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While grieving his professional identity, Lee found himself navigating an unexpected hiatus; ESPN’s contract with him barred any form of press work for the duration. This new chapter forced him to step back and reconnect with sports from the fan’s perspective. Ironically, what he initially perceived as an ending morphed into a transformative beginning.

The Broken State of Sports Media

Upon his unplanned return to fandom, Lee observed a troubling shift in sports culture. It became abundantly clear to him that the landscape of sports had fundamentally changed. Fans' emotions were more intense and often manifested as anger, and the conversations surrounding sports grew stale, dominated by repetitive hot takes. Instead of inspiring joy, sports turned into a source of stress.