Podcasts about Heavyweight

In this Write Big session of the #amwriting podcast, host Jennie Nash welcomes Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Jennifer Senior for a powerful conversation about finding, knowing, and claiming your voice.Jennifer shares how a medication once stripped away her ability to think in metaphor—the very heart of her writing—and what it was like to get that voice back. She and Jennie talk about how voice strengthens over time, why confidence and ruthless editing matter, and what it feels like when you're truly writing in flow.It's an inspiring reminder that your voice is your greatest strength—and worth honoring every time you sit down to write.TRANSCRIPT BELOW!THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST:* Jennifer's Fresh Air interview with Terry Gross: Can't Sleep? You're Not Alone* Atlantic feature story: What Bobby McIlvaine Left Behind* Atlantic feature story: The Ones We Sent Away* Atlantic feature story: It's Your Friends Who Break Your Heart* The New York Times article: Happiness Won't Save You* Heavyweight the podcastSPONSORSHIP MESSAGEHey, it's Jennie Nash. And at Author Accelerator, we believe that the skills required to become a great book coach and build a successful book coaching business can be taught to people who come from all kinds of backgrounds and who bring all kinds of experiences to the work. But we also know that there are certain core characteristics that our most successful book coaches share. If you've been curious about becoming a book coach, and 2026 might be the year for you, come take our quiz to see how many of those core characteristics you have. You can find it at bookcoaches.com/characteristics-quiz.EPISODE TRANSCRIPTJennie NashHi, I'm Jennie Nash, and you're listening to the Hashtag AmWriting Podcast. This is a Write Big Session, where I'm bringing you short episodes about the mindset shifts that help you stop playing small and write like it matters. This one might not actually be that short, because today I'm talking to journalist Jennifer Senior about the idea of finding and knowing and claiming your voice—a rather big part of writing big. Jennifer Senior is a staff writer at The Atlantic. She won the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing in 2022 and was a finalist again in 2024. Before that, she spent five years at The New York Times as both a daily book critic and a columnist for the opinion page, and nearly two decades at New York Magazine. She's also the author of a bestselling parenting book, and frequently appears on NPR and other news shows. Welcome, Jennifer. Thanks for joining us.Jennifer SeniorThank you for having me. Hey, I got to clarify just one thing.Jennie NashOh, no.Jennifer SeniorAll Joy and No Fun is by no means a parenting book. I can't tell you the first thing about how to raise your kids. It is all about how kids change their parents. It's all like a sociological look at who we become and why we are—so our lives become so vexed. I like, I would do these book talks, and at the end, everybody would raise their hand and be like, “How do I get my kid into Harvard?” You know, like, the equivalent obviously—they wouldn't say it that way. I'd be like; I don't really have any idea, or how to get your kid to eat vegetables, or how to get your kid to, like, stop talking back. But anyway, I just have to clarify that, because every time...Jennie NashPlease, please—Jennifer SeniorSomeone says that, I'm like, “Noooo.” Anyway, it's a sociology book. Ah, it's an ethnography, you know. But anyway, it doesn't matter.Jennie NashAll right, like she said, you guys—not what I said.Jennifer SeniorI'm not correcting you. It came out 11 years ago. There were no iPads then, or social media. I mean, forget it. It's so dated anyway. But like, I just...Jennie NashThat's so funny. So the reason that we're speaking is that I heard you recently on Fresh Air with Terry Gross, where you were talking about an Atlantic feature story that you wrote called “Why Can't Americans Sleep?” And this was obviously a reported piece, but also a really personal piece and you're talking about your futile attempts to fall asleep and the latest research into insomnia and medication and therapy that you used to treat it, and we'll link to that article and interview in the show notes. But the reason that we're talking, and that in the middle of this conversation, which—which I'm listening to and I'm riveted by—you made this comment, and it was a little bit of a throwaway comment in the conversation, and, you know, then the conversation moved on. But you talked about how you were taking a particular antidepressant you'd been prescribed, and this was the quote you said: “It blew out all the circuitry that was responsible for generating metaphors, which is what I do as a writer. So it made my writing really flat.” And I was just like, hold up. What was that like? What happened? What—everything? So that's why we're talking. So… can we go back to the very beginning? If you can remember—Jess Lahey actually told me that when she was teaching fifth and sixth grade, that's around the time that kids begin to grasp this idea of figurative language and metaphor and such. Do you remember learning how to write like that, like write in metaphor and simile and all such things?Jennifer SeniorOh, that's funny. Do I remember it? I remember them starting to sort of come unbidden in my—like they would come unbidden in my head starting maybe in my—the minute I entered college, or maybe in my teens. Actually, I had that thing where some people have this—people who become writers have, like, a narrator's voice in their head where they're actually looking at things and describing them in the third person. They're writing them as they witness the world. That went away, that narrator's voice, which I also find sort of fascinating. But, like, I would say that it sort of emerged concurrently. I guess I was scribbling a little bit of, like, short story stuff, or I tried at least one when I was a senior in high school. So that was the first time maybe that, like, I started realizing that I had a flair for it. I also—once I noticed that, I know in college I would make, you know, when I started writing for the alternative weekly and I was reviewing things, particularly theater, I would make a conscientious effort to come up with good metaphors, and, like, 50% of them worked and 50% of them didn't, because if you ever labor over a metaphor, there's a much lower chance of it working. I mean, if you come—if you revisit it and go, oh, that's not—you know, that you can tell if it's too precious. But now if I labor over a metaphor, I don't bother. I stop. You know, it has to come instantaneously or...Jennie NashOr that reminds me of people who write with the thesaurus open, like that's going to be good, right? That's not going to work. So I want to stick with this, you know, so that they come into your head, you recognize that, and just this idea of knowing, back in the day, that you could write like that—you… this was a thing you had, like you used the word “flair,” like had a flair for this. Were there other signs or things that led you to the work, like knowing you were good, or knowing when something was on the page that it was right, like, what—what is that?Jennifer SeniorIt's that feeling of exhilaration, but it's also that feeling of total bewilderment, like you've been struck by something—something just blew through you and you had nothing to do with it. I mean, it's the cliché: here I am saying the metaphors are my superpower, which my editors were telling me, and I'm about to use a cliché, which is that you feel like you're a conduit for something and you have absolutely nothing to do with it. So I would have that sense that it had almost come without conscious thought. That was sort of when I knew it was working. It's also part of being in a flow state. It's when you're losing track of time and you're just in it. And the metaphors are—yeah, they're effortless. By the way, my brain is not entirely fogged in from long COVID, but I have noticed—and at first I didn't really notice any decrements in cognition—but recently, I have. So I'm wondering now if I'm having problems with spontaneous metaphor generation. It's a little bit disconcerting. And I do feel like all SSRIs—and I'm taking one now, just because, not just because long COVID is depressing, but because I have POTS, which is like a—it's Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, and that's a very common sequela from long COVID, and it wipes out your plasma serotonin. So we have to take one anyway, we POTS patients. So I found that nicotine often helped with my long COVID, which is a thing—like a nicotine patch—and that made up for it. It almost felt like I was doping [laughing]. It made my writing so much better. But it's been...Jennie NashWait, wait, wait, this is so interesting.Jennifer SeniorI know…it's really weird. I would never have guessed that so much of my writing would be dampened by Big Pharma. I mean—but now with the nicotine patches, I was like, oh, now I get why writers are smoking until into the night, writing. Like, I mean, and I always wished that I did, just because it looked cool, you know? I could have just been one of those people with their Gitanes, or however you pronounce it, but, yeah.Jennie NashWow. So I want to come—I want to circle back to this in a minute, but let's get to the first time—well, it sounds like the first time that happened where you were prescribed an antidepressant and—and you recognized that you lost the ability to write in metaphor. Can you talk about—well, first of all, can you tell us what the medication was?Jennifer SeniorYeah, it was Paxil, which is actually notorious for that. And at the top—which I only subsequently discovered—those were in the days where there were no such things as Reddit threads or anything like that. It was 1999… I guess, no, eight, but so really early. That was the bespoke antidepressant at the time, thought to be more nuanced. I think it's now fallen out of favor, because it's also a b***h to wean off of. But it was kind of awful, just—I would think, and nothing would come. It was the strangest thing. For—there's all this static electricity usually when you write, right? And there's a lot of free associating that goes on that, again, feels a little involuntary. You know, you start thinking—it's like you've pulled back the spring in the pinball machine, and suddenly the thing is just bouncing around everywhere, and the ball wasn't bouncing around. Nothing was lighting up. It was like a dis… it just was strange, to be able to summon nothing.Jennie NashWow. So you—you just used this killer metaphor to describe that.Jennifer SeniorYeah, that was spontaneous.Jennie NashRight? So—so you said first, you said static, static energy, which—which is interesting.Jennifer SeniorYeah, it's... [buzzing sound]Jennie NashYeah. Yeah. Because it's noisy. You're talking about...Jennie SeniorOh, but it's not disruptive noise. Sorry, that might seem like it's like unwanted crackling, like on your television. I didn't really—yeah, maybe that's the wrong metaphor, actually, maybe the pinball is sort of better, that all you need is to, you know, psych yourself up, sit down, have your caffeine, and then bam, you know? But I didn't mean static in that way.Jennie NashI understood what you meant. There's like a buzzy energy.Jennifer SeniorYeah, right. It's fizz.Jennie NashFizz... that's so good. So you—you recognized that this was gone.Jennifer SeniorSo gone! Like the TV was off, you know?Jennie NashAnd did you...?Jennifer SeniorOr the machine, you know, was unplugged? I mean, it's—Jennie NashYeah, and did you? I'm just so curious about the part of your brain that was watching another part of your brain.Jennifer Senior[Laughing] You know what? I think... oh, that's really interesting. But are you watching, or are you just despairing because there's nothing—I mean, I'm trying to think if that's the right...Jennie NashBut there's a part of your brain that's like, this part of my brain isn't working.Jennifer SeniorRight. I'm just thinking how much metacognition is involved in— I mean, if you forget a word, are you really, like, staring at that very hard, or are you just like, s**t, what's the word? If you're staring at Jack Nicholson on TV, and you're like, why can't I remember that dude's name?Multiple speakers[Both laughing]Jennifer SeniorWhich happens to me far more regularly now, [unintelligible]… than it used to, you know? I mean, I don't know. There is a part of you that's completely alarmed, but, like, I guess you're right. There did come a point where I—you're right, where I suddenly realized, oh, there's just been a total breakdown here. It's never happening. Like, what is going on? Also, you know what would happen? Every sentence was a grind, like...Jennie NashOkay, so—okay, so...Jennifer Senior[Unintelligible]... Why is this so effortful? When you can't hold the previous sentence in your head, suddenly there's been this lapse in voice, right? Because, like, if every sentence is an effort and you're starting from nothing again, there's no continuity in how you sound. So, I mean, it was really dreadful. And by the way, if I can just say one thing, sorry now that—Jennie NashNo, I love it!Jennifer SeniorYeah. Sorry. I'm just—now you really got me going. I'm just like, yeah, I know. I'm sort of on a tear and a partial rant, which is Prozac—there came a point where, like, every single SSRI was too activating for me to sleep. But it was, of course, a problem, because being sleepless makes you depressed, so you need something to get at your depression. And SNRIs, like the Effexor's and the Cymbalta's, are out of the question, because those are known to be activating. So I kept vainly searching for SSRIs, and Prozac was the only one that didn't—that wound up not being terribly activating, besides Paxil, but it, too, was somewhat deadening, and I wrote my whole book on it.Jennie NashWow!Jennifer SeniorIt's not all metaphor.Multiple Speakers[both laughing]Jennifer SeniorIt's not all me and no—nothing memorable, you know? I mean, it's—it's kind of a problem. It was—I can't really bear to go back and look at it.Jennie NashWow.Jennie NashSo—so the feeling...Jennifer SeniorI'm really giving my book the hard sell, like it's really a B plus in terms of its pro…—I mean, you know, it wasn't.Jennie NashSo you—you—you recognize its happening, and what you recognize is a lack of fizzy, buzzy energy and a lack of flow. So I just have to ask now, presumably—well, there's long COVID now, but when you don't have—when you're writing in your full powers, do you—is it always in a state of flow? Like, if you're not in a state of flow, do you get up and go do something else? Like, what—how does that function in the life of a writer on a deadline?Jennifer SeniorOK. Well, am I always in a state of flow? No! I mean, flow is not—I don't know anyone who's good at something who just immediately can be in flow every time.Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorIt's still magic when it happens. You know, when I was in flow almost out of the gate every day—the McIlvaine stories—like, I knew when I hit send, this thing is damn good. I knew when I hit send on a piece that was not as well read, but is like my second or third favorite story. I wrote something for The New York Times called “Happiness Wont Save You,” about a pioneer in—he wrote one of the foundational studies in positive psychology about lottery winners and paraplegics, and how lottery winners are pretty much no happier than random controls found in a phone book, and paraplegics are much less unhappy than you might think, compared to controls. It was really poorly designed. It would never withstand the scrutiny of peer review today. But anyway, this guy was, like, a very innovative thinker. His name was Philip Brickman, and in 1982 at 38 years old, he climbed—he got—went—he found his way to the roof of the tallest building in Ann Arbor and jumped, and took his own life. And I was in flow pretty much throughout writing that one too.Jennie NashWow. So the piece you're referring to, that you referred to previous to that, is What Bobby McIlvaine Left Behind, which was a feature story in The Atlantic. It's the one you won the—Pul…Pulitzer for? It's now made into a book. It has, like...Jennifer SeniorAlthough all it is like, you know, the story between...Jennie NashCovers, right?Jennifer SeniorYeah. Yeah. Because—yeah, yeah.Jennie NashBut—Jennifer SeniorWhich is great, because then people can have it, rather than look at it online, which—and it goes on forever—so yeah.Jennie NashSo this is a piece—the subtitle is Grief, Conspiracy Theories, and One Family's Search for Meaning in the Two Decades Since 9/11—and I actually pulled a couple of metaphors from that piece, because I re-read it knowing I was going to speak to you… and I mean, it was just so beautifully written. It's—it's so beautifully structured, everything, everything. But here's a couple of examples for our listeners. You're describing Bobby, who was a 26-year-old who died in 9/11, who was your brother's college roommate.Jennifer SeniorAnd at that young adult—they—you can't afford New York. They were living together for eight years. It was four in college, and four—Jennie NashWow.Jennifer SeniorIn New York City. They had a two-bedroom... yeah, in a cheaper part... well, to the extent that there are cheaper parts in...Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorThe way over near York Avenue, east side, yeah.Jennie NashSo you write, “When he smiled, it looked for all the world like he'd swallowed the moon.” And you wrote, “But for all Bobby's hunger and swagger, what he mainly exuded, even during his college years, was warmth, decency, a corkscrew quirkiness.” So just that kind of language—a corkscrew quirkiness, like he'd swallowed the moon—that, it's that the piece is full of that. So that's interesting, that you felt in flow with this other piece you described and this one. So how would you describe—so you describe metaphors as things that just come—it just—it just happens. You're not forcing it—you can't force it. Do you think that's true of whatever this ineffable thing of voice—voices—as well?Jennifer SeniorOh, that's a good question. My voice got more distinct as I got older—it gets better. I think a lot of people's—writers'—powers wax. Philip Roth is a great example of that. Colette? I mean, there are people whose powers really get better and better, and I've gotten better with more experience. But do you start with the voice? I think you do. I don't know if you can teach someone a voice.Jennie NashSo when you say you've gotten better, what does that mean to you?Jennifer SeniorYeah. Um, I'm trying to think, like, do I write with more swing? Do I—just with more confidence because I'm older? Being a columnist…which is the least creative medium…Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorSeven hundred and fifty words to fit onto—I had a dedicated space in print. When David Leonhardt left, I took over the Monday spot, during COVID. So it's really, really—but what it forces you to do is to be very—your writing becomes lean, and it becomes—and structure is everything. So this does not relate to voice, but my—I was always pretty good at structure anyway. I think if you—I think movies and radio, podcasts, are, like, great for structure. Storytelling podcasts are the best thing to—I think I unconsciously emulate them. The McIlvaine story has a three-act structure. There's also—I think the podcast Heavyweight is sublime in that way.Jennie NashIs that Roxane Gay?Jennifer SeniorNo, no, no, no.Jennie NashOh, it's, um—Jennifer SeniorIt's Jonathan Goldstein.Jennie NashYes, got it. I'm going to write that down and link to that in our show notes.Jennifer SeniorIt's... I'm trying to think of—because, you know, his is, like, narratives, and it's—it's got a very unusual premise. But voice, voice, voice—well, I, you know, I worked on making my metaphors better in the beginning. I worked on noticing things, you know, and I worked on—I have the—I'm the least visual person alive. I mean, this is what's so interesting. Like, I failed to notice once that I had sat for an hour and a half with a woman who was missing an arm. I mean, I came back to the office and was talking—this is Barbara Epstein, who was a storied editor of The New York Review of Books, the story editor, along with Bob Silver. And I was talking to Mike Tomasky, who was our, like, city politic editor at the time. And I said to him, I just had this one—I knew she knew her. And he said, was it awkward? Was—you know, with her having one arm and everything? And I just stared at him and went one arm? I—I am really oblivious to stuff. And yet visual metaphors are no problem with me. Riddle me that, Batman. I don't know why that is. But I can, like, summon them in my head, and so I worked at it for a while, when my editors were responsive to it. Now they come more easily, so that seems to maybe just be a facility. I started noticing them in other people's writing. So Michael Ondaatje —in, I think it was In the Skin of a Lion, but maybe it was The English Patient. I've read, like, every book of his, like I've, you know— Running… was it Running in the Family? Running with the Family? I think it was Running in the—his memoir. And, I mean, doesn't—everything. Anil's Ghost—he— you know, that was it The Ballad of Billy the Kid? [The Collected Works of Billy the Kid] Anyway, I can go on and on. He had one metaphor talking about the evening being as serene as ink. And it was then that I realized that metaphors without effort often—and—or is that a simile? That's a simile.Jennie NashLike—or if it's “like” or “as,” it's a simile.Jennifer SeniorYeah. So I'm pretty good with similes, maybe more than metaphors. But... serene as ink. I realized that what made that work is that ink is one syllable. There is something about landing on a word with one syllable that sounds like you did not work particularly hard at it. You just look at it and keep going. And I know that I made a real effort to make my metaphors do that for a while, and I still do sometimes. Anything more than that can seem labored.Jennie NashOh, but that's so interesting. So you—you noticed in other people what worked and what you liked, and then tried to fold that into your own work.Jennifer SeniorYeah.Jennie NashSo does that mean you might noodle on—like, you have the structure of the metaphor or simile, but you might noodle on the word—Jennifer SeniorThe final word?Jennie NashThe final word.Jennifer SeniorYeah. Yeah, the actual simile, or whatever—yeah, I guess it's a simile—yeah, sometimes. Sometimes they—like I said, they come unbidden. I think I have enough experience now—which may make my voice better—to know what's crap. And I also, by the way, I'll tell you what makes your voice better: just being very willing to hit Select Alt, Delete. You know, there's more where that came from. I am a monster of self-editing. I just—I have no problem doing it. I like to do it. I like to be told when things are s**t. I think that improves your voice, because you can see it on the page.Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorAnd also, I think paying attention to other people's writing, you know, I did more and more of that, you know, reverse engineering stuff, looking at how they did stuff as I got older, so...Jennie NashSo I was going to ask a question, which now maybe you already answered, but the question was going to be… you said that you're—you feel like you're getting better as a writer as you got older. And you—you said that was due to experience. And I was going to ask, is it, or is it due to getting older? You know, is there something about literally living more years that makes you better, or, you know, like, is wisdom something that you just get, or is it something you work for? But I think what I'm hearing is you're saying you have worked to become the kind of writer who knows, you know, what you just said—you delete stuff, it comes again. But tell me if—you know, you welcome the kind of tough feedback, because you know that makes you better. You know, this sort of real effort to become better, it sounds like that's a practice you have. Is that—is that right?Jennifer SeniorOh yeah. I mean, well, let's do two things on that, please. I so easily lose my juju these days that, like, you've got to—if you can put a, you know, oh God, I'm going to use a cliché again—if you can put a pin in or bookmark that, the observation about, you know, harsh feedback. I want to come back to that. But yes, one of the things that I was going to keep—when I said that I have the confidence now, I also was going to say that I have the wisdom, but I had too many kind of competing—Jennie NashYeah. Yeah.Jennifer SeniorYou know, were running at once, and I, you know, many trains on many tracks—Jennie NashYeah, yeah.Jennifer Senior…about to leave, so…, Like, I had to sort of hop on one. But, like, the—the confidence and wisdom, yes, and also, like, I'll tell you something: in the McIlvaine piece, it may have been the first time I did, like, a narrative nonfiction. I told a story. There was a time when I would have hid behind research on that one.Jennie NashOoh, and did you tell a story. It was the—I remember reading that piece when it first came out, and there you're introducing, you know, this—the situation. And then there's a moment, and it comes very quickly at the top of the piece, where you explain your relationship to the protagonist of the story. And there's a—there's just a moment of like, oh, we're—we're really in something different here. There's really—is that feel of, this is not a reported story, this is a lived story, and that there's so many layers of power, I mean, to the story itself, but obviously the way that you—you present it, so I know exactly what you're talking about.Jennifer SeniorYeah, and by the way, I think writing in the first person, which I've been doing a lot of lately, is not something I would have done until now. Probably because I am older and I feel like I've earned it. I have more to say. I've been through more stuff. It's not, like, with the same kind of narcissism or adolescent—like, I want to get this out, you know. It's more searching, I think, and because I've seen more, and also because I've had these pent up stories that I've wanted to tell for a long time. And also I just don't think I would have had the balls, you know.Jennie NashRight.Jennifer SeniorSo some of it is—and I think that that's part of—you can write better in your own voice. If it's you writing about you, you're—there's no better authority, you know? So your voice comes out.Jennie NashRight.Jennifer SeniorBut I'm trying to think of also—I would have hid behind research and talked about theories of grief. And when I wrote, “It's the damnedest thing, the dead abandon you, and then you abandon the dead,” I had blurted that out loud when I was talking to, actually, not Bobby's brother, which is the context in which I wrote it, but to Bobby's—I said that, it's, like, right there on the tape—to his former almost fiancée. And I was thinking about that line, that I let it stand. I didn't actually then rush off and see if there was a body of literature that talked about the guilt that the living feel about letting go of their memories. But I would have done that at one point. I would have turned it into this... because I was too afraid to just let my own observations stand. But you get older and you're like, you know what? I'm smart enough to just let that be mine. Like, assume...Jennie NashRight.Jennifer SeniorIt's got to be right. But can we go back, also, before I forget?Jennie NashYeah, we're going to go back to harsh, but—but I would just want to use your cliché, put a pin in what you said, because you've said so many important things— that there's actual practice of getting better, and then there's also wisdom of—of just owning, growing into, embracing, which are two different things, both so important. So I just wanted to highlight that you've gone through those two things. So yes, let's go back to—I said harsh, and maybe I miss—can...misrepresenting what you meant.Jennifer SeniorYou may not have said that. I don't know what you said.Jennie NashNo, I did, I did.Jennifer SeniorYou did, okay, yeah, because I just know that it was processed as a harsh—oh no, totally. Like, I was going to say to you that—so there was a part of my book, my book, eventually, I just gave one chapter to each person in my life whom I thought could, like, assess it best, and one of them, so this friend—I did it on paper. He circled three paragraphs, and he wrote, and I quote, “Is this just a shitty way of saying...?” And then I was like, thank God someone caught it, if it was shitty. Oh my God. And then—and I was totally old enough to handle it, you know, I was like 44, whatever, 43. And then, who was it? Someone else—oh, I think I gave my husband the intro, and he wrote—he circled a paragraph and just wrote, “Ugh.” Okay, Select Alt, Delete, redo. You know, like, what are you going to do with that? That's so unambiguous. It's like, you know—and also, I mean, when you're younger, you argue. When you're older, you never quarrel with Ugh. Or Is this...Jennie NashRight, you're just like, okay, yep.Jennifer SeniorYeah. And again, you—you've done it enough that, you know, there's so much more where that came from.Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorWhy cling to anything that someone just, I don't know, had this totally allergic reaction to? Like, you know, if my husband broke out in a hive.Jennie NashYeah. So, circling back to the—the storyline of—you took this medication, you lost your ability to write in this way, you changed medications, presumably, you got it back. What did it feel like to get it back? Did you—do you remember that?Jennifer SeniorOh God, yes, it was glorious.Jennie NashReally?!Jennifer SeniorOh, you don't feel like yourself. I think that—I mean, I think there are many professions that are intertwined with identity. They may be the more professional—I'm sorry, the more creative professions. But not always, you know. And so if your writing voice is gone, and it's—I mean, so much of writing is an expression of your interior, if not life, then, I don't know some kind of thought process and something that you're working out. To have that drained out of you, for someone to just decant all the life out of your—or something to decant all the life out of your writing, it's—it's, I wouldn't say it's traumatic, that's totally overstating it, but it's—it's a huge bummer. It's, you know, it's depressing.Jennie NashWell, the word glorious, that's so cool. So to feel that you got back your—the you-ness of your voice was—was glorious. I mean, that's—that's amazing.Jennifer SeniorWhat—if I can just say, I wrote a feature, right, that then, like, I remember coming off of it, and then I wrote a feature that won the News Women's Club of New York story for best feature that year. Like, I didn't realize that those are kind of hard to win, and not like I won... I think I've won one since. But, like, that was in, like, 99 or something. I mean, like, you know, I don't write a whole lot of things that win stuff, until recently, you know. There was, like, a real kind of blackout period where, you know, I mean, but like—which I think, it probably didn't have to do with the quality of my writing. I mean, there was—but, I mean, you know, I wasn't writing any of the stuff that floated to the tippy top, and, like, I think that there was some kind of explosion thereof, like, all the, again, stuff that was just desperate to come out. I think there was just this volcanic outpouring.Jennie NashSo you're saying now you are winning things, which is indeed true. I mean, Pulitzer Prizes among them. Do you think that that has to do with this getting better? The wisdom, the practice, the glorious having of your abilities? Or, I guess what I'm asking is, like, is luck a part of—a part of all that? Is it just, it just happens? Or do you think there's some reason that it's happening? You feel that your writing is that powerful now?Jennifer SeniorWell, luck is definitely a part of it, because The Atlantic is the greatest place to showcase your feature writing. It gets so much attention, even though I think fewer people probably read that piece about Bobby McIlvaine than would have read any of my columns on any given day. The kind of attention was just so different. And it makes sense in a funny way, because it was 13,600 words or something. I mean, it was so long, and columns are 750 words. But, like, I think that I just lucked out in terms of the showcase. So that's definitely a part of it. And The Atlantic has the machinery to, you know, and all these dedicated, wonderful publicity people who will make it possible for people to read it, blah, blah, blah. So there's that. If you're older, you know everyone in the business, so you have people amplifying your work, they're suddenly reading it and saying, hey, everybody read it. It was before Twitter turned to garbage. Media was still a way to amplify it. It's much harder now, so passing things along through social media has become a real problem. But at that moment, it was not—Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorSo that was totally luck. Also, I wonder if it was because I was suddenly writing something from in the first person, and my voice was just better that way. And I wouldn't have had, like, the courage, you know?Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorAnd also, you're a book critic, which is what I was at The Times. And you certainly are not writing from the first person. And as a columnist, you're not either.Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorSo, you know, those are very kind of constricted forms, and they're also not—there are certainly critics who win Pulitzers. I don't think I was good enough at it. I was good, but it was not good enough. I could name off the top of my head, like, so many critics who were—who are—who haven't even won anything yet. Like Dwight Garner really deserves one. Why has he not won a Pulitzer? He's, I think, the best writer—him and Sophie Gilbert, who keeps coming close. I don't get it, like, what the hell?Jennie NashDo you—as a—as a reader of other people's work, I know you—you mentioned Michael Ondaatje that you'd studied—study him. But do you just recognize when somebody else is on their game? Like, do you recognize the voice or the gloriousness of somebody else's work? Can you just be like, yeah, that...?Jennifer SeniorWell, Philip Roth, sentence for sentence. Martin Amis, even more so—I cannot get over the originality of each of his sentences and the wide vocabulary from which he recruits his words, and, like, maybe some of that is just being English. I think they just get better, kind of more comprehensive. They read more comprehensively. And I always tell people, if they want to improve their voice, they should read the Victorians, like that [unintelligible]. His also facility with metaphor, I don't think, is without equal. The thing is, I can't stand his fiction. I just find it repellent. But his criticism is bangers and his memoirs are great, so I love them.Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorSo I really—I read him very attentively, trying to think of, like, other people whose kind of...Jennie NashI guess I was—I was getting at more... like, genius recognizes genius, that con... that concept, like, when you know you can do this and write in this way from time to time anyway, you can pull it off.Jennifer SeniorYeah, genius as in—I wouldn't—we can't go there.Jennie NashWell, that's the—that's the cliché, right? But, like...Jennifer SeniorOh no, I know, I know. Game—game, game recognizes game.Jennie NashGame recognizes game is a better way of saying it. Like, do you see—that's actually what the phrase is. I don't know where I came up with genius, but...Jennifer SeniorNo, it's fine. You can stick anything in that template, you know—evil recognizes evil, I mean, you know, it's like a...Jennie NashYeah. Do you see it? Do you see it? Like, you can see it in other people?Jennifer SeniorSure. Oh yeah, I see it.Jennie NashYeah.Jennifer SeniorI mean, you're just talking about among my contemporaries, or just as it...Jennie NashJust like anything, like when you pick up a book or you read an article or even listen to a storytelling pack podcast, that sense of being in the hands of somebody who's on it.Jennifer SeniorYeah, I think that Jonathan Goldstein—I mean, I think that the—the Heavyweight Podcast, for sure, is something—and more than that, it's—it's storytelling structure, it's just that—I think that anybody who's a master at structure would just look at that show and be like, yeah, that show nails it each and every time.Jennie NashI've not listened, but I feel like I should end our time together. I would talk to you forever about this, but I always like to leave our listeners with something specific to reflect or practice or do. And is there anything related to metaphor or practicing, finding your voice, owning your voice, that you would suggest for—for folks? You've already suggested a lot.Jennifer SeniorRead the Victorians.Jennie NashAwesome. Any particular one that you would say start with?Jennifer SeniorYeah, you know what? I find Dickens rough sledding. I like his, you know, dear friend Wilkie Collins. I think No Name is one of the greatest books ever. I would read No Name.Jennie NashAmazing. And I will add, go read Jennifer's work. We'll link to a bunch of it in the show notes. Study her and—and watch what she does and learn what she does—that there it is, a master at work, and that's what I would suggest. So thank you for joining us and having this amazing discussion.Jennifer SeniorThis has been super fun.Jennie NashAnd for our listeners, until next time, stop playing small and write like it matters.NarratorThe Hashtag AmWriting Podcast is produced by Andrew Perrella. Our intro music, aptly titled Unemployed Monday, was written and played by Max Cohen. Andrew and Max were paid for their time and their creative output, because everyone deserves to be paid for their work. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amwriting.substack.com/subscribe

Send us a textIf in a parallel universe young Cassius Clay does not take up boxing. how would this have affected Heavyweight boxingin the 1960's, in particular Sonny Liston.

Multi cancer detection tests or MCDs can detect many cancers through a simple blood test. Many detect fragments of cancerous DNA that have broken off a tumour and are circulating in the blood. They can often then identify where the cancer may be. The NHS is currently involved in the words largest trial of one such test. The Galleri test is made by US firm Grail and the company says its mission is to detect cancer early when it can be cured. Heavyweight investors include Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates. More than 140,000 volunteers took part in the trial and the results will be known next year. If successful, the test may be rolled out further. File on 4 Investigates looks at how effective such tests are and whether the trial will show it can save lives. Medical journalist Deb Cohen speaks to one woman whose cancer was found by the test and successfully treated. But she also hears from firefighters in America - where it's available to the public - who say it missed some cancers and some people who got a positive result were found not to have the disease after undergoing diagnostic procedures - a so called false positive. With many hospitals trusts missing cancer treatment targets, what is the best way forward for the NHS to improve outcomes Reporter: Deb Cohen Producer: Paul Grant Technical producer: Craig Boardman Production co-ordinator: Tim Fernley Editor: Tara McDermott

Send us a textBlood on the canvas, debates on the scorecards, and a corner countout that had us double-taking at the screen—this week's slate turned small venues into big stories. We start with Jack Catterall's ruthless timing against Asuman, where early power, clean knockdowns, and cut management morphed a presumed showcase into a gritty, can't-look-away brawl. From there, we head to ESPN Deportes, where production charm met raw matchmaking: Blandon dissecting Marinero with steady pressure and shot selection, and Mosinos vs Cabrera delivering a lighter-weight firefight built on pace, chin, and survival instincts.Our detour to the Top Rank Classic stream brought a pair of emphatic moments. Heavyweight prospect Richard Torres ended his night almost as soon as it started, smashing a nose, dropping an uppercut, and forcing the finish—an efficient reminder that precision beats size when it counts. Then 17-year-old Julian Montalbo scored a clinical body-shot KO, the purest kind of verdict boxing can offer. But the weekend's lightning rod was Lindolfo Delgado vs Gabriel Goyas, a split decision that split the room. Was the jab and late knockdown enough to tilt the cards, or did heavier counters and visible damage win the quieter rounds? We unpack ring generalship, effective aggression, and how commentary can bend perception when fights get close.We close with Rafael Espinoza, the tallest featherweight champion in history, and a performance that was more than reach. He didn't just paw a jab—he layered hooks, uppercuts, and pressure that forced a brave corner to make the call. Strange countout or not, it was the right ending after ten punishing rounds. If you love boxing for its arguments as much as its action, this one has both: scoring nuance, rising prospects, and a champion who knows how to turn height into hurt. Hit play, share your card for Delgado vs Goyas, and if you're riding with us weekly, tap follow, rate the show, and tell a fight friend where to find us.

Subscribe To The Willie D Live Audio Podcast at:https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/williedlivepodcastArtistActivist InvestorPodcasterSupport This ChannelCashApp http://cash.app/$williedlive PayPal http://www.paypal.me/williedlive Support My Foundationhttps://marvelousbridge.orgFollow me on Social Media:Instagram: williedliveTwitter: williedliveTikTok: williedliveFacebook: williedofficial

This week we attempted to pick songs performed by lightweights that hit like a heavyweight...whatever that means. This Week's Picks "We Got This" by Fights "Chandelier" by Sia "Rice Crispies" by Sungaze The Playlist No Repeat Playlist on Spotify No Repeat Playlist on Apple Music B-Sides Unofficial B-Sides Playlist Support the Show Buy No Repeat Merch No Repeat on Patreon Joine our Discord Submit a Challenge No Repeat on Twitter Email us: norepeatpod[at]gmail[dot]com Follow Us Follow Tyler on Instagram Follow Shaun on Instagram Follow Taylor on Instagram

Christian ; Follower of GOD Servant of CHRIST        Decorated Combat VeteranCorporate; U.S. Marine Corps Urban Warfare Instrictor;       S.R.T. Commander Active Shooter Response Team Law Enforcement Los Angeles Police (L.A.P.D.) Police Officer / Fugitive RecoveryF.B.I. Instructor N.R.A Instructor Competition Shooter; Multi Time State Rifle Pistol Champion Hunting; Life Long Hunter Proffessional Hunter and Guide Private Security Contractor; Several Agencies,  Current.Patreon https://bit.ly/3jcLDuZhttps://account.venmo.com/u/MilitoMinistryPodGOD Provides JESUS SavesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/gunfighter-life-survival-guns-tactical-hunting--4187306/support.Have a Blessed Day 

In today's episode, Amanda drinks some non-alcoholic beer with comedian Laura Ramoso. Laura is a German-Italian comedian best known for her viral online characters, including “German Mom”, “Italian Dad”, “Girl who just got back from…”, and "Chiara". She has amassed over 3 million followers, sold out runs at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and London's Soho Theatre, and completed a 60+ show, sold-out world tour with her third live special, Sit Up Straight. She was named a 2023 Just For Laughs New Face, and recently opened for Tina Fey and Amy Poehler on their Restless Leg tour at the Wang Theatre in Boston. She is now gearing up for her 2026 international tour with her fourth solo special The Calm Down Tour. In this episode, Amanda and Laura discuss Laura's journey from classical theatre training to falling in love with sketch and improv, navigating the pressure of an audience's expectations, and the difference in creating comedy for the stage versus online.   Mentions from this episode… ~ Heavy Weight (podcast) https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/heavyweight   Terms we mentioned… “Beat out / Beat it out” - refers to the process of breaking a comedy idea into key moment-by-moment story or joke beats before writing it out fully.   ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   Let's Connect!    Liquid Courage - click here!  Amanda Pereira (host) - click here!  Laura Ramoso (guest) - click here!    Laura's Work in Progress shows (Dec 2025 in Toronto)  Laura's The Calm Down Tour (2026)    ⇒ To donate to the show, click here!   ~ ~ ~ ~ ~   The music in this episode is thanks to HookSounds. You can check out their tracks here: www.hooksounds.com. Use the discount code LIQUIDCOURAGE10 for 10% off a HookSounds subscription!* *If you use this code, I earn a small commission — so you'll be supporting the podcast, too!

This week, we're presenting an episode of one of our favorite podcasts. Heavyweight, hosted by Jonathan Goldstein, creates space for difficult conversations and resolving long-standing regrets and unanswered questions. Balancing humor and empathy, host Jonathan Goldstein helps his subjects pinpoint the moment things went wrong and joins them on a quest to make them right.This episode is about Anita, who, on her flight, to emigrate from Italy in 1959, was tasked with babysitting a two-year-old boy being brought to the US for adoption. During the flight, Anita fell in love with the child, and for the rest of her life, she wondered what became of him.Find Heavyweight wherever you get your podcasts.

We're back and we finally have a weekend with multiple compelling fights on separate cards in both London and Mexico and we're ready to preview those, plus a bonafide light heavyweight star is on the show for the newest "Big Fight Weekend Preview Podcast."Host T.J. Rives returns with insider Dan Rafael to go over it all. They start with the preview of the Boxxer/Matchroom DAZN PPV card Saturday in LondonChris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn, rematch, 12 rounds, middleweights. It was an amazing first fight in April and now, they are back again before the end of 2025 to slug it out again. The gents discuss.There's also more on the undercard with Jack Catterall vs. Ekow Essuman, 12 rounds, welterweights and Adam Azim vs. Kurt Scoby, 12 rounds, junior welterweights.Next, we preview the Zanfer Promotions/Top Rank card on TR Classics FAST channel in San Luis Potosi, MexicoRafael Espinoza returns to meet Arnold Khegai, 12 rounds, for Espinoza's WBO featherweight title. This is a true height mismatch and will Espinoza roll in his home country defense. We discuss.The co-feature has Lindolfo Delgado vs. Gabriel Gollaz Valenzuela, 12 rounds, IBF junior welterweight eliminator. Plus, Richard Torrez Jr. vs. Tomas Salek, 10 rounds, heavyweights Emiliano Vargas vs. Jonathan Montrel, 10 rounds, junior welterweights Next it's Dan and David Benavidez in conversation.Benavidez defends WBC and WBA “regular” light heavyweight belts vs. Anthony Yarde in the main event of the Ring magazing DAZN PPV on Nov. 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Benavidez is in position for a massive fight potentially with Dmitry Bivol for all the 175 lb. titles.  NewsDeal near for Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua on either Dec. 9 or Dec. 16 – Dan and T.J. want to know- What are we doing here?!? What is the "realism" of this actually happening?Next, heavyweight sensation Moses Itauma back in action to face battle-tested Jermain Franklin in the main event of a Queensberry DAZN card Jan. 24 at Co-op Live in Manchester, England.Also, in the wake of KO1 loss to Vergil Ortiz, Erickson Lubin addressed his future via social media, writng he will return and move up to middleweight.Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya said the hope is unified cruiserweight titlist Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez will return to action in February and then to get him a much bigger fight.Hear it all on the "Big Fight Weekend Preview Podcast" and make sure to follow/subscribe on Apple/Spreaker/Spotify, etc.!  

This week, Paul Fontaine joined Jeremy Finestone to react to Okada as Tanahashi's final opponent, inexplicable Jr. Heavyweight decisions in Anjo, and favorites to move forward in a World Tag League that will hopefully be better than the 2025 Super Junior Tag League. A fun show so check it out!

We're back and we finally have a weekend with multiple compelling fights on separate cards in both London and Mexico and we're ready to preview those, plus a bonafide light heavyweight star is on the show for the newest "Big Fight Weekend Preview Podcast."Host T.J. Rives returns with insider Dan Rafael to go over it all. They start with the preview of the Boxxer/Matchroom DAZN PPV card Saturday in LondonChris Eubank Jr. vs. Conor Benn, rematch, 12 rounds, middleweights. It was an amazing first fight in April and now, they are back again before the end of 2025 to slug it out again. The gents discuss.There's also more on the undercard with Jack Catterall vs. Ekow Essuman, 12 rounds, welterweights and Adam Azim vs. Kurt Scoby, 12 rounds, junior welterweights.Next, we preview the Zanfer Promotions/Top Rank card on TR Classics FAST channel in San Luis Potosi, MexicoRafael Espinoza returns to meet Arnold Khegai, 12 rounds, for Espinoza's WBO featherweight title. This is a true height mismatch and will Espinoza roll in his home country defense. We discuss.The co-feature has Lindolfo Delgado vs. Gabriel Gollaz Valenzuela, 12 rounds, IBF junior welterweight eliminator. Plus, Richard Torrez Jr. vs. Tomas Salek, 10 rounds, heavyweights Emiliano Vargas vs. Jonathan Montrel, 10 rounds, junior welterweights Next it's Dan and David Benavidez in conversation.Benavidez defends WBC and WBA “regular” light heavyweight belts vs. Anthony Yarde in the main event of the Ring magazing DAZN PPV on Nov. 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Benavidez is in position for a massive fight potentially with Dmitry Bivol for all the 175 lb. titles.  NewsDeal near for Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua on either Dec. 9 or Dec. 16 – Dan and T.J. want to know- What are we doing here?!? What is the "realism" of this actually happening?Next, heavyweight sensation Moses Itauma back in action to face battle-tested Jermain Franklin in the main event of a Queensberry DAZN card Jan. 24 at Co-op Live in Manchester, England.Also, in the wake of KO1 loss to Vergil Ortiz, Erickson Lubin addressed his future via social media, writng he will return and move up to middleweight.Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya said the hope is unified cruiserweight titlist Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez will return to action in February and then to get him a much bigger fight.Hear it all on the "Big Fight Weekend Preview Podcast" and make sure to follow/subscribe on Apple/Spreaker/Spotify, etc.!  

The Lions 6-3 off a win over the Commanders and the Eagles 7-2 off a close win over the Packers 10-7. Will the Eagles offense show up vs a banged up Detroit secondary? And will the Lions have answers for the Eagles Defensive attack? Lets go Lions.

Paul Hawksbee was joined by Charlie Baker for this afternoons podcast. Heavyweight boxer Johnny Fisher joined us to discuss the potential match-up between AJ and Jake Paul. Additionally, English actor Jason Watkins discussed the Game4TheChildren initiative. We also had a Birthday Spread. Enjoy! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

December 20 is history in the making. The South London derby between Craig Richards and Dan Azeez headlines to Accra, Ghana - Matchroom's first event in Africa. Listen to the launch press conference with Eddie Hearn plus Heavyweight hope Leo Atang who also fights on the card. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode of The MMAnomaly Show: No Filter we will be going over our reactions and what's next for the biggest winners of UFC Brazil Oliveira vs Gamrot!Let us know your bets and picks in the comments below!Join in on the commentary in the comment section below! We might even throw your comment up in the video during the live stream! For the latest episodes of The MMAnomaly Show, subscribe on Youtube, Spotify, or iTunes.Subscribe to MMAnomaly on YouTube: https://bit.ly/MMAnomalyYoutubeSubscribe to The MMAnomaly Show: on iTunes: https://apple.co/3AQuoVlSubscribe to The MMAnomaly Show on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3HBMC0GLike MMAnomaly on Facebook: https://bit.ly/MMAnomalyFBFollow Olin/MMAnomaly on Twitter: https://bit.ly/MMAnomalyTweetsFollow Jive Turkey Nano on Twitter: https://bit.ly/JiveTurkeyTweetsTimestamps: 00:00 Intro4:21 DO BRONX with another submission win21:10 Figgy gets the split decision 35:33 Joel Alvarez wins in Welterweight debut!43:42 Mario Pinto dominant Heavyweight and UFC debut! 52:02 Kaan Ofli gets the submission win1:12:55 Michael Aswell Jr with the KO 1:20:34 Jafel with statement submission victory 1:27:22 Vitor Petrino big KO win 1:36:25 Bia Mesquita aka GWOAT with dominant submission win 1:40:44 Lucas Rocha wins CHAMA 1:46:12 Julia Polastri gets the win over savy veteran 2:06:27 Luan Lacerda gets the submission win 2:12:32 Fight Announcements All the videos, songs, images, and graphics used in the video belong to their respective owners and I or this channel does not claim any right over them.Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing.#ufc #mma #boxing #bjj #kickboxing #muaythai #jiujitsu #fight #wrestling #fitness #conormcgregor #martialarts #ufcfightnight #PFL #UFCBrazil #AlexPerriera #Mexico #sport #gym #karate #danawhite #khabibnurmagomedov #mixedmartialarts #France #champion #motivation #workout #wwe #knockout #FantasyFootball #DustinPoirier #MaxHolloway #MMAnomaly #Demmaboyz #NoFilter #MMApodcast #Parlay

"Bad" Matt Adams joins host Jake Murren on Episode 129 of Forged in Ohio. Matt is a 5-1 professional mixed martial artist who has won three straight fights for LFA.In this episode, Matt talks about his first-round KO win at LFA 219, the key behind his three-fight winning streak, the big opportunities coming his way in combat sports, and so much more. Matt is one of the more entertaining pro fighters out of Ohio, and he's close to fighting on a global stage. Discover more about "Bad" Matt Adams by listening to Forged in Ohio today!If you're interested in learning more about "Bad" Matt Adams, don't forget to check out Episode 18 and Episode 87 of Forged in Ohio as well!Check out Matt on social media:Instagram: @badmattadamsFacebook: @mattadamsForged in Ohio:Instagram: @forgedinohioFacebook: @forgedinohioYouTube: @forgedinohioX: @forgedinohioMerchandise: @forgedinohioMusic on Forged in Ohio is from FreeMusicArchive.org: Servants by Jahzzarhttps://freemusicarchive.org/music/Jahzzar/Servants/Servants

2-0, 18 year old Heavyweight hope Leo Atang discusses his journey so far, what Anthony Joshua said to him at the Matchroom rebrand, a future fight with Moses Itauma and an update on his injury. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Listen to weekly sermons from Velocity Church in Lawrence, KS. Velocity is a vision-fueled and faith-filled community changing lives and transforming a city with the message of Jesus. For more information visit www.findvelocity.org

The Craic returns with its dynamic trio: Petesy Carroll, Chuck Mindenhall, and Ben Fowlkes. Up first, a deep dive into the future of the UFC heavyweight division following the fallout from Ciryl Gane's eye poke against Tom Aspinall (5:20). Two fighters looking to make their mark on the division are Jon Jones and Alex Pereira. The lads discuss the two MMA stars angling for a potential superfight between each other (26:00).Pereira's been putting in the work for that bout, but with an unexpected training partner. The crew breaks down the viral clip of him grappling with Mark Zuckerberg (34:00).Next up, the trio reacts to Tank Davis's latest legal troubles ahead of his upcoming Netflix boxing match with Jake Paul (36:09).Another controversial headline doing the rounds is Andrew Tate's appointment as the new Misfits Boxing CEO. Petesy and the boys unpack what it means for the future of crossover fights (41:25). To close the show, the guys react to Ronda Rousey's recent comments about MMA fans, a take that didn't exactly land well with the community (55:08). 

On this episode of The Still Real to Us Show:-- Is WWE missing the boat by leaving LA Knight out of the CM Punk vs. Jey Uso Saturday Night's Main Event World Heavyweight Championship match?-- Will the ongoing “Who took out Jacob Fatu?” storyline lead to a major payoff on SmackDown—and could it signal a creative shake-up on the blue brand?-- We break down this weekend's Saturday Night's Main Event card and what to expect!-- A full NXT Halloween Havoc recap — the highlights, surprises, and where things go from here.-- Plus: AEW's booking of Kyle O'Reilly continues to raise eyebrows after back-to-back matches with Jon Moxley. What's the endgame — a big Blood & Guts setup or something bigger?

This episode is brought to you by PPV.COM! Dan and Chris rank the best heavyweight fights since 2017! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

'STOP FIGHTING THESE OLD GUYS...' - US HEAVYWEIGHT RICHARD TORREZ JR CALLS FOR MOSES ITAUMA FIGHT! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by PPV.COM! Dan and Chris rank the best heavyweight fights since 2017! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here's an episode from Heavyweight, a new addition to the Pushkin slate of shows. Heavyweight, hosted by Jonathan Goldstein, creates space for difficult conversations and resolving long-standing regrets and unanswered questions. In this episode: A young man had just turned 14 when he took his father’s shotgun, skipped school, and robbed a bank for $40,000. Now, 33 years later, he wants to apologize to the people he harmed that day. Find Heavyweight wherever you get your podcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Billy C starts to give his thoughts on the upcoming Jake Paul vs. Tank Davis fight, a breakdown and thoughts on Wardley calling out Usyk after his upset win over Joseph Parker, plus the latest boxing news, the Billy C Light Heavyweight rankings and much more! This week's scheduled guest is former Heavyweight fighter and current promoter, Bobby Hitz from Hitz Boxing.

How does Tom Aspinall still have an eyeball right now? Dude, Ciryl Gane went two-knuckles deep in Aspinall's left eye (while pulling off the rare double-eye poke!) during their heavyweight championship fight at UFC 321 on Saturday. Gane might have Dundasso'd a little TOO hard, as his exploration of Aspinall's cranium with his left index finger did get their bout declared a no contest, and yet, somehow, it still felt like Gane won the battle of public opinion. The crowd booed Aspinall (naturally). A bunch of shitty MMA meme accounts made fun of him (naturally). Some former fighters came out and said THEY would've kept fighting (naturally). Dana White is talking about booking the immediate rematch (because of course). So, sorry, Tom, you got Three-Stooged and now a lot of idiots think you quit. So, yeah, we thought the worst thing that could happen at UFC 321 was a Ciryl Gane victory, and then heavyweight basically laughed in our faces and said, “Hold my beer.” Plus, in the other two heavyweight fights, Jailton Almeida lost by forgetting to fight and Chris Barnett (literally) showed his ass. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Good Guy / Bad Guy…The Bad Guy is doubling down on his now viral comments that Tom Aspinall should have continued fighting after being poked in the eyes by Cyril Gane. But does DC agree with the hot take that ruffled feathers across the MMA community? Then, there's a new Women's Strawweight Champion of the world and her name is Mackenzie Dern! DC breaks down his heartfelt moment with Dern and her daughter that gave fight fans all the feels. Plus, is she making the right move calling for the likes of Tatiana Suarez or Zhang Weili as her next opponent? And, Jon Jones says he's down to fight Alex Pereira at the White House. Find out if the guys believe this could be the biggest Heavyweight title fight in UFC History. Their answer may surprise you! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Join New York Eric Jackman and Din Thomas as we digest the brutal finish to UFC 321, talks Aspinall/Gane, the rematch, what this means for heavyweight, Dern becoming back, Umar back, Volkov's decision Quillin's head kick and more! Brought to you by Manscaped get 15% off with code SUBMISSION now: https://manscaped.com

I didn't see this coming, nor did many. Fabio Wardley stops Joseph Parker. WOW! Hear our thoughts on the stoppage, plus Dakota goes on a rant about Parker not getting a chance against a champion. We don't have much to say about he undercard as well. We also talk about Joshua Pagan's impressive win over Maliek Montgomery on DAZN Thursday night. On Thursday, Mikaela Mayer faces junior middleweight beltholder Mary Spencer for the title. The bout will be streamed and we will explain how to watch. It has a good undercard with Arthur Biyarslanov taking on Sergey Lipinets, and Wilkens Mathieu facing Shakeel Phinn as noteworthy bouts. On Saturday, we have two fight cards, one in the U.S. and one in Europe. In the U.K., Joshua Buatsi will face Zach Parker in a light heavyweight contender bout, and Bradley Rea will fight Lyndon Arthur in a light heavyweight bout. In the U.S., rising heavyweight contender Lenier Pero will face Jordan Thompson. Thompson is moving up after being stopped by Jai Opetaia. Pero could be a real force. Other fights, a crossroads junior middleweight bout between Yoelvis Gomez against Antraveous Ingram. Cruiserweight Pat Brown will face fringe contender Felix Valera in an interesting bout. Junior middleweight Olympians Nishant Dev and Omari Jones will both fight on the undercard in separate bouts. Timestamps0:00 Fabio Wardley-Joseph Parker7:45 The stoppage13:40 Oleksandr Usyk vs Fabio Wardley17:30 Joshua Pagan-Maliek Montgomery25:15 Mikaela Mayer-Mary Spencer35:40 Joshua Buatsi-Zach Parker40:00 undercard43:30 Lenier Pero-Jordan Thompson47:00 undercard52:30 rants and rumors 

Tobin gives us our latest headlines UFC gives us a matinee performance tomorrow as the Heavyweight title is on the line The NFL releases a statement clearing the Giants of wrong doing while still fining them Tobin reads us the lengthy statement explaining their POV Leroy breaks down his personal experience with NFL fines Pat McAfee seems to be ruffling feathers at ESPN Reports surface claiming McAfee is difficult to work with We close the Hour out with who or what is dead to us!

(HR.1) Will Heat receive compensation for NBA gambling scandal sweeping league? Agent Froggy joins the show to restore Law & Order He immediately drops an Impromptu double dip The guys give more reaction to further details released in this NBA gambling scandal NBA cup? Who cares Florida Panthers drop another one behind a Shakey Bob performance Is it too early to panic? will Heat answer Terry Rozier related questions? Is there too much Gambling in the NBA? Will the HEAT receive any sort of compensation for this situation Is there anyway to truly monitor Sports Gambling? Did Terry Rozier commit some of these point shaving acts while on the HEAT? (HR.2) Has NIL leveled the playing field in College Sports? We kick off the Hour formerly known as Tua with a Dolphins preview vs Falcons College Football to allow 5 years of eligibility? NBA G leaguers flocking to College Basketball? Has NIL leveled the playing field in College Sports? Barry Jackson tweets that its become increasingly clear that the HEAT have been lied to Will they pursue any compensation from the league? We attempt to Tickle Leroy's Fancy with this weekend's sleight of action! (HR.3) Was Terry Rozier purposely tanking Heat? Will Spo answer questions on the Terry Rozier situation? Kenny and Charles Barkley get into a heated argument on Gambling addiction The guys react to both point of views Tobin attempts to figure out the logic behind Terry Rozier's situation Tobin and Leroy take time to discuss more about the ongoing scandal Tyreek Hill makes an appearance on Terron Armstead's podcast Will the Cheetah be in the NFL next year? We get quotes from Miami Heat's post practice presser We close the Hour out with a Marcos Mixed Bag! Aaron Rodgers claims his career will begin and end in Green Bay FBI director gets theatrical when discussing fraudulence (HR.4) Tobin gives us our latest headlines UFC gives us a matinee performance tomorrow as the Heavyweight title is on the line The NFL releases a statement clearing the Giants of wrong doing while still fining them Tobin reads us the lengthy statement explaining their POV Leroy breaks down his personal experience with NFL fines Pat McAfee seems to be ruffling feathers at ESPN Reports surface claiming McAfee is difficult to work with We close the Hour out with who or what is dead to us!

On this episode of The Still Real to Us Show:-- Who's the better choice to hold the World Heavyweight Championship next — CM Punk or Jey Uso?-- Were we robbed of a career year from Seth Rollins?-- Did we just see the best WWE TV match of 2025?-- Did the fishtank spot in Jon Moxley vs. Darby Allin at AEW WrestleDream go too far?-- Why Samoa Joe and The Opps as heels might be exactly what AEW needs to carry the rest of 2025-- Is a major babyface turn coming in AEW?-- Plus, a full preview of NXT Halloween Havoc!

On this episode of Good Guy / Bad Guy…Will UFC 321 decide who the Greatest Heavyweight is when Tom Aspinall puts his title on the line against Cyril Gane? Or will another name be making headlines when it's all said and done? You do NOT want to miss what the guys think Monday's headline will be. Then, the Women's Strawweight belt is up for grabs in the Co Main event. And it's a rematch 5 years in the making when Virna Jandiroba takes on Mackenzie Dern. But does their first fight even matter once that octagon door closes? And, to throw in the towel or not throw in the towel? That is the question when it comes to Reiner de Ridder and his corners decision to save him from being mauled by Brendan Allen in the 5th round last week in Vancouver. Find out if the Good Guy or Bad Guy believe it was the right decision and if it changes RDR's aura moving forward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Billy C will breakdown and give his prediction on the Heavyweight showdown between Joseph Parker and Fabio Wardley scheduled for his weekend. He will also give his thoughts on the fight results from this past weekend, including Paulie Malignaggi's BKB victory, his thoughts on boxing and the PPV model and much more! This weeks scheduled guest is WBO #9 ranked Welterweight, Rashidi "Speedy" Ellis.

Tommy Dreamer breaks down Monday Night RAW from Sacramento including Seth Rollins' Heavyweight title being vacated, Jey Uso vs CM Punk for the Heavyweight title at SNME, and AJ Styles & Dragon Lee winning the World Tag Team Championship. To visit our partners at Chewy, click here. The Master's Class is now available on its own podcast feed! SUBSCRIBE NOW to hear over 50 episodes of Dave, Bully, Mark, and Tommy taking you behind the scenes like only they can, plus BRAND NEW episodes every week. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of Busted Open ad-free and get exclusive access to bonus episodes. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Send us a textTwo things can be true at once: Jaron “Boots” Ennis looked sharp at 154 — and it's still way too early to crown him the heir to Terence Crawford. We open with a reality check on tune-ups, why they exist, and what actually proves greatness when you jump weight. Then we map the route Boots needs—Madrimov, Tszyu, maybe Thurman—so talent meets resistance that talks back. The hype's fine. Skipping steps isn't.Next, we dive into the fight that can light up the fall: Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs Erickson Lubin. We break down Ortiz's pressure and body work against Lubin's patience and clean shots, asking the only question that matters: Can Lubin keep Vergil honest without the kind of thud that stops a freight train? With Ortiz's hand health, Crawford's move toward 160, and a potential Boots showdown looming, this one carries real weight.Then it's heavyweight chaos: Joseph Parker vs Fabio Wardley—a live-betting puzzle pitting Parker's composure against Wardley's raw power. We talk odds, variance, and why discipline is the only cheat code up top. From there, it's the sanctioning-body traffic jam featuring Usyk, Pulev, and Itauma, each caught in mandatory madness.Promotion gets its moment too: Jake Paul's MVP keeps finding crossover gold while Danny Garcia's Brooklyn KO reminds us what real matchmaking means. It's that rare week where business meets boxing—and one clean hook can still steal the show.THE SPAR-INN ON YOUTUBE

This week on the show Maine and Corey preview WNO 30 the Openweight GP, and recap the Finisher title fights. In the preview section of the show we discuss the "Call Your Shot" rule in place for the event and how it potentially may lead to more submissions and action. We discuss all 8 men in the event their best attributes and what subs they likely chose in the bonus format. We talk about the accolades of Dante Leon, Roberto Jimenez, Achilles Rocha, Declan Moody, Felipe Costa (Laranjinha), Michael Sainz, Pat Shahgholi, and Justin Michael the qualifiers winner. We talk bracketing and the frontrunners for the division. Plus dark horses. We also discuss the rest of the main card including a rematch between Devhonte Johnson vs. Gutemberg Pereira, and how the formatting of WNO may lead to a slower match. We talk Sarah Galvão vs. Trinity Pun and potential matches for Sarah in the future. Then we break down Owen Jones vs. Gavin Corbe in a dynamic -66kg matchup. In the recap section of the show we discuss the 4 title fights on this weekends Finishers card. Recorded 10-20-2025

Despite consistently landing atop "best podcasts" lists from a variety of sources, "Heavyweight" was canceled in 2023 when Spotify cut their podcast division. Earlier this year, the production company Pushkin announced they'd be reprising the show, which launched its new season in September. Host Jonathan Goldstein discusses the new season and plans for the future.

TVC 709.6: Part 2 of a conversation that began last week with Emmy Award-winning actress, producer, and author Mariette Hartley (The Incredible Hulk, Goodnight, Beantown, Breaking the Silence, Law and Order: SVU). In this segment, Mariette talks to Ed about “Cotter's Girl,” the classic episode of Gunsmoke from 1963 whose storyline is reminiscent of Pygmalion; her frequent appearances on shows produced by Quinn Martin; and her association with Rod Serling, which began when Mariette asked Serling to speak at her school after she had watched Requiem for a Heavyweight on television, and which culminated about ten years later, when Mariette appeared in “The Long Morrow,” one of the final episodes of The Twilight Zone. Mariette Hartley co-stars, co-wrote, and co-produced, along with her husband Jerry Sroka, in Our (Almost Completely True) Love Story, a charming romantic comedy that is available now for streaming on demand on Amazon Prime and other major platforms; it is also available on DVD and Blu-ray.

Had some fun talking Buffalo and if it's time for the Pegula's to step away from the team, also dug into the stars, lane Hutson deal and more. Sign up to become a Friend of the Show to access a Slack community, behind the scenes content, discounts on merch, and more: https://www.patreon.com/dropping_glovesFollow the Show:MerchPatreonFacebookInstagramTwitter / XYouTube Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're excited to share an episode from another podcast I think you'll enjoy. Heavyweight, hosted by Jonathan Goldstein, creates space for difficult conversations and resolving long-standing regrets and unanswered questions. Balancing humor and empathy, Jonathan helps his subjects pinpoint the moment things went wrong and joins them on a quest to make them right. In this episode: A young man had just turned 14 when he took his father's shotgun, skipped school, and robbed a bank for $40,000. Now, 33 years later, he wants to apologize to the people he harmed that day. Find Heavyweight wherever you get your podcasts.      Ben

On this episode of Good Guy/ Bad Guy…Is Charles Oliveira the Greatest Brazilian MMA Fighter of all time? After adding to his long list of accolades finishing Mateusz Gamrot in Brazil…should we call him the greatest to ever do it? And could Oliveira be the next BMF? It's the callout heard around the world and Max Holloway says he's down! But do the guys want to see that matchup? Then, José Aldo, the King of Rio lays down his gloves…again. And the Good Guy is OVER it! Plus, it's official Alex Pereira wants to fight Jon Jones at Heavyweight.  You do NOT want to miss what DC and Chael have to say about the callout that could setup the biggest Super Fight in UFC history! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

   I'm not on the train with folks saying Sunday night is a must win for the Chiefs, I've seen them win way too many games in a row to believe that.  But I think the team may approach it like a playoff game and that could be real trouble for the Lions.    You can't ask for a better setup for the Missouri Tigers to host Alabama.  This is the perfect storm and you should change your schedule and block off three hours or so Saturday at 11:00 and watch this one no matter who you root for.    The Phillies season ends in shocking fashion.  Super college basketball fan "Sister Jean" dies at 106, we'll remember her grace and charm rooting her team to the Final Four in 2018.    Me and Jessica spent a couple hours visiting some old buildings downtown Thursday that gave us chills hearing the history of it all and seeing what the new owners are doing to turn a couple city blocks into an entertainment area.   Then, Lee Sterling of www.paramountsports.com has our football picks for the weekend and our Final Final is a fast food chain stepping outside their lane.

Looking for your next favorite podcast (besides mine, of course)? Heavyweight, hosted by Jonathan Goldstein, will break your heart...and then put it back together. In each episode, Jonathan helps someone revisit a defining regret, lost connection, or unsolved mystery from their life—and gently, hilariously, humanely, helps them try to make it right. If you've ever found yourself replaying a moment from your past and wondering what could've gone differently, this is the podcast for you. In this episode, you'll meet Michael, who, as a high school senior, got his lucky break—the chance to star in a big-budget movie. Shooting wrapped, a premier date was set...and then he found out that his success was all based on a lie. Michael wanted to know—how did it all go so wrong? Find Heavyweight wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Here's an episode from Heavyweight, a new addition to the Pushkin slate of shows. Heavyweight, hosted by Jonathan Goldstein, creates space for difficult conversations and resolving long-standing regrets and unanswered questions. Balancing humor and empathy, host Jonathan Goldstein helps his subjects pinpoint the moment things went wrong and joins them on a quest to make them right. This episode features Michael, who, as a high school senior got his lucky break—the chance to star in a big-budget movie. Shooting wrapped, a premier date was set…and then he found out that his success was all based on a lie. Find Heavyweight wherever you get your podcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi, I AM RAPAPORT listeners! We're excited to share with you a sneak peek at iHeartPodcasts' latest release, Heavyweight! Heavyweight: Maybe you’ve laid awake and imagined how it could have been, how it might yet be, but the moment to act was never right. Well, the moment is here and the podcast making it happen is Heavyweight. Join Jonathan Goldstein for road trips, thorny reunions, and difficult conversations as he backpedals his way into the past like a therapist with a time machine. Listen to Heavyweight on the iHeartRadio App or wherever you get your podcasts!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi, Just B listeners! We're excited to share with you a sneak peek at iHeartPodcasts' latest release, Heavyweight! Heavyweight: Maybe you’ve laid awake and imagined how it could have been, how it might yet be, but the moment to act was never right. Well, the moment is here and the podcast making it happen is Heavyweight. Join Jonathan Goldstein for road trips, thorny reunions, and difficult conversations as he backpedals his way into the past like a therapist with a time machine. Listen to Heavyweight on the iHeartRadio App or wherever you get your podcasts!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi, Family Secrets listeners! We're excited to share with you a sneak peek at iHeartPodcasts' latest release, Heavyweight! Heavyweight: Maybe you’ve laid awake and imagined how it could have been, how it might yet be, but the moment to act was never right. Well, the moment is here and the podcast making it happen is Heavyweight. Join Jonathan Goldstein for road trips, thorny reunions, and difficult conversations as he backpedals his way into the past like a therapist with a time machine. Listen to Heavyweight on the iHeartRadio App or wherever you get your podcasts!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're excited to share an episode from a podcast we love, Heavyweight. Heavyweight, hosted by Jonathan Goldstein, creates space for difficult conversations and resolving long-standing regrets and unanswered questions. Balancing humor and empathy, host Jonathan Goldstein helps his subjects pinpoint the moment things went wrong and joins them on a quest to make them right. This episode features Michael, who, as a high school senior got his lucky break—the chance to star in a big-budget movie. Shooting wrapped, a premier date was set...and then he found out that his success was all based on a lie. Find Heavyweight wherever you get your podcasts.  Link: lnk.to/HWMoth To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices