Traug Keller
Appearances
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
Trog Keller. I was senior vice president of the ESPN production business units. Oversaw some of the smaller ESPN businesses. Both shocked and saddened, right? It's out of left field and saddened because I'd known John quite a while even before my time at ESPN in my role at ABC and I knew John to be just a smart, creative executive and considered him a friend. I enjoyed our
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
Many conversations that ranged from, is there a God, to how are sales going? Anyway, it was a shock to the system, and John had given us a lot of leeway in regards to running the radio business. He knew we knew what we were doing, and he, along with Norby, let us do our thing. I did say, okay, you know, when there's a change at the top, there's always change.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
That's what happens in corporate America, and so I buckled down and waited for what was next.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
Listen, do I think once Dave Roberts and Norby took over after me and Marcia, was there going to be the end of our show? I don't know. I think, look, radio is not a major piece of ESPN by any means, certainly from a financial point. Do I think that it is an incredibly important barker in a very complex media world in terms of how many different options there are?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
Having an entity 24-7 a day, letting people know what's on, what games are coming up, all that kind of thing is a very valuable tool. But At the end of the day, priorities were changing in ESPN. Radio was dropping. So I think the patience to have anything that was any kind of disruptor in a business that wasn't considered very important meant it was expendable.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
The famous Dan Trace dinner did not impact my decision to retire. I was frustrated trying to run a radio business. Dan was all about Dan. Look, at the end of the day, that's kind of what makes talent great. They are concerned about numero uno and people around them, right? Because that's what helps make them the top of their game.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
You know, Dan certainly was a huge proponent of his people, but I was running a business and I felt like I had hit the wall of the complaining. So I just left. At some points you can only take so much. It was probably a little abrupt, but you know, as you get older, your patience for some things start to wane.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
I'm probably guilty of numerous things, but probably losing my patience more quickly as I got older was probably top among them. I was always going to hit the eject button at 60. That is a Good time to exit the Walt Disney Company. And it was also clear to me that I was always the oldest guy by a lot in every meeting room that I was in.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
So, no, that didn't impact it, although it did make leaving more joyful, given the chaos that was going on.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
I do look back fondly in some ways on the Levitard show. I loved it. I loved the content. I thought it was good stuff. It was fun. I thought it created community with its audience. And that's always the most important thing, a radio show. an audio show can do is create community and keep that community coming back.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
And being able to, by the way, sell products to that community because that's how you monetize it. But you only do that through trust and staying true to yourself. I think it just got difficult when it started to veer into things. As the country changed, as things got more dicey politically, it got too difficult. And I was glad that in some small way, I was part of that show's success.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
And I'm glad that it worked out for everybody.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
Suffice it to say, it wasn't a fun time because for obvious reasons, it didn't make sense for the Walt Disney Company, especially ESPN, a sports network, to start to get involved in politics because of how divided the country was becoming. So, you know, you go one direction, you've immediately alienated half your audience.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
And as much as Dan, I think, probably thought he could make converts with to his perspective politics. That just wasn't the business we were in. So managing that was, yeah, it was tough. I mean, there were gray areas and it wasn't a lot of fun, but we definitely don't have enough time to go into that. Nor I think in my retirement, do I want to go back to it?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
I think I still have a little PTSD from it all.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
I think when John Skipper left, Dan lost his rabbi, his guy, right? So John brought Dan on. John championed Dan, and rightly so. Dan was a really talented journalist with a different perspective and one that created a great radio show. I remember going down to South Beach years before trying to get Dan to do radio, but it took Skipper to work his magic to get him to finally do it.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
But look, when Skipper left, it wasn't just Skipper leaving. I think the country was changing a little bit, too. And certainly talking any kind of politics was becoming more divisive. But I think, you know, Dan felt like he was hired for a certain reason and for a bunch of reasons that were, I think, good and right. But things change in corporate America.
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
And I think he dug in and he didn't like it. And he knew what he was hired for. And that's what he kept doing. So I do think... He got angrier as time went on. It is a great radio show. It still is. It's a great podcast with its own audience, I think. Not every show is meant for ESPN or is ESPN meant for every show, right? Things evolve. This ESPN, right?
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Oral History of the Dan Le Batard Show: Episode 11
And so I think, by the way, at the end of the day, it all worked out for everybody.