Pablo Torre, the creator and host of Pablo Torre Finds Out, has been embarking on and releasing episodes documenting investigative journalism forays into the world of sports. Torre departed his full-time role in ESPN and launched the podcast with Meadowlark Media, which has proliferated in prominence and prestige through impactful reporting and deep dives into esoterica and hidden occurrences. Over the last few months, he has garnered particular attention surrounding his examination of the relationship between University of North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick and Jordon Hudson.
On Tuesday morning, Torre released an episode of his show where he divulged that he had obtained a full 61-page document that provides information about how the National Football League works. The findings evince details surrounding the NFL Management Council, along with a closed-door hearing featuring witness testimony from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, three quarterbacks, eight owners, leaders within the NFLPA and several agents and executives. Torre wrote a blog post about the episode in which he revealed changes to his show.
“You may have heard, recently, that while I proudly remain at Meadowlark Media, PTFO has officially left the DraftKings Network after a surreal and incredible run,” Torre wrote. “But this means that as I type this to you, right now, our weird little show about journalism is genuinely independent – and searching for a new licensing partner (more good news on that front soon, I hope).”
Meadowlark Media and DraftKings extended their partnership last month with a multi-year agreement that included the continued distribution of the Le Batard & Friends network across audio, television, social and digital channels. The portfolio of programs within this deal consist of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, South Beach Sessions, Mystery Crate, Nothing Personal with David Samson and a forthcoming football program. Torre’s show is operating independently at the moment following a “conscious uncoupling” with the company, which previously sold advertising for his show.
Torre announced that he was activating paid PTFO subscriptions on Substack, granting users the option to support the program and receive access to premium benefits. Within his announcement, he stressed that audio and video editions of full episodes will not be hidden behind a paywall. The difference, he explained, will be subscriber benefits, such as exclusive meetings and digital artifacts, that he is currently in the midst of brainstorming.
“To be clear: we’re not gonna paywall the audio or video of the full episodes themselves. You can still consume as you always have. I’ve simply learned that in the age of independent digital media, if people want to economically support the work that you and your exhausted team are doing, you should let them.”
