Meet Jason Whitlock, sports journalist turned right-wing commentator: the controversial pundit claims he was ‘a thorn in ESPN’s side’ – and now hosts a podcast on conservative Blaze Media
Last year, Whitlock said the WNBA was ‘living off the charity of the NBA’ after Caitlin Clark’s season ended – he’s also made controversial comments about efforts to ‘emasculate men’
From stints at the Kansas City Star to ESPN, Jason Whitlock, 58, is a sports pundit who’s won awards for his commentary. But he’s also courted much controversy.
Here’s what to know about Jason Whitlock.
He has loved sport since childhood
In a piece published on the The Shirley Povich Centre for Sports Journalism’s platform, Whitlock described how he played football, basketball and was good at track as a child. He said he had a happy childhood, even though his parents split when he was about four or five. Whitlock said he was always an Indiana Pacers fan and growing up there was no ESPN, which meant he had to keep up with his team through the local newspaper.
Whitlock became an avid reader of the sports section and when he got a football scholarship to Ball State University, his plan was to be an accountant. “A friend said ‘Hey, dude, you love sports, you love reading the sports section, you should become a sportswriter.’ And so I switched my major first semester of freshman year to journalism.”
He’s known for his work in sports journalism
Whitlock catapulted to fame as one of America’s most prominent sports reporters while working at the Kansas City Star from 1994 to 2010. He was known for speaking about race, social media and sports, with his work scooping numerous awards, including the Scripps Howard National Journalism Award for Commentary in 2008.