BILL SIMMONS AS A SPORTS MEDIA PERSONALITY
Bill Simmons was listed as one of the "Most Powerful Talents in Sports Media" by Big Lead. According to the article, though his recent endeavors are not commercial successes, his podcasts are continuously showing strong performance and his name is still a big click drawer for readers.
The Atlantic has ranked "The Bill Simmons Podcast" among the "50 Best Podcasts of 2017". According to The Atlantic, Simmons has the ability to persuade his guest to talk about almost anything. Among his podcast's achievement in 2017 is a rare guesting with Kevin Durant, who rarely sits down for interviews.
The Medium wrote a 27-minute article in which Bill Simmons meteoric rise to sports journalismsuperstardom was clearly illustrated. An excerpt from a 2005 New York article entitled "That Sports Guy Thrives Online" by Warren St. John talks about how Simmons pioneered a new style of sports writing by injecting his personal style with commentaries referenced from television sitcoms, movies, video games, music, and even his friends and wife, and then supplementing them with his knowledge of sports history and analysis.
According to this Medium article, Simmons reached this kind of success by becoming one with his readers. He did not simply interview his guests and hide behind the confines of journalistic protocols.
POP CULTURE INFLUENCE AND SPORTS INFLUENCE
One of the influences that Bill Simmons has been for pop culture is his pioneering works in podcasting. While working for ESPN in 2007, Simmons was one of the most famous champions of podcasting. In 2013, his podcast called "BS Report" was downloaded 31 million times and his other podcast, Gartland, received 19 million downloads.
Bill Simmons' influence in sports still has a tie-up with his podcasting influence. When ESPN agreed toSimmons' idea of podcasting in 2007, it launched a new platform not just for Simmons, but for sports broadcasters in general. His podcast "The Bill Simmons Podcast" hosted by The Ringer, accounts to 50-70% of Apple app podcast audience , according to analysts, making it the lone sports podcast in iTunes' top 20 most popular podcasts. The success of his podcasts has influenced what is dubbed as the "sports podcast revolution".
Due to the influences of Bill Simmons and his media company, The Ringer, on podcasting, it is estimated byAdResults Media that Bill Simmons podcasts are generating $50,000 per episode. Additionally, the revenue of podcasting rose significantly, from $69 million in 2015 to $119 million in 2016 and it reached $220 million in 2017.
The Webby Awards cemented Bill Simmons influence in pop culture when they awarded his podcast "The Bill Simmons" as the 2018 People's Choice for the category Sports Podcast Digital and Audio.
Although the numbers are not disclosed, Apple iTunes has tagged HBO and The Ringer's "The Bill Simmons"podcasts as the most downloaded sports podcast of all time.
BILL SIMMONS AND THE "EWING THEORY"
Bill Simmons was famously credited for introducing the sports lexicon, "Ewing Theory" to the world. It was in the mid-90's when Simmons coined the term, when the New York Knicks, after losing their star center Patrick Ewing due to injury, made it to the 1999 NBA Eastern Conference Finals.
The main concept of the theory is when a team loses its star player, the team performs even better. This theory was widely regarded and a lot of seemingly inexplicable sporting runs began using this term.
BILL SIMMONS' INFLUENCE AS REGARDED BY HIS PEERS
In a 2015 article published in Newsweek, columnist John Walters penned about his thoughts on Bill Simmons and ESPN fallout. In this article, Walters called Simmons "the most influential sports media figure of this millennium." Additionally, he addressed Simmons as the most popular writer in the digital age who effortlessly tied up sports with pop culture and became the fans' voice.
Columnist Jonathan Mahler from the New York Times penned a Bill Simmons article in 2011 where he called Simmons "the most prominent sportswriter in America". He also commented on how Simmons' brand of writing, mixing sports withpop culture reference , has changed the way sports and sports personality are being regarded.
* NOTABLE BILL SIMMONS QUOTES FROM JOURNALISTS
"Simmons, despite hisidiosyncrasies personal or professional, is well-regarded as a wildly successful online journalist, a pioneer even, who reached superstardom by penetrating and understanding the sensibilities and hormones of millions of sports lovers by getting into their heads , because he’s one of them." Connor Harrison, Medium
"Simmons became the voice of the fans and blended his two passions, sports and pop culture, together seamlessly. And while he was not the first writer to do so, he was the first, and by far the most popular, of the digital age." John Walters, Newsweek (2015)
"No sports writer ever had a more avid, and twisted, legion of followers than Simmons has. His Mailbag columns are legendary, not just because of their verbose nature (7,000 words is not uncommon) but because of the hilarious and unhinged questions and comments his readers send his way. " John Walters, Newsweek
"For Simmons, this distinction, between fan and columnist, doesn’t really exist. Unlike many sportswriters, for whom detachment is a point of professional pride, Simmons makes no pretense of neutrality. This is at least one explanation for his extraordinary popularity." Jonathan Mahler, New York Times
Bill Simmons was listed as one of the "Most Powerful Talents in Sports Media" by Big Lead. According to the article, though his recent endeavors are not commercial successes, his podcasts are continuously showing strong performance and his name is still a big click drawer for readers.
The Atlantic has ranked "The Bill Simmons Podcast" among the "50 Best Podcasts of 2017". According to The Atlantic, Simmons has the ability to persuade his guest to talk about almost anything. Among his podcast's achievement in 2017 is a rare guesting with Kevin Durant, who rarely sits down for interviews.
The Medium wrote a 27-minute article in which Bill Simmons meteoric rise to sports journalism
According to this Medium article, Simmons reached this kind of success by becoming one with his readers. He did not simply interview his guests and hide behind the confines of journalistic protocols.
POP CULTURE INFLUENCE AND SPORTS INFLUENCE
One of the influences that Bill Simmons has been for pop culture is his pioneering works in podcasting. While working for ESPN in 2007, Simmons was one of the most famous champions of podcasting. In 2013, his podcast called "BS Report" was downloaded 31 million times and his other podcast, Gartland, received 19 million downloads.
Bill Simmons' influence in sports still has a tie-up with his podcasting influence. When ESPN agreed to
Due to the influences of Bill Simmons and his media company, The Ringer, on podcasting, it is estimated by
The Webby Awards cemented Bill Simmons influence in pop culture when they awarded his podcast "The Bill Simmons" as the 2018 People's Choice for the category Sports Podcast Digital and Audio.
Although the numbers are not disclosed, Apple iTunes has tagged HBO and The Ringer's "The Bill Simmons"
BILL SIMMONS AND THE "EWING THEORY"
Bill Simmons was famously credited for introducing the sports lexicon, "Ewing Theory" to the world. It was in the mid-90's when Simmons coined the term, when the New York Knicks, after losing their star center Patrick Ewing due to injury, made it to the 1999 NBA Eastern Conference Finals.
The main concept of the theory is when a team loses its star player, the team performs even better. This theory was widely regarded and a lot of seemingly inexplicable sporting runs began using this term.
BILL SIMMONS' INFLUENCE AS REGARDED BY HIS PEERS
In a 2015 article published in Newsweek, columnist John Walters penned about his thoughts on Bill Simmons and ESPN fallout. In this article, Walters called Simmons "the most influential sports media figure of this millennium." Additionally, he addressed Simmons as the most popular writer in the digital age who effortlessly tied up sports with pop culture and became the fans' voice.
Columnist Jonathan Mahler from the New York Times penned a Bill Simmons article in 2011 where he called Simmons "the most prominent sportswriter in America". He also commented on how Simmons' brand of writing, mixing sports with
* NOTABLE BILL SIMMONS QUOTES FROM JOURNALISTS
"Simmons, despite his
"Simmons became the voice of the fans and blended his two passions, sports and pop culture, together seamlessly. And while he was not the first writer to do so, he was the first, and by far the most popular, of the digital age." John Walters, Newsweek (2015)
"No sports writer ever had a more avid, and twisted, legion of followers than Simmons has. His Mailbag columns are legendary, not just because of their verbose nature (7,000 words is not uncommon) but because of the hilarious and unhinged questions and comments his readers send his way. " John Walters, Newsweek
"For Simmons, this distinction, between fan and columnist, doesn’t really exist. Unlike many sportswriters, for whom detachment is a point of professional pride, Simmons makes no pretense of neutrality. This is at least one explanation for his extraordinary popularity." Jonathan Mahler, New York Times