Just a few years ago, columns titled “Why I Go to The Athletic” were all the rage in sports media.
But lately it seemed as if most of the announcements related to The New York Times-own sales outlet has struck a different tone in the form of departures.
The latest news comes from longtime Bay Area reporter and columnist Tim Kawakami, who announced on X on Wednesday that his recent column about the San Francisco 49ers’ Week 1 win over the New York Jets will be his last for The Athletic. The former San Jose Mercury News The columnist made it clear that he will not leave the sports media and will announce his new job shortly.
“Personal note: This is my last column for The Athletic. I’m not changing what I do, just changing companies — I’ll announce that in a few days,” he wrote. “But I will say that starting @theathleticsf was the best job I’ve ever had and I’ve worked with most of the best people I’ll ever meet.”
Personal note: This is my last column for The Athletic. I am not changing what I do, just changing companies—I will announce that in a few days—but I do want to say that I @theathleticsf was the best job I’ve ever had and I’ve worked with the best people I’ll ever meet. https://t.co/kdl7Bm2Lni
— Tim Kawakami (@timkawakami) 11 September 2024
Kawakami is the latest departure from The Athletic, after a slew of football reporters have left the medium in recent months. Those departures included Kalyn Kahler (now at ESPN), Max Olson (also at ESPN), Nicole Auerbach (NBC Sports) and Ari Wasserman (on3). Last month, Pittsburgh Steelers sports reporter Mark Kaboly announced he was let go by The Athletic before quickly taking a job at The Pat McAfee Show.
Kawakami’s departure from The Athletic is especially notable because he was one of the first high-profile writers the magazine hired in 2017 to launch the Bay Area portion of its website (back when the site still had a strong emphasis on local reporting). Given his stature, it will be interesting to see where Kawakami ends up next, and equally interesting to see if The Athletic’s steady stream of departures continues in the near future.
(Tim Kawakami about X)
