Jason Whitlock facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jason Whitlock
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Whitlock in 2023
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Jason Lee Whitlock
April 27, 1967 Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
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| Education | Ball State University (BA) |
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| Show | Speak for Yourself Fearless with Jason Whitlock |
| Station(s) | Fox Sports Radio Fox Sports 1 Fox News Blaze Media |
Jason Lee Whitlock (born April 27, 1967) is an American sports journalist and host. He is known for his work as a sports columnist and now hosts a show called Fearless with Jason Whitlock on Blaze Media. Jason used to write sports columns for major news outlets like The Kansas City Star, AOL Sports, Foxsports.com, and ESPN. He also worked as a radio personality for sports stations WHB and KCSP in the Kansas City area. Before his journalism career, Whitlock played Division I college football as an offensive lineman for Ball State University.
Contents
Jason's Career in Sports Media
Starting His Journalism Journey
Jason Whitlock began his career in journalism working part-time for The Herald-Times in Bloomington, Indiana. His first full-time job was as a reporter for The Charlotte Observer. After about a year there, he joined The Ann Arbor News in 1992. For two years, he covered sports for the University of Michigan.
Time at The Kansas City Star
In 1994, Whitlock joined The Kansas City Star newspaper. In 2008, he received a special honor: the Scripps Howard Foundation's National Journalism Award for his commentary. He was the first sportswriter ever to win this award. On August 16, 2010, Whitlock announced he was leaving The Kansas City Star.
Working with ESPN
In 2002, Whitlock started writing columns for ESPN.com's Page 2. He also appeared on several ESPN TV shows as a guest host. These shows included Jim Rome Is Burning and Pardon the Interruption. He was also a regular guest on The Sports Reporters.
Moving to AOL Sports
In 2006, Whitlock decided to leave ESPN.com to write his online column for AOL Sports. He initially thought he would continue his TV work with ESPN. However, after he made some critical comments about two ESPN colleagues in an interview, he stopped appearing on ESPN television. He later shared that ESPN had ended his work with them because of his remarks. Whitlock's first column for AOL Sports was published on September 29, 2006.
Returning to ESPN
In 2013, Jason Whitlock planned to be a big part of the new Fox Sports 1 TV channel. But he felt that focusing on TV might take away from his writing. So, he met with ESPN President John Skipper and decided to return to ESPN instead. He was set to launch a new website called The Undefeated on ESPN.com. After some delays, ESPN announced that Whitlock would no longer be the main editor for The Undefeated. His time at ESPN ended in October 2015.
Back at Fox Sports
In 2016, Whitlock started a new show on Fox Sports 1 called Speak for Yourself. He co-hosted it with Colin Cowherd. Later, Marcellus Wiley replaced Cowherd, and the show became Speak for Yourself with Whitlock and Wiley. On June 1, 2020, Fox announced that Whitlock's contract would not be renewed.
Joining OutKick
In June 2020, Jason Whitlock teamed up with Clay Travis at OutKick. However, in January 2021, Travis announced that Whitlock was leaving. Whitlock later said that it was a "bad business deal" and that he failed to properly check his business partners.
Starting at Blaze Media
In June 2021, Whitlock joined Blaze Media. He started a new show there called Fearless with Jason Whitlock.
Other Work
Jason Whitlock's writings have also appeared in magazines like Vibe and The Sporting News.
High School and College Football
At Warren Central High School in Indianapolis, Jason Whitlock played as an offensive lineman. He was the team captain for his football team, which was ranked nationally and won the state championship. While there, he blocked for his friend, Jeff George, who later became a top player in the NFL. Even though he wasn't heavily recruited by many college programs, Jason earned a football scholarship to Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. At Ball State, he played for two years and earned a bachelor of science degree in journalism in 1990.
