Why does sports media care so much about Bill Belichick and his personal life?
I wondered that question all this week as the fallout from Belichick’s appearance on CBS Sunday Morning continued to become the biggest topic in the world of sports media. The hashtags #Belichick and #Hudson were trending over #NBAPlayoffs on social media, and there were layers of sourced “reporting” on what’s going on behind the scenes with Jordon Hudson’s relationship to the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach.
If Bill Belichick wanted publicity for his new book, he got it. But was it worth it?
The old saying is “any publicity is good publicity.” I’ve worked with several sports radio talents over my twenty years in broadcasting who lived by that mantra, some acting out just to prove it’s still true. The simple fact is, in a world filled with noise, people pay more attention when drama happens.
This week, there was a whole lot of drama. What I couldn’t understand is why there was drama in the first place.
“We Need To Go Back and Watch the Tape”
I went back and watched the CBS Sunday Morning interview with Belichick to gain a better perspective on how it went with reporter Tony Dokoupil. The interview began by talking about Belichick’s ripped-up Navy sweatshirt, then moved into his accomplishments with the New England Patriots. The discussion continued into his youth and the high school Belichick attended, which is where the interview took place. It pivoted back to the Patriots, Tom Brady, dealing with the media, and his split with Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
The interview was already six minutes in, then came the twist—getting into the personal life of the 73-year-old head coach and his relationship with 24-year-old Jordon Hudson.
Ninety seconds of the over eight-minute interview with one of the biggest names in football was the talk of the sports media world all week.
Drama, drama, drama. Again, why?
In the final edit, CBS did what they were supposed to do in telling the story of Belichick and Hudson’s relationship. They said that Hudson was a “constant presence” after she was heard on tape asking someone involved in the interview to “make sure that” something was referenced. CBS then showed a still photo of Hudson with Belichick while a producer was talking with Dokoupil.
Then came the moment when Hudson stepped in during the interview, not allowing Belichick to answer a question about how the two met.
Sports media, assemble!
What has ensued over the past week has been nothing short of a middle-school rumor mill as sports media personalities from around the country have taken ninety seconds of an eight-minute interview and tried to go viral with their latest hot-take rant.
“How can Belichick be dating someone so young?”
“Who is this moron woman?”
“This isn’t right, and it needs to stop!”
Why does sports media care so much about Bill Belichick’s personal life?
Jordon Hudson Was Doing Her Job
Let’s first address the elephant in the room. If you’ve ever worked in media, publicists such as Hudson attempt to control how interviews go all the time. There’s a reason why communications departments still exist and why PR firms are always around. Anyone in media who has done any sit-down with a big personality knows there are people around the interviewer trying to craft the narrative and steer the conversation the way they want it to be framed.
Why is Hudson any different?
Another element that a lot of sports media missed this week was the question asked by Dokoupil before the infamous “How did you two meet?”
“You have Jordon right over there. Everybody in the world seems to be following this relationship,” said Dokoupil to Belichick. “They’ve got an opinion about your private life. It’s got nothing to do with them, but they’re invested in it. How do you deal with that?”
Belichick, not appearing fazed by the question, answered like he did for most of his 23 seasons with the Patriots.
“Never have been too worried about what everybody else thinks,” said Belichick. “Just trying to do what I feel like is best for me and what’s right.”
Why does sports media need more than what Belichick provided with that answer? Not everyone is open to discussing every little sliver of their personal life in a worldwide media ecosphere, so why were so many upset when he didn’t give up more?
If Belichick and Hudson want to keep certain things private, that’s their right.
If Belichick and Hudson wanted to keep the conversation focused on football, that’s their right to ask.
Instead, many in sports media took the easy route—which unfortunately was too predictable.
Sports Media Gets Personal, Judgemental, Shameful
“Your relationship is weird,” said one nationally syndicated sports radio host this week. “It’s not illegal, but it’s weird.”
“You’re allowed to have sex with women and take care of them. They don’t have to come to work with you the next day,” said another radio host this week.
“This girlfriend of his—I mean, I’m sorry. She’s a young kid. She’s 24 years of age. She knows nothing about the media spotlight, especially the sports media spotlight,” said another nationally syndicated radio host. “It looks like she has Bill (Belichick) twirled around her finger. Let’s call it like we see it. This is a dog show.”
“You have no idea what the hell you’re doing. What’s your experience in this? Banging an old guy?” said yet another sports radio host this week. “How the hell are you ever orchestrating this interview?”
The easy route was numerous sports media personalities getting personal about a man and a woman who didn’t want to get personal. There’s a level of shame with that, but here’s what we can learn from it.
Bill Belichick needed someone like Jordon Hudson as a head coach in college football for the University of North Carolina. He doesn’t understand how to recruit players in today’s NIL world and needs someone he can trust to help guide him along the path. Who better than someone he met on a flight to Palm Beach in 2021, when she was 20 years old, and developed a relationship with over the past four years?
The two have built a level of trust with each other and have grown into a relationship together. That should be celebrated instead of mocked and ridiculed like it has been for the past week.
As Belichick said in his answer on CBS Sunday Morning, he’s just trying to do what he feels is best for him and what feels right. If this feels right for him, who are we to judge?
It may be his life and his career that is chronicled in the book, but not everything needs to be included. If Robert Kraft didn’t make the 267-page book, why should Jordon Hudson?
Why does sports media care so much about Bill Belichick’s personal life?
I guess they were tired of talking about Shedeur Sanders.
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
