The Other 51

Latest Episodes:

Episode 169: Damar Hamlin with Tyler Dunne Jan 05, 2023

Show notes

Tyler Dunne of Go Long tells us all about Damar Hamlin, what it was like to be in Cincinnati on Monday night, and about watching and covering football going forward.

Why Damar Hamlins is exactly what the Buffalo Bills need

The light in football’s most horrific hour

Podcast: Damar Hamlin, life, and football

The Chris Borland Effect

The Chasing MS Foundation Community Toy Drive

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Episode 168: Digital Media Suburb with Jeremy Littau Dec 16, 2022

Show notes

Jeremy Littau, a professor at Lehigh University, an expert in social media with some unfortunate opinions about candy, joins Brian to talk about the present and future of Twitter and new social platforms.

Jeremy talks about where things stood with Twitter as of Dec. 7, when we recorded this. He talks about the migration to Mastodon, why it’s Why its really complicated for people to decide whether or not to leave or join a social network, and why those options are not the same thing.

Jeremy also discusses his willingness to experiment with new digital media, and how he gets his students to think about the future with a bent toward curiosity

Jeremy Littau on Twitter

The Unraveling

Op-Ed: Thinking of leaving Twitter? Its experience is hard to replicate

Conversion via Twitter

Andrew Luck Reveals Why He Walked Away from the NFL

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Episode 167: Rabbit Holes with Pablo Torre Nov 23, 2022

Show notes

Pablo Torre, host of ESPN Daily, joins Brian to talk about interviewing, curiosity in reporting, and how podcasting sits at the middle of his professional Venn Diagram.

After a brief delay in starting this episode, Pablo talks about the career path that brought him to ESPN. He tells Brian how he brings a magazine-writer’s sensibility to a daily sports podcast, and why he is so wary about being a redundant voice. Pablo discusses the range of his interests and the show, whether it is taking time to discuss serious topics (mental health in sports, concussions) to approaching fun stories (was Jalen Rose really the first Jalen?) with the seriousness that Michael Caine brought to A Muppet Christmas Carol.

Pablo and Brian talk about the importance of curiosity and how to cultivate it, how he tries to bring out the best in his guests, and whether or not you can create chemistry between two people.

Alternate episode title: The science of butts

Pablo Torre on Twitter

ESPN Daily

JJ Redick on Mental Health vs. Mental Toughness

Inside the NFL’s Concussion Protocol with Alex Smith

Why NFL Scouts Love Big Butts

Is Jalen Rose the First Jalen? We Solve a Sports Mystery

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Episode 166: Kendall Oilers with Tyler Dunne Nov 03, 2022

Show notes

In our first-ever live event, Tyler Dunne returns to talk about his new book, “The Blood and Guts: How Tight Ends Save Football.”

Listen to this episode for your chance to WIN A SIGNED COPY OF TY’S BOOK.

Tyler tells Brian why he decided to write a whole book about tight ends. Because, let’s face it, that’s an oddly specific topic. If, as Tyler said he learned, that the position of tight end chooses people, how did he choose to write about tight ends.

Tyler describes what he calls “a cross-country trip about the soul of the sport,” how he reported the book, and why it was so important to interview these tight ends in their own environments.

Tyler tells Brian how he approached writing the book like a series of long-form feature stories, how he balanced that and theme to turn those stories into a book, and how he balanced writing and reporting the book, running his own subscription newsletter AND raising a newborn and a toddler at the same time.

Tyler’s sixth-grade teacher drops also drops by (with Tyler’s football card from 2000)

The episode was recorded on October 27, 2022, at the Jandoli School of Communication at St. Bonaventure. Thanks to Aaron Chimbel, the staff of the Jandoli School, and the Endowment for Excellence in Business Journalism for their support of the event.

The Blood and the Guts by Tyler Dunne on Amazon

… and at your local indie bookstore.

Tyler on Twitter

Go Long

The Last Folk Hero by Jeff Pearlman

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Episode 165: Walking Through Your Fear with Jeff Pearlman Oct 27, 2022

Show notes

Jeff Pearlman is back for either his 83rd or 905th appearance, depending on who’s counting. Jeff is back to chat about “The Last Folk Hero,” his outstanding new biography of Bo Jackson that is out this week.

Jeff describes what makes Bo Jackson so iconic and interesting, and why the first thing he did when he decided to write about Bo was to visit eBay.

Jeff did 720 interviews for this book, and he tells Brian who he wishes had been 721. Jeff walks through how he organized all this information with printouts and folders — “It’s a frickin’ nightmare.”

Jeff talks about what makes Bo’s story so intriguing as a writer, how he separated fact from myth, and if it was a bummer to learn the truth behind those myths. He discusses how he developed his writing style, the importance of making the extra call, and how you never stop being afraid but you learn to do what you have to do.

Alternate episode title: Life’s a Crapper

The Last Folk Hero: The Life and Myth of Bo Jackson

Jeff Pearlman’s Amazon Page.

Jeff on Twitter.

Afeni Skaur: Evolution of a Revolutionary by Jasmine Guy

Barkley: A Biography by Timothy Bella

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Episode 164: A 70-Word Sentence with Dr. Denny Wilkins Oct 20, 2022

Show notes

Denny Wilkins' story is that of a geology major from Massachusetts turned into a journalism professor at St. Bonaventure.

It’s also the story of a professor who taught a generation of St. Boanventure journalism graduates — Brian included — to omit needless words.

Denny and Brian, now colleagues at the Jandoli School of Communication, bring faculty meeting energy to this week’s episode. Denny discusses the challenges of teaching college students how to write, the importance of curiosity, and how he teaches it. Denny talks about his own journalism experiences, why he views himself as a coach, and what he learned from former St. Bonaventure women’s basketball coach (and current coach at Providence) Jim Crowley about teaching.

Can you make each sentence one word shorter? If so, you’re halfway to a better story.

Yep. He also talks about what Brian was like as a student. I immediately regret this decision.

Denny Wilkins

St. Bonaventure University Writing Style Guide

Garbage Land: On the Secret Trail of Trash by Elizabeth Royte

The Grid: The Fraying Wires Between Americans and Our Energy Future by Gretchen Bakke

Concrete Planet: The Strange and Fascinating Story of the World’s Most Common Man-Made Material by Robert Courland

The Pencil: A History of Design and Circumstance by Hentry Petroski

The Road Taken: The History and Future of America’s Infrastructure by Henry Petroski

Rust: The Longest War by Jonathan Waldman

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Episode 163: Finding Your Sweet Spot with Dr. Catherine Pearlman Jul 01, 2022

Show notes

Dr. Catherine Pearlman joins Brian to talk about her new book, “First Phone: A child’s guide to digital responsibility, safety and etiquette.”

Catherine discusses her career as a social worker, parenting coach and writer, how she got a syndicated column, and the writing lessons she learned from writing two columns a week for several years. She talks about how and why she decided to write a book specifically for kids, what it was like to write for kids, and what kids really think about smartphones. Digital education is a life-long process. Your kids will make mistakes in their digital life, but theyre part of life and what you can learn of life.

And sleep. Good lord, sleep is so important.

Catherine also talks about how she puts together a book proposal, why she likes to write at night, how she uses Notes to collect material and organize her work, and how she balanced writing a book about technology without it sounding dated.

The Family Coach

Catherine on Twitter

First Phone: A child’s guide to digital responsibility, safety and etiquette

Ignore It!: How Selectively Looking the Other Way Can Decrease Behavioral Problems and Increase Parenting Satisfaction

Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keffe

Hidden Valley Road by Robert Kolker

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Episode 162: The Fan's Reporter with Shoshana of BWay Sho Jun 17, 2022

Show notes

What’s it like to be at the Tony Awards?

How do you juggle being both a fan and a reporter?

How do you go from being a TV reporter in West Texas to creating your own site to cover Broadway?

What’s it like to spend an entire day wearing a fushsia ballgown around New York City?

Shoshana from BWaySho joins Brian to answer those questions and more. Shoshana and Brian talk about how TV taglines never leave you, why she doesn’t see herself as a critic, and the importance of just showing up.

This episode also features our first CONTEST. Check @TheOther51Pod for details.

Legally Blonde at The Muny

The Kite Runner Musical

Into the Woods

A Strange Loop

POTUS

Casey McQuiston’s books

Episode 161: Boom, Curtain with Grace Aki Jun 10, 2022

Show notes

Grace Aki, a playwright and performer, joins Brian to talk about her one-woman show, To Free A Mockingbird.

Here’s the secret. Grace didn’t actually “write” her one-woman show. Well she did. She talks about how she incrementally developed her show over a number of years, and how she used voice memos as her main tool to get material down.

Grace and Brian talk about the lessons she learned from Rick Crom and Seth Barrish, how important the ending and the climax of a show (or a story, or a beat) is, the through line in all of Grace’s work, and what the word storyteller means to her. Grace also gives fantastic advice on how to motivate yourself to do your own creative work.

They also talk ice cream. Let’s normalize meeting up for dessert the way people meet up for drinks!

Grace Aki’s website

To Free a Mockingbird tickets

Which Way to the Stage

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Episode 160: It Gots to Get Out with Chris Mackowski Apr 21, 2022

Show notes

Dr. Chris Mackwoski, an author and professor of communication at St. Bonaventure University, joins Brian to talk about writing, the Civil War, the secrets to productivity, and more.

Chris and Brian, who are colleagues at the Jandoli School of Communication, talk about Chris’ long and winding career path. Chris talks about how spending time as a radio reporter in Maine, working in public relations, working as a playwright and a blogger helped shaped him as a writer.

Chris describes his work writing about the Civil War, why he finds that topic to be so endlessly fascinating, and why he views himself as a writer who happens to write about history, not a historian. He discusses the importance of his writing environment and why that is key to his productivity, what time of day he’s always liked writing, Remember to take the time to take the walk.

Chris Mackowski’s books on Amazon

Emerging Civil War

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

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