
Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Stitcher. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter and Instagram.
