Pablo Torre is taking his podcast to a wider stage—but not without making sure the original vision stays intact. The Athletic has secured a multi-year, seven figure licensing agreement with Torre’s podcast, Pablo Torre Finds Out, marking a significant step in the outlet’s push to expand its presence in the audio space and deepen its cultural footprint within sports storytelling
Speaking on The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, Torre discussed the licensing agreement with The Athletic and The New York Times. While the deal marks a major distribution shift for the show, Torre emphasized that the creative core of the podcast will remain untouched.
“We are going to keep making the show at Meadowlark Media. That’s the most exciting thing,” Torre said. “The Athletic, the New York Times came to us… and they made it very clear that they want us to do this show exactly as we’ve been doing it.”
That includes everything from whimsical experiments—like butter sculptures of Torre funded by Dan Le Batard—to investigative deep dives and some offbeat features. According to Torre, the message from the Times was clear: keep doing the show as is.
“What’s changing, ideally for the audience, is nothing,” said Torre. “Except for the fact that we will now have access. If we do this right, and we earn the trust of our partners at the New York Times and the Athletic. If we do that stuff right, we’ll do even more ambitious investigations and even more ambitious episodes.”
The first episode under the new licensing structure is set to debut September 4. While Torre kept details under wraps, he promised it would be “a big one.” He was transparent about the mechanics of the deal, clarifying that The Athletic has licensed the show, not purchased it outright. That distinction is key.
“They purchased the right to license us,” he said. “It just means that they advertise, monetize, promote the show—but they don’t own the show.”
For Torre and Meadowlark, it’s a scenario that offers maximum flexibility with plenty of upside. He likened the arrangement to a kind of rental agreement: “It’s an ideal sort of rental of us with the promise of being long-term tenants, and that’s ideal.”
He acknowledged that licensing can be confusing to audiences, but framed it as a “best of both worlds” situation—one that maintains Meadowlark’s creative autonomy while plugging into the vast reach of The Athletic and its parent company, The New York Times.
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