According to a report from Outkick the Coverage, Jason Whitlock will no longer be working for FS1. Note that for the past four years he had been a host on the talk show (they're all talk shows now) Speak For Yourself.
Outkick the Coverage reports that his contract expired on Sunday, and both he and FS1 were unable to come to an agreement on a new deal.
Suspicions that led to this discovery were raised in a very 21st century manner.
First, Whitlock didn't appear on the show on Monday. Then it was learned that his name wasn't in the guide info for any episode being filmed over the next two weeks. Also he was taken out of the avatar for the show's Twitter account.
Whitlock had worked with the network since 2016, though his relationship with Fox's sports brand(s) date back even earlier, to when he worked for the original Fox Sports for a stretch that lasted from 2007 to 2013.
In between those stints he had worked for ESPN (whom he had also previously been employed by). Things didn't end well there.
Whitlock is yet to give a detailed public comment on on the departure (though he did confirm it). As for FS1, they made the following (brief) statement to The New York Posts' Andrew Marchand:
“Friday was Jason Whitlock’s last day with FOX Sports. We thank Jason for all of his hard work and dedication to the network, and we wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
Marchand, citing sources, adds that Whitlock may try to start his own "direct-to-consumer-business." For those not exactly familiar with corporate jargon (I envy you) Marchand simplifies what this means by saying that Jason may try to go a similar route as Bill Simmons, Joe Rogan, and Barstool Sports' Dave Portnoy.
Not surprisingly, news of Whitlock's exit trended on social media with takes that were, well, not very pro-Whitlock. Here's a few of the more sanitized responses:
