Ben Strauss

• Trips, gifts, scoops: The billionaire’s Son Driving Fellow NFL Reporters Mad

Wrote about Howard Schultz’s son, Jordan, and his quest to be an NFL Insider

• Stephen A. Smith would like even more of your attention

A profile that looked at Stephen A’s new podcast and foreshadowed his political prominence

• A reporter keeps asking about Caitlin Clark. Players want her banned

A story about WNBA players taking on a famous reporter, filled with unreported new details

• The power and peril of being Adam Schefter, the ultimate NFL insider

Spent time with Schefter for a scoopy profile that illuminated the life of an insider

• ESPN knew Pat McAfee would bend the rules. Then he blew them up.

How Pat McAfee blew up ESPN

• The WNBA is exploding. But for TV rights, the NBA is still in charge.

An exclusive story filled with unreported details about the WNBA’s business and ties to the NBA

• At the Athletic and New York Times, a marriage with promise and tension

Exclusive reporting on the Times’ $550 million marriage with the Athletic

• What Democrats Talk About When They Talk About Stephen A. Smith

The fascination with Stephen A, presidential candidate

• Fox’s World Cup coverage of Qatar has a notable sponsor: Qatar

Scooped that Qatar was bankrolling much of Fox’s travel to Qatar

• NBA ratings are down. 3's Are Up. And the Discourse is Everywhere

Why are the NBA ratings tanking? And what does it mean?

• As Sports Illustrated sputters, its owners throw a party for ‘the brand’

Went to the Super Bowl and asked: Is SI a media company? Or a brand?

• Pablo Torre Pushes Buttons — and Boundaries — to Expose Sports Secrets

Profiled Torre’s hit podcast and what it says about the future of journalism

• From TikTok to ESPN, Katie Feeney is the Future of Sports Media

Broke the news that ESPN was hiring a popular influencer as part of a wider look at her career

• The ‘stunning’ shift in how the media covers MLB labor strife

Dissected how baseball reporters turned on the league during a labor stoppage

• No, dude, Monica McNutt does not need your WNBA take

How should men (and women) talk about women’s sports?

• Bomani Jones thrives where race and sports collide. Can he be a star at ESPN?

Asked: What is the future for Jones (and his type of commentary) at ESPN?

• Amid money struggles and with no Lionel Messi, La Liga is coming to ESPN

With TV money shrinking in Europe, soccer leagues look to America for growth

 

• She’s torn between her love for Trump and her work with migrants

A devoted Trump supporter becomes a Mother Teresa figure for Venezuelan immigrants

• As deportation fears rise, immigrant parents ask: Who cares for my kids?

A special document that dates to the AIDS epidemic helps parents bracing for deportation

 

• How John Kelly's Neighborhood Led Him to Trump's Side

Visited Boston to better understand--beyond the headlines--the place that shaped Trump's chief of staff

• Is Joe Arpaio the Next Roy Moore?

In Arizona, I reported on the Senate primary and the man threatening to blow up the race

• The Trick-Shot QB Who Played His Way Into Trump's Inner Circle

Profiled Johnny McEntee and his rise in Trumpworld (co-written with Nancy Cook)

• 'This Is Bad for America, But Great for Us'

Wrote about the evolution of Clay Travis, the perfect sports talker for the Trump era

• Jim Acosta Is the White House's Favorite Reporter

Profiled CNN's Jim Acosta and his moral combat in the White House briefing room

• Did Too Much Caitlyn Jenner Doom ESPN?

Reported how ESPN found itself a target of the political moment

• Column: Trump Throws His NFL Buddies Under the Bus

After Trump attacked the NFL, the league's owners--some of his biggest supporters--had buyers' remorse

• Q&A: 'Mr. President, You Know What It's Like to be a Black Man'

Don King talked to me about Trump at his home in Amish Country outside Cleveland

• Q&A: Could Theo Epstein Perform a Miracle for the Democrats?

David Axelrod wonders if Theo could be as good a candidate as a GM

 

• At Northwestern, a Blitz to Defeat an Effort to Unionize

A1 exclusive behind-the-scenes account of NU’s campaign to defeat the football team’s organizing

• M.L.B. Has Plan to Let Cuban Players Sign Directly With Teams

Traveled with an MLB delegation to Havana, as the Obama admin hoped to normalize relations

• M.L.B.’s Good-Will Tour of Cuba Is Hardly the Last Word

Traveled with MLB's delegation, including four Cuban ballplayers who were allowed to return home, to Cuba.

 

• Ted Cruz’s Basketball Charm Offensive

For The Atlantic, I played basketball with Ted Cruz and wrote about his attempted PR makeover through the sport

• The Liberal Arts Football Factory

For Slate, I Investigated how a new attitude toward athletics and football are impacting admissions and campus culture at Wesleyan University

• The Change Agent

For The Athletic, I wrote about Tim Nevius, the former NCAA investigator now trying to reform college sports