Sellout Crowd, the Oklahoma sports network run by local bigwigs like Berry Tramel and Jenni Carlson that counted beaten country icon Tothrough Keith as an investor, closed this week after less than a year.
Employees of the short-lived hyperlocal publication temporarily turned to X to share stories of chaos, currency instability, and lies.
Todd Lisenbee, a leading voice on local radio, wrote that founder Mike Koehler has obscured the publication’s payment design and investment style since its launch last September. First, Lisenbee was presented with a three-year retainer to convince him to leave 107. 7 The Franchise. in Oklahoma City, but in the end he earned only nine months of guaranteed salary.
Staff roles and day-to-day jobs were turned upside down and more emphasis was placed on featured visitors than on the successful personalities Koehler hired to launch Sellout Crowd in the first place. Koehler left the company in January.
– In June 2023, he died. I haven’t discovered any funding.
In July, an “angel investor, Toby Keith, accepted the vision and gave Sellout 3 years of funding. “
-Era. . .
— Todd Lisenbee (@ToddOnSports) May 15, 2024
Sellout Crowd laid off “a smart part” of its company in early March, according to The Lost Ogle.
Lisenbee was among the layoffs in March and wrote that co-founder Kris Murray, who replaced Koehler as chief executive in January, “passed away” shortly thereafter.
When Koehler, a virtual marketing veteran, announced Sellout Crowd last spring, he wrote on the To page about how Sellout Crowd would exist “at the intersection of classic media and influencer marketing. If a fashion designer can earn five figures for a TikTok post, why can’t a sports media enthusiast with an audience and experience do the same?
Koehler presented Sellout Crowd as a free, ad-supported virtual content network built around Tramel and Carlson in particular.
“We had a lot of fun, but the monetary situation early on meant we had no chance of succeeding,” Tramel wrote this week in X.
–Berry Tramel (@BerryTramel) May 15, 2024
Carlson wrote a thank you message to Sellout Crowd readers, viewers, and backers.
I thank everyone who read, listened, subscribed, or replied to something on Sellout Crowd. If you’ve been doing this over the past few months at Sellout Crowd, thank you very much. (1/?) https:// t. co/h5Ov3vmTaU
– Jenni Carlson (@JenniCarlson_OK) May 15, 2024
Sellout Crowd Oklahoma City Thunder editor Jon Hamm was even harsher at Koehler, Murray and the media’s messes.
“Other very intelligent people have had their lives seriously derailed because of this act of stupidity,” Hamm wrote in X. “Many of us will tell our side of the story not because we’re looking for sympathy (though we’ll probably settle for it if it’s presented to us) yet because we’ll see it as a duty to the scam. Stay tuned. “
– Jon Hamm (@JonMHamm) May 15, 2024
The Lost Ogle reported last August that country music icon Toby Keith was one of the media sponsors. Keith died in February of abdominal cancer.
Beyond Keith, a few main points about Sellout Crowd funding have been revealed.
One might assume that Koehler and the publication’s other founders actually believed that influencer revenue generation may simply be a full-blown sports media network. Even at the local level, that money doesn’t simply materialize, no matter how clever the content. They are constantly striving to publish content and partner with brands.
While some hyperlocal sports venues have been a hit in recent years, they more commonly start modestly and grow over time. At DK Sports Pittsburgh, DNVR, or Boston Sports Journal, the slow expansion across platforms has allowed for broader investment over time. NFL freelancers News Hounds like Paul Kuharsky and Nick Underhill started solo and built from there.
Sellout Crowd has been enthusiastically welcomed as a potential addition to this collection of up-and-coming local sports venues, but it has fallen victim to the same shortcomings and so much big news in the media over the past few decades.
Brendon is Media Observation Editor at Awful Anusing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx, and more.
The series will release new episodes every Monday.
Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw suggests Smith might simply be offering “The Stephen A. Smith Show” to the world leader in a lucrative new deal.
Steve Sands, Grant Boone and Tom Abbott will be in charge of play-by-play duties.
“Did we lead the game with a foul?”
“Look, I wish I had a task next year. “
The series will release new episodes every Monday.
Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw suggests Smith might simply be offering “The Stephen A. Smith Show” to the world leader in a lucrative new deal.
Steve Sands, Grant Boone and Tom Abbott will be in charge of play-by-play duties.
“Did we lead the game with a foul?”
“Look, I wish I had an assignment next year. “