Brendan Hebert

Full video of Enes Kanter Freedom being removed from the Sky–Fever game at Wintrust Arena after an altercation with Natasha Cloud.

Best media piece I’ve consumed all year. While I personally disagree(d) with Gaines’ stance on transgender athletes in sports, her take was a common take on a very nuanced and layered subject. There was once a human, compassionate element to her words. Talk to 10 different people at your local gas station and you’ll get 10 different answers, some more concise, others lengthy. This was probably the first podcast I’ve ever listened to (dead serious)… absolutely incredible job capturing the timeline and development of that raw, seemingly more authentic reaction from Gaines into a political business model. It shows the distortion that occurred at each stage… And how Gaines really trimmed all the fat (nuance) to make a national political career out of this. It’s disheartening to see the issue of predation from authority figures in women’s sports not receive nearly the same amount of attention. There are so many brave women in sports and speaking up, whatever their views may be. I love how you seek out those stories on the ground level… going where the money is not, just as you do the other way. Those perspectives in particular are so incredibly valuable because they aren’t distorted by money, nor fame, nor attention… That’s where the authenticity is greatest… Just simply a yearning to share what they believe to be the truth. This is the best form of journalism, to me. It’s so incredibly refreshing, and it feels like a breath of fresh air… especially in this day and age of social media (and media in general) where every post or piece is tailored to fit some business or political purpose… very little is genuine. Thank you, Pablo.