Tagged: ‘Chad Millman’

posted by on March 13, 2013 1:00 PM

‘Mag 15:’ ESPN The Magazine counts down to its 15th anniversary with launch of digital rollout/landing page

ESPN The Mag 15 landing page

ESPN The Magazine’s ‘Mag 15′ landing page celebrates 15 years of publication.

It was on Monday, March 9, 1998 that we were printing, binding and shipping the Premier Issue of ESPN The Magazine — with a cover date of March 23, 1998.

Pause and reflect on this historical moment as we celebrate The Mag’s 15th anniversary.

To kick off the celebration and release of its upcoming “Mag 15 Issue” (on newsstands May 3), The Mag today will launch a landing page highlighting stories, coverage, photos, and more from issues spanning these last 15 years.

0513MAG15X

When asked what his 2013 self would say to his 1998 self about the evolution of the magazine, Editor-in-Chief Chad Millman said: “You should really take this Internet thing seriously. And then invent a sleek, wireless reading device. And here’s another tip: You have no idea how important headlines will be when 140 characters is all you get to sell your story on the website you launch, 140charactersorless.com. I’d also tell myself that the magazines will only evolve if you let great writers, photographers, editors and designers tell great stories and get out of their way.”

Beginning today at www.espn.com/mag15, each anniversary from 1998 through 2012 will be celebrated with its own “tab,” unveiled one by one throughout this next month. Each year will house the same set of content including: continue reading…

Filed in: Announcements, Behind The Scenes, ESPN History, ESPN The Magazine

posted by on March 7, 2013 12:00 PM

ESPN The Magazine columnist Chris Jones relates with young tennis star’s bouts with depression

ESPN columnist Chris Jones (ESPN)

ESPN The Magazine columnist Chris Jones (ESPN)

In ESPN The Magazine’s latest issue, “One Day, One Game” on newsstands Friday, columnist Chris Jones tells the story of a young tennis pro stepping away from the sport she loves due to an ongoing bout with depression.

Jones, who writes the back page Magazine column, The Fix, knows just how she feels. He shares some background on the column with Front Row.

Why did you choose this piece to discuss your personal battle with depression?
There is very little I have in common, at least on the surface, with a talented 22-year-old tennis pro named Rebecca Marino. But when she spoke about her struggles with depression, and about her difficulties with social media, I felt as though I could almost finish her sentences for her. I think our readers should be able to expect honesty from us — that we write what we truly believe. Well, I believe strongly that mental illness is something we should talk about, and it would have been dishonest for me to write about it without admitting that I’ve been there.

One Day, One Game ESPN The Magazine cover

ESPN The Magazine’s
One Day, One Game issue is on newsstands Friday

Take us through the process of writing this column.
I pitched this, and my editor, the excellent Ed McGregor [an ESPN The Magazine Deputy Editor], told me to give it a shot. I write columns all the time that don’t make it into The Magazine — there’s this graveyard of swings and misses clogging up my computer — and here I thought, I’m just going to write this as honestly as I can, and if Ed or [Mag Editor-In-Chief] Chad Millman doesn’t like it, then I’ll just write something else.

That freed me. I just poured it out. I sent it in and the guys were really busy, as usual, and it took them a bit to get back to me. Those waiting hours are stressful for a writer anyway, but here I was like, “Ruh-roh.” Then an email landed from Chad [reading]: “Wow, that was something,” and I took that as a good sign.

What was the initial reaction to your first-person feature for Esquire? continue reading…

Filed in: Behind The Scenes, ESPN The Magazine

posted by on March 5, 2013 12:15 PM

ESPN’s storytelling resonates with nearly 2.5 million page views for Wright Thompson’s feature on Michael Jordan

Wright Thompson's profile of Michael Jordan is available on ESPN.com and will appear in ESPN The Magazine.

Wright Thompson’s profile of Michael Jordan generated nearly 2.5 million page view across ESPN.com and ESPN mobile web sites.

As numbers go, Michael Jordan at 50 years old is huge.

Not just for Jordan, but for many sports fans who never realized he — or we — could be that old. Wright Thompson’s feature story, Michael Jordan Has Not Left the Building, which appeared on ESPN.com and in ESPN The Magazine last month, captured this sentiment in a way that resonated with readers.

In fact, since the piece was published Feb. 15, it has created big numbers of its own, pulling in nearly 2.5 million page views across ESPN.com and ESPN mobile web sites, while engaging readers two to three times as long as the typical ESPN.com article.

Another huge number: Thompson’s article is nearly 8,000 words, making it a “long form” piece of journalism, which continues to be an important form of content for ESPN’s Digital and Print Media group as it continues to explore new and better ways to tell stories. (Another example hit ESPN.com today with Don Van Natta Jr.’s His Game, His Rules, on NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.)

ESPN's Patrick Stiegman (Joe Faraoni/ESPN Images)

ESPN’s Patrick Stiegman (Joe Faraoni/ESPN Images)

We checked in with Patrick Stiegman, ESPN.com Editor-in-Chief, for more insight on ESPN’s approach to feature storytelling across platforms.

What is it about long form articles that resonates with ESPN’s readers?
It’s all about storytelling. “Long-form” is really an outdated term, especially in a digital age. Our emphasis is not on story length or news hole or word count, it’s about writing a story for what it’s worth. A truly compelling narrative — and Wright’s piece on Michael Jordan is one of the most provocative, insightful, raw and revealing profiles you’ll ever read — is irresistible, whether it’s 1,000 words or 10,000 words. From the stunning illustrations by Mark Smith to the pitch-perfect headline to the gifted reporting and writing to the deft editing by our digital and print enterprise teams, Michael Jordan Has Not Left The Building was an exquisite example of one of the most challenging tasks a writer can face: Tell me something truly revelatory about one of the most famous people on the planet. Working with editors Jay Lovinger, Jena Janovy and Bruce Kelley, among others, Wright accepted that challenge, and quite frankly, crushed it.

It seems that more long form pieces have been featured recently on both ESPN.com and in The Magazine. Discuss the cross-platform approach. continue reading…

Filed in: Behind The Scenes

posted by on March 4, 2013 9:00 AM

Tweetback: #MagicMillion; Ryan Kelly propels Duke; #SSAC13

Front Row knows you have better things to do all weekend than check your social media feeds, so we do it for you.

Here, from the ESPN PR universe, are some of the Tweets, posts and other commentary you may have missed.

You can thank us later!

continue reading…

Filed in: Weekend Tweetback

posted by on February 4, 2013 12:00 PM

Volunteers in Team ESPN Radio Reading Room produce audio versions of ESPN The Mag, ESPN Deportes Mag

The words in ESPN The Magazine and ESPN Deportes Magazine paint vivid pictures to complement rich photography and imaginative layouts.

Still, not every sports fan can appreciate those publications in print.

Last year, ESPN’s Corporate Outreach launched The Team ESPN Radio Reading Program. Employee volunteers read ESPN content, such as The Magazine, and the resulting audio files are distributed across Connecticut by a nonprofit organization — Connecticut Reading Information System (CRIS).

Vision-impaired fans or those who would not have access to the printed content are the beneficiaries, said Kevin Martinez, Senior Director of ESPN Corporate Outreach.

Employees sign up for the program and undergo a 30-minute training session before becoming one of the volunteer voices, Martinez said. They are instructed to read the copy in a straightforward manner. continue reading…

Filed in: Behind The Scenes

posted by on January 8, 2013 9:40 AM

Forward/Rewind: NBA/ESPN The Magazine

ESPN The Mag

Chad Millman, Editor-in-Chief

Chad Millman

Chad Millman

What excites you most about 2013?
The Mag grew in several ways the past 12 months, with all the storytellers — from designers to photo editors to the folks working with words — getting a much better feel for what kind of magazine we want to be and how to exist within ESPN. Now that we’ve laid that foundation, I think there is a greater opportunity for us to have an impact, both on our readers and as content partners, with the rest of the platforms at ESPN.

Name the one moment from 2012 that exemplifies your team’s approach to delivering its content.
The execution of the “One Day, One Game” issue we did from Baton Rouge, La. about the LSU-Bama game. That started as just an idea for the magazine but grew into a multi-platform experience that included every element of the company including a coordinated effort with the ESPN social team. On game day, we had photo editors culling thousands of behind-the-scenes pics for a running photo gallery on ESPN.com that received one million hits in 24 hours. Two weeks later, we produced an issue that collected all this for a record of one of the season’s best game, which exemplified the best of college football.

The most popular #Hashtag of 2013 will be. . .
#Mag15. Because The Mag is celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2013, which will include a double-issue commemorating where sports has been since we were born and where it is going as well as a coordinated effort with SportsCenter to air vignettes about the biggest moments in sports during our decade-and-a-half.
–By Carrie Kreiswirth

FrontRowDesign_Final

Editor’s Note: With this multi-week series — the Front Row Forward/Rewind, 2013/2012 — ESPN’s Communications Department takes the pulse of content executives throughout ESPN for their views on what’s ahead across ESPN for 2013 and some of what transpired in 2012. The snapshots provide a look at where ESPN has been, where it’s going and how it plans on getting there.

NBA on ESPN

Tim Corrigan, senior coordinating producer

Best off camera moment:
Watching how our team of 300 people (all departments, all platforms) come together at the NBA Finals is such a source of pride for everyone. The mission is simply “whatever it takes,” and everyone lives up to that standard. The NBA Finals comes at the end of a 10-month season and there is nothing better than the payoff when a team or player achieves their ultimate goal. In the last five years we have watched the Celtics “Big 3” win their first title, Kobe [Bryant] go back-to-back, Dirk [Nowitzki] win and have to leave the court because he was so emotional and LeBron James finally quieting his critics.

Tim Corrigan

Tim Corrigan

Favorite segment or interview:
Two favorite moments: First was Game 4 of the NBA Finals when LeBron James had leg cramps. Everything about his story became heightened in that one moment — his struggles to get up the court, laying down on the court, his teammates carrying him off the court and the trainers massaging him and getting liquids into his body. Then he checks back into the game, the building explodes and he pays it off with a dramatic three-pointer that leads to a victory. Nothing can compare with the world’s greatest basketball player fighting through injury to ultimately lead his team to the NBA Championship. The second was at the end of Game 5 with the “unbridled joy” LeBron showed on the sidelines as the clock counted down. Watching someone’s dream come true was truly remarkable.

#Hashtag of the year for 2013: continue reading…

Filed in: Forward/Rewind 2012-13

posted by on January 2, 2013 9:40 AM

Inside ESPN The Mag’s ‘NEXT’ Issue: NFL teams winning with green QBs

Rookie QB Russell Wilson has rewarded Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll's faith in him. (Credit: Ric Tapia/iCoN sMi/CorBis/ESPN The Magazine)

Rookie QB Russell Wilson has rewarded Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll’s faith in him.
(Credit: Ric Tapia/iCoN sMi/CorBis/ESPN The Magazine)

Every year since 1998, ESPN The Magazine has recognized an elite group of emerging athletes to watch in the year ahead — athletes dubbed “NEXT.” They are competitors not only on the cusp of stardom, but on the verge of transcending their sports. Some of these athletes who fit this description include four young NFL quarterbacks who already have made significant impacts on their respective teams: Russell Wilson (Seattle), Colin Kaepernick (San Francisco), Andrew Luck (Indianapolis), and Robert Griffin III (Washington).

Front Row spoke with The Mag’s Senior NFL Writer Seth Wickersham, who explores this subject at length in “Pass or Fail,” in ESPN The Magazine’s “NEXT” issue — featuring 20-year-old NBA star Kyrie Irving on the cover — currently on newsstands, and also on ESPN.com.

NEXT Issue cover

NEXT Issue cover

How did you approach this story on the rise of the NEXT generation of QBs?
Like most, it arose from observing, reporting, and thinking about football, and two dominant themes emerged. First, it’s become obvious that teams need a great, not almost great, quarterback to win a Super Bowl. The past 10 years is all the proof you need. And second, this season, more than any other in years, coaches seemed not only willing but perhaps eager to roll the dice on young quarterbacks rather than experience a Groundhog Day of sorts with good-but-not-great starters, betting on the high ceiling as opposed to the high floor. That’s why many young quarterbacks were starting.

This has become the Year of the Young Quarterback. But as with Tom Brady in 2001 and Aaron Rodgers in 2008, behind every young quarterback is a coach who had the guts to not only start him but support him through the inevitable bumpy patches. I respected the risks that [Seahawks coach] Pete Carroll and [49ers coach] Jim Harbaugh. . .took in backing their young quarterbacks, so I decided to highlight the decision, as opposed to exclusively focusing on why the young quarterbacks are playing well.

How did this story change as you pursued it? continue reading…

Filed in: Behind The Scenes

posted by on December 14, 2012 12:41 PM

ESPN The Mag: ‘Hall Of Fame’ issue debuts; let the debates begin

Cover of the ESPN Magazine “Hall of Fame” issue.

ESPN The Magazine’s “Hall of Fame” issue debuts on newsstands today.

It’s a particularly timely topic, Deputy Editor Bruce Kelley explained.

The idea came about after Buster Olney, The Mag’s MLB senior writer, reminded the staff early in the year that Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens were going to be eligible for Baseball Hall Of Fame consideration this month.

“That got my attention,” said Kelley, who was editor of San Francisco Magazine during Bonds’ controversial time with the hometown Giants.

NFL senior editor Ryan Hockensmith mentioned that the Pro Football Hall Of Fame balloting is approaching, too, and that wide receivers — like [ESPN NFL analyst] Cris Carter — were not being inducted despite great career stats.

“So we took a leap and declared this the beginning of the ‘Debate Era,’” Kelly said. “[Editor-in-Chief] Chad Millman loved the idea for a deep dive on Halls of Fame.”

Front Row got more details from Kelley, who oversaw construction of this issue.

How did your former role with San Francisco Magazine influence this issue?
I was born and raised near Bonds on the Peninsula, while Tim Keown, a brilliant writer for The Mag, is also a lifelong Bay Area resident. So we talked and both saw Bonds’ 20-year-long, Macbeth-like journey to this judgment day as rich fodder for the issue. Tim’s essay in the issue, which is called Great Wasn’t Good Enough, kind of says it all about perfectionism, ego and legacy in sports. For years, me and my 15-year-old son bonded watching Barry be the best hitter who ever lived. Then the steroids stuff landed and his world — my world — kind of lost its innocence.

With regards to Buster Olney’s take on allowing players such as Bonds, Clemens, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa — into the Hall of Fame, what camp do you fall in? continue reading…

Filed in: Behind The Scenes

posted by on November 28, 2012 3:08 PM

From R.A. to LeBron, PacMan to Zito, Lin to Ryan: ESPN The Magazine’s ‘Interview Issue’ covers the bases

Jeremy Lin and James Harden on the cover of the “Interview” Issue.

ESPN The Magazine’s “Interview” Issue, which starts hitting subscribers’ mailboxes today and newsstands Friday, highlights some of the top newsmakers in sports over this past year.

On the eve of its release, The Mag’s Deputy Editor Ed McGregor, who led the charges on this year’s issue, shares some background on how it all came together:

How do you determine who is featured in the Interview issue?
We aim to fill this issue with the newsmakers of the year in sports. In fact, throughout the year research sends me regular updates on major happenings in a variety of sports. I compile all of those and, sometime in September, I went through everything to create a list for discussion with Chad [Millman], Editor in Chief, and my “Interview” crew, [Senior Editors] Raina Kelley and Aimee Crawford. Then the list evolves and changes, based on who we think are the most interesting people and what are the most interesting stories.

Are there athletes or newsmakers who didn’t make the cut? If so, why not?
Yes, there are always athletes who don’t make the cut, mainly because some new event happened, like Barry Zito starring in the playoffs after so many years of struggle in San Francisco. That was a revelation, and Tim Keown’s interview with Zito is just as revealing.

For those you reached out to, were there personalities who declined an interview? continue reading…

Filed in: Behind The Scenes

posted by on November 14, 2012 4:00 PM

From Baton Rouge to Bristol: Inside the making of ESPN The Magazine’s ‘One Day, One Game’ issue

On Nov. 3, then-No. 1 Alabama descended into Death Valley to face then-No. 5 LSU, a rematch of last season’s BCS title game.

It was an instant classic, college football at its best — and ESPN The Magazine captured it all in its “One Day, One Game” issue hitting mailboxes today and on newsstands Friday.

The Mag’s associate editor LaRue Cook takes us through a brief timeline on how this intense undertaking became an issue, beginning with the staff’s arrival in Baton Rouge, La. to its four-day “close” (getting the magazine ready for printing) at ESPN HQ in Bristol, Conn.:

Friday, Oct. 26 – Wednesday, Oct. 30
The Mag had a local photographer at LSU with [Tigers head coach] Les Miles, documenting his moves both on and off the field.

Wednesday, Oct. 30
General editor Rebecca Nordquist and deputy photo editor Jim Surber arrived in Baton Rouge, along with one other photographer.

Thursday, Nov. 1
The rest of The Mag’s 43 staffers for this event including editors, reporters and photographers arrived en masse to begin capturing and reporting stadium prep and hang out with the LSU equipment personnel.

Friday, Nov. 2
A photographer and reporter were at the stadium at sunrise for the painting of the field (Tiger Stadium) and Tiger Eye (the team’s distinctive field logo). We then did a stadium walk-through as a group to familiarize ourselves with specific work areas and assignments. That night we made arrangements to have our reporters and photographers back at the stadium for the team’s motivational video displayed on the stadium’s Jumbotron.

Saturday, Nov. 3. continue reading…

Filed in: Behind The Scenes