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    Revista semanal de contenido variado norteamericana del periodico The New York Times

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Download as pdf
    70 views68 pages

    The New York Times Magazine7 December 3

    Uploaded by

    cozy
    Revista semanal de contenido variado norteamericana del periodico The New York Times

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
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    Red Det) 7 PATEK PHILIPPE GENEVE THERE IS NO STAR A STORY ABOUT COLLECTIONS “Why does Patek Philippe have so many collections? Because while each collection has a different character, each one allows us to innovate and to express ourselves. Of course, this takes more time than if we had just one collection. But for me, creative freedom is at the heart of our family-owned watch company. This, and the knowledge that not all people who like our watches, like the same watch. It is for this reason that there is no hero watch at Patek Philippe, There is no star.” WA Ehe New ork Gimes Magazine 9 Sereenland Kt Mon Afi Shpurd 2 Talk Pi Koy By David a Anitony Appiah /'8 Letter of Recommendation Jon Klassen Books 16 The Ethcit Con | Skip My 100-Yoor-Old Fathers Wedding? By Kivame ‘Chiken By Rake! Vorona Cae /20 Eat Thol Tea Tres Leches Coke By Lig Mishan 22 Sunday Night Lights ny Jody Rosen / How Areca’ most spectacular TV show gets made 5A Game of Chicken 2By H. Claire Brown The Biden cedmiristrotion thinks that pouty producers — and many other American componios — ore abusing thee market power But the anus, revial hos struggled to take fight iy Bret Martin / Can youtoko punkerock and puttin @ museum? Fat Mike thinks so Agathe Siagatna,an employee ofthe Punk Rack Museum in Los Vegas, essing acustomerin the museums it shop. Page 40, Contributors / 7TheThread / 12Poom / i Judge John Hedgman / Read LiketheWind / 60,54,65 Puzzles / 60 Puzzle Answers On the Cover Camera operators a Arrowhead Stam in Kansas City a he Chis played the Dot Lions on Sept 7 Porapl by Bran Bike for The New York Times A Once -in-a-Lifetime Oceanfront Paradise Perfectly poised on the most beautiful stretch of beach in the country, Rivage Bal Harbour rises: {rom the lush tropical landscape, a beacon of modern living. This very limited collection Cf light-illed villas in the sky offers a luxurious life immersed in nature, mere steps from the ocean Cn the last beachfront property to be developed in Bal Harbour, SIGNATURE OCEANFRONT DINING + SUNRISE SUNSET POOLS + HAMMAM & AQUA THERAPY « ‘COCKTAIL LOUNGE + PICKLEBALL 8 PADEL COURTS ee le BAL HARBOUR eee fess eats) rar Ferenc enemas erento ag gem Pera sea eit ola RS Rese oN a MAT su hg ana) ON ents Ir a fo ata ae oa PN ASSUROLS 7 Cae ano ORT ee tere oT Re RIANA toni co Nt kaa ei Ao a aca eS eer Reg oma sc SN Bi SSeS Tu Pgs ae aCe rR ts entree teeta Perel snbre snes er ee eee ue ee eecne coco a et Pe rem eames coca nnd eee ra and eee ie ree ee a en Prey Pron Peete et a ene nee ey iar remorkabie now generation of superwoeds thot have evolved reistance to most of ad Peoaeeeerreneet neater etter oene ee eneanretone eee ee es eee Pee eee ee eee ere Persenaiataver pee unre ON YY Nive een er sUinNnUnOnn eee ae ee ee eared was highly entertaining. There re messages between high-powered executives where Ce aoa Pan Cran [Sen eee eer erat ert ere eI eT eT Prac ee tins ced cory corer] Pe ee ee ee Seer nT ere rey rg een ete ner eee ec age 22 er Sr Pe ee eee eee eet ey co Penton et te reed nar Jody Rosen contiibuting writer forthe mogazine andthe auther of "Two Wheels ror Core eee arene ‘Page 22 Pray ens Pee et eee ee a ro ‘moiny focuses on realty and perceived realts inthe United States. Perron Sn ero aa es Een yan ANN CY tTs Ser aa aed ere Pen eer ee ad oS ee eee ey eae) ee eee er ee See eee Ce en Pe arene eet ered ea serpy Hak Pats ‘The Thread Readers respond the 1.19.23 issu, RE: WHEN RUTHLESS CULTURAL, ELITISMIS EXACTLY THE 308 David Marchese interviewed the literary ‘agent Andrew Wylie ove Wyie’s honesty and respect his high standaeds, He certainly does not strike me as a “hollow man” His jab, done well, isto be immersed in anoth- ‘er person's thoughts and words. Iisa special skill to focus onthe other person and keep not only asense ofelfbutalso fan understanding of the writer's goals. Given the gravitas ofthe writers he’s ‘worked with, Wylie does an excellent job, He must have had a lot of guts to ‘make Saul Bellow and Philip Roth “bet ter" writers, And Nabokov ~ he worked with Nabokov? David, thank you for an inceresting interview. Your footnotes are the icing on the cake! ‘Adele, Lav Angles ‘Wylie asked, “What ifyour entre life is based on entering the other person's perspective?” Did Marchese set this one ‘upo make most readers initially dislike Wylie before coming around to see him from a diferent light? A wonderfully ‘seorthy subject. So enjoyable and enrich ing to have entered into his perspective Leslie, Prague ‘The interview notes are so perfect here. No. 3had me laughing, and shifted the interview. with humor. toward this: If ‘writers actully imagined that making i means agents and publishing and a pinnacle gatekeeperlike Andrew Wylie, they might give up. Coote, Las Vegas ‘Such a fun and provocative interview! Me. Wylie, I would love to invite you 10 my dinner table — but only if David Marchese comes as wel. His questions are as entertaining asthe answers. Lynn, Charleston, SC. Thoth laughed and cringed. rm a vor ious reader of ll books. Ise the New ‘York Public Library app. {put it on ran- sdomand serll Pretty much every genre, Dut it has co be well written and spark something.in me like an agent who will fight for their lent ke that there are people agains the dumbing down of peo- pile, who expect people to read above a sixth grade level. Quote poetry! However, not everybody ean go ask Mick Jagger, “What should Ido with my life” Ish, essa, Staten Island, NY. ‘Andrew Wylie doesn’t come across as | very happy person. That sai, 1 did enjoy the interview, and will be adding ‘aconple of authors tomy list of "Books to check out!” Thank you, David Marchese. You're a bold interviewer. M Fourner, New York Iwas ready to dislike this ~ something about “elitism” in the title, together ‘with that look in his eye, seemed abit precious, But David Marchese’sinter- views are so good, I decided to start it anyway ~ and [loved every moment of it, So completely fresh. interesting and ‘compelling to read. Is really rare to read someone's point of view and end up feeling energized from the stim ing discussion, as though you just might beable to create something interesting, 100. Nothing Wylie said was expected, and yet it made sense — it was a new eee les coheedto yore tinescony rowattre/rogacie Wylio'must havehad alot ofgutstomake Saul Bellow andPhlip perspective forme, but twas alsocom- ‘municated in such an interesting and charming manner, as iFthis is someone with an original personality. I proba bly would not be one of the people he invites to his dinners — I'd weigh the ‘whole atmosphere down — but I sure ‘would love to sit there, isten and absor’ the conversations ‘Nante Withheld| Reading this iterview is ikea shock of cold water to the body on a sweltering slay. First, you instinctively recoil; then. you realize how badly you needed the jolt 1 found myself smiling, chuckling and thanking Mr. Wylie for awakening ‘ny mind with his erasable, sharp and cutting intelligence. Kup, Vitoria, British Columbia RE: HOW DAVID ZASLAV. BLEW UPHOLLYWoOD Jonathan Mabler James B. Stewart and Benjamin Malln wrote about the CEO. ‘Terrific and fair reporting. kept waiting forthe heavy-handed takedown as seems tobe the custom in reporting on CEOs. Instead, | felt that the entire story was told and the facts lid aut For the intel igent reader to consider. Bruce, New Jersey ‘CORRECTION Anarticle on Nov. 19 about homelessness ‘San Francisco misdenijed a California jt Santa Rita isa county ail that also holds “feral przomers, not a federal prison ‘Sind your hogs to magazine taytimescom. Isratens by Giacome Gambia Democracy needs news. News needs you. Our democracy needs news because when Americans have access to quality news and information, they are more likely to vote, run for office and feel connected to their communities. Through NewsMatch, we are investing millions of dollars in the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN) Network — hundreds of independent news organizations that serve diverse communities across North America. Most of what these newsrooms publish or broadcast is free — meaning we're helping to provide essential information to everyone, not just those who can afford a subscription. NewsMatch Powered by CH INN Learn more about the nonprofit future of news at NewsMatch.org Tee ceMelt te eRe aT em Ag Join us in building a new, nonprofit future for journalism. Democracy Fund Heising-Simons Foundation Inasmuch Foundation Independence Public Media Foundation John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Jonathan Logan Family Foundation Joyce Foundation Maida Lynn The Miami Foundation The New York Times Vere Initiatives William and Flora Hewlett Foundation Wyneote Foundation ee) Core oem rae cen KGa Ci ‘the protagonist of “Killers of the Flower Moon” is Martin Scorsese’s latest variation on a trope he has perfected: the corrosive male antihero. @ By Jim Shepard @ If “Men Without Women” seems painfully apt as a title for Ernest Hemingway’s fiction, the equivalent for Martin Scorsese’s work might be “Men Failing Women.” From “Who’s That Knocking at My Door” to “Killers of the Flower Moon,’ for more Sereentand than 5 years, his movies have been a dis ‘mal and heartbreaking primer on what ‘when you love someone. is, ul their en mal ‘male protagonists continue i ignifeant others even when tiple chances to reverse that pattern: a ht if the pro paradigm even more fra agonist sa white mw and bis wi long suffering Osage. In hisweleome tothe aience before Killers” begins, Scorsese confides that his film is deeply personal, and itis, not just because he has always had a keen sense of socal injustice bu also because of its obsession with the jaw-dropping gap between the man his protagonist Wants to be and the man he is. Which helps explain an aspect of the movie that has most puzaled some reviewers: Ii is about what happened to the Osage. then why are we spending so much time with awhite schnook? Maybe because the self deluded sinner vio wantsto repent but refuses tochany has been Scorsese's most persistent and agonized subject. At their most dysfunc: tional, those figures are so terrifying that they've become cultural totems of toxie masculinity — Travis Bickle! Ja [a Motta! ~ as thie rage at their inade Bonus Advice Fromage John Hodgman Seodonemotte, sihestenymescam, Sheet npurlbo? Stosatoete ov and associations then, and offer financial assistance in uch away that youare kept in touch with the kids through the years, so they have access to you when they're ‘older, Oryou could setup fund designed tobe available only fr the children's spe- cific needs educational, medical et), and ‘aim to keep your suppor tightly circum scribed, You could even stat a savings account sothat they have money to goto college later. Ideally, the kids will grow aware ofyouasa dependable caringadult inanotherstate, while youavoidentangle- ‘ment with a repugnant subculture. Inthe 1990s, whe Iwas 11 years ol, ‘attended a summer camp. One of my friends ‘anfided tome, months later about having ‘ren molested bya partalar counselor This revelation aligned with rors that had dren swirling around a! he time. Ihave no doubt whatsoever that the abuse ocurred. ‘To my knowledge, no legal action was ‘ever taken agains the person I believe was the perpetrator ve since ost louch with the friend obher children I heard about, now around 40, may well have ‘move on with their lives, Trough some interne sleuthing, [found that the former counselor is moving through ‘We semi unencumbered ~ traveling. celebrating milestones et. ‘Theres no statute of iniatons on sexual erimes against minors in the salen question. The posible survivors presumably know this and have chosen ‘nol to report it have no idea about the erstwhile counselors capability for ‘reolfending over the las three decades. What can Ido that's resporsible but ale respect of my fellow campers? Nome withheld ‘There area number of reputable organi- ‘ations that help survivors of sexs vio: and you should they ean give you ‘advice about the steps you can take with your hearsay evidence. But you've idemti- fied the considerations thatare in tension. Youll have to consider how your childhood Yourtiend | fiend could be fected i you bring the issue to light without consent. And you'll cnuldcameto | jive to consider whether the suspected decide that ‘Perpetrator might stil be actively abusing Uheimperatives | ins whe psp preventing farther harm ofthe present | youve fost touch with your ol friend, ‘mean facing up | butyoualsoscem to be comfortable with totheshadews | inernetseuting Woulditbewortty ing to tack down the fiend 90 that you ofthe past. ‘ean share what's been weighing on ‘mind? Although it’s unfortunate that nei- ther afyou made report carl on, we cant blae chkien for not doing so As tcl however we hve to thik aboot toch belingand harm And your fends direct esimony wouldbe more vale thanyour memry of longeago conver sao, Yur read could come to decide thatthe imperatives ofthe present mean facing up tthe shadows ofthe ps ‘ovame Anthony Appiah chs iby [18 Hi bok ade “Compo "The Honor Cade and "The Le hat Bd thingy” SPREAD SOME HOLIDAY SCHMEAR. ‘Send the gift of fresh, hand-rolled New York City bagels to anyone in the USA. Give a single box or a Bagel-of-the-Month gift, hand-rolled and baked in New York City. Express shipping included! WWW. NEWYORKERBAGELS.COM Letter of f Recommendation Jon Klassen’s Books for Children “Together, these five works comprise collection of twisty, comically deadpan tales, ll of which turn briliantly on the ‘chasm between text and image. In “This Is Not My Hat” the fish thief boasts about the success of his eaper while the llustra- tions depict his imminent doom) Each story aso manages to avoid the tropes so ubiguicousin even the most well meaning children’s literature. There are no tales of ‘ory, no heroes journeys Instead, Klassen cculkivatesa universe of absurdity by tens Iyrutal and tender. Although indisputably dark the tla Shull ives ina vas, aban ‘doned house, complete with dungeon and bottomless pit, Klassen’ stories never ‘entirely succumb to that darkness — rath cer they delve into the Blackest comers of ‘our souls and, somehow, locate jo. Inthe New York Times bestselling “I Want My Hat Back” (201) rabbit steals ‘bears hat, and the bear retaliate by ea ing him. The smal aforementioned fishin “This Is Not My Hat” (2012) commits the same rime agains aig sh, and meets an identical fae. In“The Skull” Klassen's 2023, retelling of Tyrolean folktale, a runaway ‘named Otil takes refuge with a taki ‘skull in his old, secluded mansion. Orills, is all gentleness and sweetness ~ that is, ‘untila headless skeleton comes looking for ‘the skal at which point she turns ruthiess, Yer Olas violence springs from loyalty ‘to the skull who has offered her sheltor and companionship. In Klassen'suniverse, the happiest characters find satisfaction in shared experiences: a dance, a feast of ‘pears. the quiet contemplation of asunset. "As my child's relationship to these books grows more nuanced, and he ‘perceives their intrinsic disobedience, | ‘expect he will find them challenging, But that’ the point I don't believe that feton, should placate. Survival is rarely elegant; ‘sometimes its downright ludicrous, bn. ‘of dumb luck orprivlege. Inthe lst pages ‘of ‘The Rock From the Sky” the turtle nar- rowly escapes death by Cyelopian eat ray, not through any clever Fest —he'sunaware that he’s about to get torched — but bya rock that fills from the sky, erushing the monster just as ts poised to strike. “These filling rocks ~ there are two that bookend the story — strike me as a serviceable metaphor. Upon impact, they ‘demolish one ofthe pernicious fictions I ‘expect my son will encounter sooner rah certhan later: namely, that safe, long life isa reward for virtue. hope he will know Tacha vorone Cote afro ‘eat athr fon ‘isk fine ion tit Si Bal imeeTaday” better Thewniverse owes usnothing:we, | Often, Lacknowsledge the hoxury ofthis theliving, must safeguard one another. | fleeting moment Parenting atoider can This is @ bleak lesson, A suffering | sometimes fe! like patil mythmaking, ‘world ike ours necessitates many such | asif''m devisinga narrative ofthe world Tessons — eventually. For now, I am | thatistrue enough to approximate realy, spared by my san’syouth, and the infla- | butnot so comprehensive that itbecomes ence I yield over his narrow orbit. At2, | illegible to him. Iewould be tempting to he still regards his surroundings withthe | banish the darkness a little longer, to sort of confidence that cannot survive | allow my som to believe in a world that the burden of skepticism. I do not pre- | will never betray him, sume to be entirely responsible for my | _ Irespecthim — {love him — too much son's pluck, or even to know his mind, | for that. Instead, we read Klassen, in Yet, at this cary stage, my hushand and | whose works cruelty and kindness and I serve asthe primary architects of his | horror and wonder reside in adamant, environment, andthankfully, weare able | exquisite tension. See, tell him. A brutal tofoster conditions that reward his trust. | world can stil be tender. Read Like the Wind By Sadie Stain Powerhouse: The Life and Work | (interiors just one of them): the work of of Judith Chafee certain architects is another. ‘By Christopher Domi and Kalhr MeGuire | Lorderedithe Chafee hook aftr seeing Nonfiction 2019 the 1975 Ramada House in Tueson. Chafee did her most famous work in the South: ‘This monograph on the architect Judith | west, and is known for working in the Chafee comesin response avery good | regional vernacular. Ramada House, for question from sos Quiet Quitter: | instance, utilizes traditional Indigenous “Please recommend a book or medica- | shade structures and materials to combat tion or incantation) that gives someone | the desert heat.) “Powerhouse” is beati- enough fortitude to do a book purge. | ful, ofcourse, and agood introduction to Wis hard!” modernist whom | for one, didn’tknow ‘The first thing to be said is that get- | enough about. And if you're looking for ‘ing rid of books is « complicated and | deacquistioning inspo, the breadth and personal process; what’ freeing to one | serenity of Chale's work is avery good person is painful o another. Im totally | place to start. That said, it will require honest, it took a recent move to force | your adding another book tothe shel. sme to reckon with my books, and it was indeed very, very hard. Read ifyou ke: “The Quik and the Dead.” am often moved by reading about | éy.Joy Wiliams; “Georgia O Keefe Studio spare, ascetic spaces: Junichiro Taniza- | Book)" the sux bleached detective fiction of [Kis“In Praise of Shadows" isan eloguent | Tony ilermian argument for spareness in all things | Available from: A good art bookstore. @ Iatrtlon by Sexe Kaus ry Eat By Ligaya Mishon Orange (rush: Thai tea infuses a deeply moist, not-too-rich tres leches cake. Now this is a diner, where the pancakes pal into burnished dames anlthe syrup: to-pancake ratio is 1 wo 1, ("The correct and nonnegotiable ratio” the writer and editor Rohan Kamicherl says) Sam Yoo, the chef and owner calledit Golder when he opened itin 2019, na corner of hulk at the end of the street. The table topsare Formica the windows are draped in lace and the time is aways breakfast, whatever’ on the plate That might be « Reuben, although not «quite as you know it. Gone are the book ends of rye; instead, you get tonillas, | © with Swiss choese gone meltyin the pan ‘The doublesdecker club, quartered and ige | speared, isserved on Japanese milk bread With chicken Katsu tucked inside, fervent and juicy nits panko crust. Your choice of Protogroph by Unde X00 “othe cht Som Yon, ‘ecoras aeoe soups are matzo ball andl kimehi tomato, ‘There's gochujang onthe burger and lem ‘ongrassand galangalin the avocado wast, ‘summoning sun, earth and pine. ForYoo, the menurepeesens asa native New Yorker" he says. His mis: ingsand musingsare far from the sole fasion euisine of the 1980s, when ingredi cents from non: Western cultures started popping up at highend restaurants across America, Back then, those elements were ‘treated as exotica, To Yoo, they'te simply part of a city panty, shared by neighbors with roots across the world, ‘Sometimes those neighbors find an unexpected connection, ike 2 love of ‘condensed milk: milk boiled down wil itsthickenough to clingtothe spoon. with ‘sugar added to make it st longer. The “American publisher, land surveyor and inventor Gail Borden | patentedaprocess for making and canning icin 1856, inspired by preservation techniques he observed at a Shaker community in upstate New York. Iprovedessental for Union saldiers Jn airng the biggest thing in primetime. But'SINB'isnit justatestament toexcess. From the heginning thas truckanimprobable blance between camival and seminar, seeking new ways to make a byzantine game more comprehensible, “Today that task falls chiefly to Collinsworth, the G4-yearold former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiv- erwho took overanalyt datiesin 2009, Since then, be has solidified his place a footballs most sag cious color commentator, rendering judgments in a gravelly base-baritone that has inspired a cottage industry ofimpersonators. Meme culture bas seized on other tis, ke the Colinsworthism *Nowhere’sa guy.” But unlike the folkloric Mad- den or the hopped up CBS analyst Tony Romo, ‘who flaunts his smarts by predicting plays before the ball is snapped, Collinsworth isnt frst and froma pea: Haste con pig demeanor of «detective — a guy, as Colinsworth Himself might put who regards football as grand puzzle that rewatds endless inquiry. His investigations ental fieldwork, Collins- ‘worth lew into Kansas Cty on Sept 4, three days before the Kicko game. The following morning. be led an “SINE” delegation tothe Chief pre tice facility, where they held private interviews ‘with Mahomes and others and spent 45 minutes ‘watching the team ran through plays, They aso ‘aught breaking news: Collinsworth and Tirico ‘were on the sideline chatting with the Chiefs ‘general manager, Brett Veach, when Travis Kelee limped off with a bone bruise in his right knee, “The Kele injury was Topic A the next dayina meeting room ata downtosn Kansas City hotel This was the “couches’ film” meeting, where Collinsworthsereens game tape and talks X'sand ‘O'sand producers formulate eamera isolation and repay plans around the game he expects 10 see, How might Detroit combat a Chiels offense without Klee? In2022, the Lions played man-to- ‘man pass coverage atthe second-highest rate in the NEL, but Collisworth explained that they had made a scheme change. There would prob- ably be more zone coverage, he speculated, or ‘pethapszone match. Asfor Mahomes: Since 20:8 ‘when became the Chiefs starting quarterback, hh had played just one game without Kelce. Now the Chiefs had two new offensive tackles and a shaguy receiving corps with no clear star "Kele’s ability to chip, get out on routes — itcant really be replaced. SoWwhereis Patrick going with the ball” ‘Collisworth’s erudition isthe fui of abses- sive lm study and immersion in stats and data (eis the majority owner of the sports-analyties ‘company PF) But it also reflets a perspective shift thats intuitive to football's wonks. "I never ‘watch the ball” he says. When he's in the broad: ‘east booth, he will follow Tirico’s call to learn ‘where the ball wont, bc his eyes are elsewhere, He scans the presnap formations to make quick reads ofthe defensive coverage. Afer the snap, he turns othe Skyeam monitor —the view frm bbehnd the quarterback — to cate the offensive linemen’ frst step, which ells him whether the phy isa runora pass. fits un, hellstickwith Skyeam:ift'sa pass, he may switch hisattention to the defensive secondary to watch coverage develop. When the ply is over, he says, “Tm on the button to Rob” — taking to Hyland in the trek suggest what replay the show should ait “Bvery play ean take you ina different direc: tion’ Hyland says. “You ean go toa replay to elp support what your announcers are talking about. You ean show America adiiferent angle ona ply. ‘Oryou can take America ina whole new direction narratively You can go toa preproduced clement to showcase something interesting about a specific athlete or coach. You can go to a graphic to help support storyline orto introduces new story in, Teslike John Madden used to say to me: A foot ‘roaicastis the greatest open-book test there is” ‘With 9:27 to goin the fist quarter of the Kicho _gime, the Lion lined up fora punt at their own 17-yard line, Brian Melillo, the audio engineer, as patrolling the sidelines to monitor comm ications, including the critical inkthat lets NBC signal league ofcals when it wants to stop play togotocommercial. Inthe broadeast compound, the reply director, Charlie Vanacore, stood inthe ‘C-Unitruck facing what looked ike a psyched ic video art installation: three giant panels, each ‘holding more than two dozen small ereens with feds from live cameras and replay sources. In the A-Unit, Esocoff spoke into his heads, giving thea Unt race instructions tothe operators of Cameras 5 and 1 about coverage ofthe punt. (5: kicker, wast up tc returner,waist-up”) Nearby, Alex Hauben stock reminded Hyland tht Trico should drop the name of a sponsor during the rollout to the next eommersial:"Going to break after the kick YouTube mention But the commercial break would have to wt. Dan Campbell, the Lions’ head coach, ikes to run fake punts, Over the past Derroit successfully converted the fen attempts. No six of the ne Chiefs to gain the first down. (On NBC's irwaves, Trico let out a ery: “Dan Campbell dice rollin’ from inside the 0 on drive two of the season” Ten plays late, Jared Golf completed a nine-yard touchdown pass to the receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, in the truck, Hyland spoke into his headset, asking Vanacore and his ‘Rowing dered Cth ‘econ ne roodcot team to fed him shots of St. Brown, As “SN ‘bumped io commercial wit slow-motion images ofthe catch and the eelebration, Tiico said: "The fourth-down pickup. A yard drive. They kept Patrick Mahomes off the field for eight minutes ‘And the guy who makes the Lions offense go — AmoavRa Si, Brown ~ frst tothe end zone this car Seven nothing, Detroit” ‘The delineation of duties in a sports- broadeasting booth hews toa famous formula The play-by-play person handles what; the color commentators jo is why Tirieo is one of those cerly gifted announcers whose what flows like water running over rocks in a riverbed, His national:TV career bogan in 1991 on ESPN'S ‘SportsCenter He has broadeast countless events from NLL. games to the Olympics, 1s both a studio host and a booth announcer, He succeeded Al Michaels on “Sunday Night Foothall”in 2022, and while some complain that today's "S.N.E” booth lacks the swagger of the ‘ld Michaels-Collinsworth partnership, there's po gainsaying Tiric's mastery He setsa tone of relaxed omniscience — the feeling that, at every ‘moment, youre being told all you need to know jn an optimally elegant and succinct way. “He's ATV savang” Hyland says. When Tirieo worked ‘on “Football Night in America” he was known to shadow Gaudelli in the truck during games. He would sit in the tape room to watch the replay operation; he would lurk in the graphics area, "There is no one T've ever worked with” Hyland says, “that comes eose to his ability of the mechanics of television” “Tisico’s methodology is based on an ominous sounding acronym, DIE: document, inform and entertain He thrives especialy in the informy ing department. Each week, he spends dozens cof bours compiling his “boards” — notes about players, coaches, ownership groups, hundreds ‘of people who could become the story of the right — logged on a Microsoft Surface that sits ais side in the booth,“ always start with the backup quarterback.” he says. “As soon as the backup quarterback getsin the game, you can tell sf somebody’ prepared forthe broadeast or not” Ideally, informing overlaps with documenting and entertaining in suaprising and even poetic ‘ways. As halftime approached in Kansas City, with the score tied at 77,°S.N.F" returned from ‘commercial with an aerial sho of Arrowhead, The stadium was in its 52nd season, Trico said, and At shared its parking lot with Kauffman Stadium, home of the Kansas City Royals, As Mahomes barked signals, Tirieo noted another baseball connection: The quarterback, who is famous for throwing the football using armangles like ashor- stop, as drafcd bythe Detroit Tigers before com _mitting to fotbal Two plays later, with 37 seconls remaining inthe second quarter. Mahomeszipped ‘fouryard pass tothe tight end Blake Bell. “Side ‘rm sling forthe touchdown!” Trico exclaimed. ‘Then he pulled out a final fcr: "Like Mahomes, Proteroah by Sn Fike fr Tre New York Ties Bll wasalso drafted by the Detroit Tigers. In 2010 “ThiswasclasicTirco:a tream of ration, decorated with detail from his boards, that unfurled like a seipted riff — a touchdown drive with a baseball limos, ‘This suavtyisa solvent: Hyland calls Trico “the ‘master of sanitation” for his talent at leaning up ‘awkward on-air moments. He's also expert at knowing whatnot say, key skillhe shares with ‘most every NEL announcer. During the run of "Sunday Nigh Fotball a period that corresponds almost exatly tothe tenure ofthe NFL. commis: sioner, Roger Goodell the league his achieved unprecedented popularity while experiencing 4 breathtaking series of seandals. It has been sccused of racism and sexism; been scrutinized ‘over the racial disparity between its owners, exec utives and head coaches and its majority: Black work fore of players; been asaledfor inadequate handling of of field violence and abuse charges andsetled numerous suits, including the Colin Kacperick collusion grievance an classaction stemming from theepidemic of chronie traumatic ‘encephalopathy and other cognitive impairments among former players. These vexatons hover over the weely orgy of televised football, conspicuous intheir absence, The NFL. relerstoTV networks as “broadcast partners phrase that implies acerainideolog teal lock step. That characterization doesn't sit wwellat “SNA We're nota mouthpiece for the NEL.” Hyland says) Tirco views the problem as one of context. “In general he says, "the body ‘of. football game isa really poor place to have an intelligent discussion of significant issue” A better venue, he suggests, sa pregame or post: ‘game show, where the careful hashing through ‘of a domestic-assault charge or aracial:justice protest will not be interrupted by a punt return. ‘Buta skeptic might pont out that those conver. sations rarely do take place on such shows. And While the NIL and broadeasters often prefer to distinguish between on-andoffthe-ield matters, the reality is fuzier. Last season, when the Bal Bills safety Damar Hamlin went int cardiac arrest alter making a hard tackle, the near-death expe rience eaught ESPN's “Monday Night Footbal Mlat-footed: The moment calle fora moral vocab: tly, ofa least for jnralison’s ard questions, butthe broadcast mustered mostly platitudes. For viewers, par of the shock was the jarring tonal shift a the game was postponed and then can- cxled — adisruption of televised footballs usual brisk rhythms, where the frequent eartingoff of. injured players is marked by perfunctory words ‘of concernas play swifly resumes Infact, TV footballs notte polities fee zone imagined by the league and its broadeasters. tis saturated by the NIEL's own polities, which play down the consequences of footballs gladiatoril ‘lashes while enshrining them as evi rites For decals, the league has wedded itself to patriot ism that vers int jingoism, adopting.as its logo “he NewYork Times Magezine a the manial symbol ofa flag-decorated shield and ‘embracing military fanfare that broadcastersairas ‘4 matter of course. Other strange seenes turn up ‘on TV. Viewers who tuned int the Kickoff game were shown an Arrowhead Stadium ritual, the beating of a “ceremonial war drum” accomps- nied by fansbelting out the Ciel’ psewdo-Native American “war chant” while performing Ube hand [gesture novn asthe tomahawk chop — an inar- _guabl racist spectacle thatthe “SIN team chose {to reat as opening-night pageantry ‘Yet who ean doubs that, as Trico and others suggest, viewers turn on the game to tune out the world? The pleasure we take in watching the NEEL, lke the multbilion-dollar revenues that support i, rests on a collective decision to not think oo hard about tall Football's ruelies and inequities the tllitexacts on bodies and minds ~ that stufis easy enough to ignore when athrill- show ison the Matsreen.“Whascrary tome how foolproof footballs” Bill Simmons says. “The sport can survive any seandal an basically anything unseemly" He added, “People forgive the league for literally anything” Halftime at Arrowhead. The score was 14:7 Chiefs. In the broadcast compound, Esocoff ‘emerged from the A-Unit truck in search of ‘his usual midgame sustenance, a peanut-butter sandwich. Esocof is 66, tall and imposing, with 4 droll manner, full of wiseeracks aimed atcol- leagues and mordant jokes at the expense of his beloved New York Jets. He is also, by nearly ‘everyone's account, the auteur behind “Sunday [Night Football” Esocof?swork has won 9 Emmy. “Awards, and he has directed seven Super Bowl broadeasts, including Super Bow! XLIX, the 2015 Patriots-Seahawks game that remains the ‘most-watched program in US. television histo +: Hyland compares the experience of doing ‘football broadeast with Esocolf to driving a Ferrari. Al Michacls has called him “the Steven Spielberg oflive television” All sports ae telegenic, but the marriage of football and TV was true lovematch. I'sastory that stretches back to television's mideentury infancy, when the NFL. occupied a less lofty tier ofthe sporting pantheon and was quicker than, for instance, Major League Baseball to ‘embrace the new medium, The experiment was sided by unlikely visionaries. In 1965, the father ‘and-son team of Fd and Steve Sabol, small-time filmmakers from New Jersey, partnered with the league to found NEL, Films, an in-houw movie studio. Their films’ blend of orches tral swell, voice-of God narration and stately ‘cinematography — slow-motion shots tracking spiraling passes, ghostly game footage from the “frozen tundra” of Green Bay's Lambeau Field ~ ‘east the NFL in transcendent terms. Crucially, the Sabolsaestheticized and ennobled footballs violence, with highlight montages Moment of Impact" that emphasized the brutal beauty of ‘gang tackles and blindside hits, depicting the players’ ability to dispense and endure punish- ‘ment as masculine vine. But the affinity between football and TV is ‘not just about violence, Its rooted in the spon’s ‘geometries and rhythms: in the rectangular sridiron playing field ~ a clean, green back- ‘rop for football's maze of movement — and in the stop-start tempo that makes room for the ‘rimmings broadeasters favor. There are other pauses, built into the schedule. The NFL. oper- ates on a searety principe: Teams play just 17 times over an 18-week period, a stakes raising regimen that makes every game important. The dramaisheightened on Sunday nights, when the field is washed in light and everything — hash -matks, helmets, coaches’ headsets ~ takes on a cinematic gleam. Viewed in high definition, the ‘game is both intimate and enormous: Cameras pick out beads of sweat and blades of grass, and they sweep up panoramic troop movements and eruptions of athleticism, [AISNE Esocoff isthe person mos attuned tothe erat — the art — of televised football. As the halftime break wound down, he retook his position in the control room, facing that big wall of sereens. One showed alive shor of fans Jn Detroit watching the game on a jumbotron at Ford Feld. Another held shot from Stamford of “Terry MeAulay.aformer NEL. referee who serves asthe "SNE" rules analyst. Two monitors, nick- ‘named Elvis and Costello, had boon used in the first haf fora segment featuring the parents of the Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, who agreed towearmies inthe stands so NUC could their reactions, Esocoff was seated infront ofthe ‘wolargest screens the program monitor show- ing the picture curently on air) and the preview monitor he image eved to golive nex. He had cup of coffe, anda lip card of eam rosters was Spread in front of him. ‘As Esocoffexplainst, directing a football game is both diabotcally complex and simple in its essence You mast have command of vast amounts of information and comfort withstate-ofthe-art ‘machines. Youhavetoknow where each emer is positioned and how to locate its fed amid the diz- 2ying grid of monitors. Every week, you have to ‘committo memory the names and wiform num: bers of dozens of players. You must be capable of conducting similtancous conversations with thedozens of camera operators hooked into your Deadset ancl with your colleagues in the truck, hile Fistening closely tothe liveaudio going out fon ait And you need to do allthis while ealling ‘ta vrtally nonstop series of commandsto the technical director on your right. ‘Yer the heart ofthe gigs straightforward. “It's storytelling” Esocof says *My ob is to make the tudio and the video match as closely as I ean” He clings topillarsof cassie narrative: cause and fect, triumph and defeat. “If the QB hits the receiver for 75 yards up the seam, i's probably because he had plenty of ime tothrow.So we're ‘going to find a shot that shows you the pass pro- tection You want to showbothsides of anevent. alwayssay, the hero ona play iso mote import- ant than the goa. So right away Tilbe inthe ea of my cameramen: ‘56 blueisthe goat? Aword [use Tot isbummage’ I want to see the bummage. Because alot of times the bummage is ¢ more dramatic picture than the celebration” ‘The famous climax ofthe 015 Super Bowl was casein points tating twist ending brought ‘anew main charater surging into the spotlight ~ the Patriots’ rookie comerback, Malcolm Butler, who intercepted the Seale quarterback, Russell ‘Wilson, in the game's closing soconds ~ while offering scenes ofeetay anda oschian panorama ‘ofbummage.“Witha Super Bowl onthe lie” Eso: ‘off says, “the key figures are going ta be isolated forreaction shots. Belichick Pete Carroll Brady on thebonch, Richard Sherman. Malcolm Butler prob- ably wasnt Oe, but your gt shots of him ifthe receiver is ISOed, and youl probably get other views on Skyeam. know my cart eamer's going tobe on Russell Wilson. I know Brady is ISO'ed ‘overere. know Pete Carroll andthe coaches are ‘ging tobe on Cameras 5and 1 or 21 ands Soit becomes usta matterof sequencing the shots You know: the coaches, the stars. Its basic” “However diligently the ereators of S.N.E" plan, they have litle idea what kind of show they will be putting on. For the Chiefs-Lions ‘game, there were nearly 50 pre-edited tape ele ments and more than 100 graphics ~ anima- tions, photo bumps, stats, “storytlls" — ready 1t0.g0. But the vague hope was that most of this, material would never make air. “We'l always havea million elements in place,” Hyland says “The most important thing, I think, is having the diseipline to know when it makes sense to bring those things in and when to stay lve inthe ‘moment Because sometimes, all ofasudden, a football game's gonna break out” ‘That's whachappenedat Arrowhead All night Jong, Esocoff had cameras returning to Kelee, ‘who was on the sideline in street clahes. Collins worth had been right: Without thei alsmanie tight end, the Chiefs offense was stymied. Four ‘minutes into the second half, Mahomes fizzed a ‘pass to the wide receiver Kadarius Toney, who Dobbledit intothe grasp ofthe Lions’ rookie safe ty, Brian Branch. Branch dashed so yards down the left sideline fora pick-six touchdown: 14-14 ‘The Chiefs added a fied goa! late in the third quarter and another early in the fourth to reclaim the lead, 0-14. Now the crowd was ‘unleashing the notorious Arrowhead roar. At the 1211 mark ofthe fourth quarter, the Lions’ ‘offense took over at their own 25, ealling two running plays that left them facing a key third down. AS the sereen wiped to a shot of the teams facing of at the line of scrimmage, the ‘game clock on NC's airwaves showed 10:56 left in the game, ‘It's like John Madden used to say to me: A football broadcastis the greatest open-hook test thereis.’ notice the block by the tight end Sam LaPorta ‘on the Lions’ touchdown run? Titi got on the ‘button co the tuck: “Was there a lve look that Dew caught of Mahomes? It was really good — jut ike, shaking hishead, saying ergo Idon kknowif thas a good look, on supersmo” Hyland hha a different idea: “I want 10 see Detroit” He wanted a shot of Lions fans celebrating at Ford Field when they eame back on ar, “Together, he and Esocoff were engaged in a collaboration that invites superlatives and mixed ‘metaphors. When Dick Eherso rst saw Gaudell and Esoeoffat work ina production truck he said “This is ike watching the frickin’ ballet” Hyland and Esocoff choose football analogies They liken their roles to those ofa coach who puts a game plan in place and a quarterback who exceutes it ‘Other comparisons spring to mind: Their ratatat ‘ackand forth — Hyland summoning replays for Collinsworth’s Telestrations ("Comp-Tele! And arit..play it, Esocol's near-constant recita- tion oFeamera numbers and wipes and dissolves ~ callsto mind a rapper’ bars orn avetioneer's ‘chant, The effet is enhanced when you realize that this patter represents a gigantic game of clephone, a conversation ricacheting between Hyland, Esocoffand the more than 10 individuals whore “in their ears” at anytime, ‘Onthe possession that followed the Lions touch down, the Chiefs stalled, punting with 507 lef. “They havea chance 1otake the game right now Collinsworth std. Butt wasnttobe Afterone frst ‘down, the Lions ame up shorton theirnextthree plays. and Campbell rolled the dice again, trying Fourth-down pass that wasbatted away atthe line ‘ofserimmage.Tirico said, “The Lions hand the ball, tothe league MVP atthe 45-yard line with 2291 {g0" The Chiefs hada chance to steal awin, needing perhaps 0 yardsto move into field goal range. ‘Andthen drama turnedto farce. as Mahomes's receives et im down and penalties pushed the ‘Chiefs backward. A dropped pass. A completion fed by a holding penalty. Another pass, ther drop. A neat-intereeption, A fourth ‘and-20 that beeame fourth-and-2g when Jawaan, Taylor was lagged fora ale start Inthe control room, the sequence rolled out in a blizzard of ‘quick cus, Skycam closeups and split-sereens, 4s Hyland and Esocoff blurted commands with rising urgency: "Gimme dejeetion on Mahomes “Field to right tackle, 4K°"5 left 1s right. Pre view effects, Take effects” For the professionals inthe A-Unit, it was merely a heightened version of what they had been doing for hours. To an ‘uncured lurker, the whole thing seemed like frickin’ ballet, of some les dainty choreography, ‘headlong dance of astounding precision. ‘On fourth-and-25, the Chiefs went fort again, “Mahomes took the sap, rolled left and launched throw that arced across the line to gain, reach- ing the fingertips ofthe receiver Skyy Moore, ‘who couldn clasp it Detroit was getting the ball back. NHCwent to commercial with ts“Binal act? ‘a slow-motion montage of ubilant Lions and dole- ful Chiefs. Esocof said, "Good stuff, guys" and, forthe frst time since the half began, rose and stretched Just overtwo minuteslater, Detrit con verted athird-and-two fora first doven. Haring a catastrophic fumble, the Chiefs werent geting the bull back. On the air, Tio said: “The Detroit Lions ae righ here In the track, Hyland's pronounce- ‘ment was less circumspect. "Game over” he sid. ‘One measure of the success of “Sunday Night Football” is how “Sunday Night Footballish the competing broadcasts are looking. IFyou tune into "Monday Night Football” or the big Sunday late afternoon games on CBS and Fox, the shythms and aestheties of Uae broadeasts showa clear debt to°SNE” Forthe “SNF team, Hyland sys, the challenge isto “continue o distinguish our presen- tation fromall others” Heand Gaudell had talked about this, he said ater. “There's really no alot that Separates the vel shows anymore. Everyone is trying to dothe exact same sons” Competitors are cettaily throwing money atthe problem Inad- ‘ion tothe billions they pay the NEEL fr rights, the networks in recent yearshave shelled out huge sams to re-sign top broadeast-booth talent ancl lure glamorous new announcers In May 2022, Fox Sports announce that ithad landed Tom Brady as the lead analyst for its NFL broadeasts, ina deal sad to be the most lucrative in television sports history, a reported 8375 million for 10 yeas, “Thebroadcastersengagedinthisarmsraceare, arguably, fighting the last war The generations that have come of age with social media may not attach the same mystique, or FOMO, toa live event unfolding in realtime. Why bother ‘watching the whole game when you can eatch ‘quick-hittng highlights on an app? A trend of is ‘aggregation and downsizing can be seen across fan culture and sports media. Fantasy football and prop betting view games through a spin tered lens, pring individual sats and discrete in-game events over wins and losses, There are altomative telecasts lke ESPN's “ManningCast” starring Peyton and Bi, which refigures“Monday [ight Football” as a chatty hang with the bros, and the NFL Network's*RedZone” whose whip- around coverage offers viewers multiple games at once in splitscreen formats. ‘The*“SNF" model ~airing one floodlit weekly ‘game, rom opening kickofto inal while ~ iby definition, dowdy. But for the time being, atleast, it's huge. NBC talied an audience of 25 milion ‘watching the Kickoff game across broadeast and streaming platforms. It ranked as mecta’s most: watched prime-time show since the last Super Bowl. Three nights later, the whole operation had trucked to MetLife Stadium in Fast Ruther- ford, NJ, for Cowboys-Giants, the show's first Sunday broadeas of the year. It was a washout: 40-0 Cowboys rout inthe diving rain, that foun “SINE flibustering its way through a dismal sec ‘ond half with segments ike a Melissa Starkereport about the leg tattoo ofthe Cowboys quarterback, Dak Proseot. Yet, accordingto NBC, the game stil ‘eareda viewership of22 milion. Through the first weeks ofthe 2023 season, SIN" is averaging 21.) milion viewers, 7 percent increase from last yearand the show's best performance since 2035 ‘Bur it isnot the way of "Sunday Night Football” to gloat. Three days after Cowboys-Giants, the ‘production team was in Stamford, in the con: ference room again, doing apost-mortem onits first wo games. Tht morning, Hyland had sent fan email to the staf that included his granular review ofthe Kickoff game telecast, He found ‘many areas for improvement: Fish 4 or 5 replays were a ile ale ~ Cris was waiting ~ awkward lence Playation pas to Jock Reynolds ~ should have froze VIE99 wih the LBS steppe up, ‘Did nat replay Manes seramtble for Ist dow Infor teen of the tr Pylon video needs to be addressed. Rashoe Rice reaction to commercial afer the TD as not good. ‘Blac virtual lin of sera line for the Chiefs kd terrible, ‘ike was close to getting clipped out of breaks. “L want tobe a lite bit tough and thorough this frst week,” Hyland told the group in the ‘conference room. “just really want everyone to think about precision and exceution, There is ‘lot we canand must do better I know, America probably doesn't even notice this stuf. But we notice, right?” @ “The New York Tine Magazine as Kentucky Fried Chicken, salestend 10 peakat the same time ‘every year: Mothers Day. This has been the case since the 1960s, whe the chain began to experiment ‘with TV advertising. Ina spot from that era,amaninanoffice answers a phone call, from ananonymous malo narrator who asks, “Sir, cdo you have any idea what your wife has to do toxrun your house?” Cut to a sped-up montage ‘of an impeccably dressed 3o-something as she dusts, irons, vacuums and balances the check book: Newly enlightened, the husband shows his appreciation by stopping at Kentucky Fried ‘Chieken on his way home, Cut toa close-up of «happy wile biting into a drumstick. "Colonel Sanders fies Sunday dinner seven days a week, nd it’ fingerickin’ good” The ad-ereated trdition endured even after ‘the commercials stopped running, with dads and daughters expressing familial devotion by lining ‘upat the drive through window for eight, 12-and apiece bucketsoffiied chicken. That's why Moth- ‘er Day 2014 was sucha corporate disaster: Some KFC restaurants ran out of chicken, according 19 James Olson, a franchise owner and exeeutive involved with buying chicken. Panicked manage ‘ment scrambled to purchase backup truckloads ‘of meatat huge markups, but there wasn't enough ‘to goaround: Franchisees, rani, shufled wings and thighs from one location to another to cover the shortages. Stores closed ealy. Brands spend years and vast marketing budgets trying toestab- lishthemselves as parto their customers’ holiday routines. The 204 interruption threatened t undo five decades of Mothers Day magic. “The trouble was that KFC’ chickens are small. ‘The ird that made Colonel Sandersahouschold name is lighter than the raw ehicken you buy in the grocery store: KFC chickens weigh nat about four pounds before they are killed, rather than the more common sixpounds. That spring, small ‘chickens were becoming harder to find as feed ‘procs fell end the profits to be made from pro: ‘ducing larger birds swelled, One ofthe chain's ‘suppliers had converted small-bird processing facility into alarge-bird plant, and KFC, a Olson recalled, was having trouble finding the 400ml Tion pounds of smal chicken it usd each year to fillits buckets. Shifting to large birds was not an ‘option inthe near term. The chain's fryers were all calibrated to cook chicken pieces of specific ‘dimensions forthe exaet same amount of time — ‘consistency is key in the fastfood industry ~ and anger chicken fried ccordingtosmallchicken ‘specifications ranthe risk ofbeing undercooked Soon after the Mother's Day catastrophe, KFC’s chicken buyers paid McKinsey, the con salting firm, about $1 milion to spend six weeks looking into the smal-chicken conundrum. The firm found that if KFC dida lock down a con sistent, long-term supply of small birds, it could Jose as much as $1.5 billion in sles ‘The KFC team buys its chicken through a bidding process. It suppliers ~ chicken com panies ike Tyson Foods, Pilgrim's Pride and a handful of others ~ are expected to compete with ‘one another for KFC’s business by submitting confidential bids for contracts to sellto the fast food chain's franchises. One chicken processor ‘might bid for business by offering 63 truckloads of chicken per week for $0977 a pound, while another might send in a bid for fewer truck- Joads ata slightly lower price. KFC’s buying team spreads business among these suppliers according to transportation costs and other con- siderations, awarding the biggest contracts to the most atractive bids. Inthe summer of 2014, ‘prompted by the Mother's Day shortages and ‘McKinsey’ warning, KFC's buyers solicited bids for three-year contracts, hoping to stabilize their supply of small chickens Pilgrim's Pride, a chicken supplier majority ‘cwned by J8S, the largest mest-processing com- pany inthe world, prepared to take advantage of KFC’ vulnerability, The fast-food chain was one ofthe biggest players around, and if KFC buyers agreed to pay mor fr small chickens other big chains would have to follow its lead. tn the weeks leading upto the bid, Pilgrim's Pride exceutives traveled around to customers with a PowerPoint presentation to explain why they were inereas- ing prices. During this “lit” they showed slides charting the shrinking supply of small beds and {he higher profitability of lager birds They argued that they needed higher compensation canine ‘orice small bird; they hinted that they might convert another plant from small birds to larger birds if they couldn't raise their profits. ‘AL one such presentation to Popeye's chick- cen buyers in Atlanta that July Pilgrim's Pride salesman named Robert Bryant found himselfina oom withhisboss, Jason MeGuire. their colleague Roger Austin and oneother Pilgrim's employce. In Bryant’ ater testimony, MeGuire turned to Austin and sad, "Inced you to pur this out to the indus- ‘ey Bryant ook this to mean thathis boss wanted ‘Austin to share the price-inerease plan with their competitors“ remember thinking, That'show it works, Bryant would later testify. “You know. this ‘was one of myfrst national account meetings and Tjust—I didn realize that we shared thattype of information with our competitors” ‘When the KFC team reeeived the proposed prices in suppliers’ bids that August, the magni tude ofthe increases was unprecedented —"dis- turbing” one negotiator forthe buying team later toll ary Pilgrim's Pride wasnt the only proces: sor to submit higher-than-usual quotes for stall ‘chickens: All the other suppliers had followed suit, asking for huge price increases. ‘The niformity of the bids was no coincidence, ‘The putative competitors were maintaining 1 steady stream of back-channel communic tions among themselves. Some seemed to take ‘perverse delight in imagining the KFC team’s reaction to theirbids, “Can you smell their dirty drawers from where they erapped their pants? Ha" MeGuire wrote inan emailto a colleague. A dismayed Olson tried to make deals with indivi: ual suppliers, but the sellers held firm. ‘The chicken companies got what they want ‘ed: the KFC team agreed to price increases that roughly doubled each suppliers profit. Pilgrim's Pride's profit margin rose to 22 cents per pound, Uupfrons12cents. The other sx suppliers ll aise thrown profits onthe KFC account by eight 0 14 cents per pound, IP KFC franchises purchased their typical 4oo million pounds of chicken the following year, the impact ofanaverage 10-cent- per-pound increase would have added up to ‘4 billion in additional profits for the chicken supplies. Jayson Penn, who later became the chief ‘executive of Pilgrim's Pride, refered to 2014 a8 “chicken nirvana” Injust one summer, ahandful offrienaly executives managed to increase prices for much ofthe fastfood industry thanks to an ‘ominous PowerPoint presentation and aandél ‘of back-channel phone call. This was possible in part because four companies ~ Tyson Foods, Pilgrim's Pride, Sanderson Farms (which 2002 ‘merged with the No.6 producer, Wayne Farms) ‘and Mountaire Farms ~ control more than half ‘of the $50 bilion in chicken raised, processed. ‘and sold annually in the United States. Once the small-bird processors began to talk to one another, capitalizing on KFC’ vulnerability was {as straightforward as asking for a raise in wn son and then refusing to negotiate. KFC didnot respond to requests for further comment) By2020, the Department of justice had begun tohome in on the poukry-processing industry, ‘That spring, a Wall Street Journal news alert ‘appeared on Penn's phone: "Chicken Industry Executives Indicted on Price Fixing Charges” the headline read, Tat, he claims is how he learned the Justice Department was saying that he had ‘conspired to restrain rade between 2012 and. 2017. The eriminal ease would expand to include nine other executives from Tyson Foods, Claxton Poultry, Koch Foods and George's Chicken, as ‘well asthe years 2018 and 2019, The centerpiece ‘ofthe investigation was the intra supplier coordi ration that took place throughout the summer of 2014 ~ the year that would come to be described a inthe words of federal prosecutor, “the year the conspiracy went into overdrive” ee Remit ies See htc Canales Sca retogepe pening poe acetone Sc Me [After the outgoing Trump administration passed the criminal ease to the incoming Biden administration, the poultry industry became a focal point fr the new president's promise 10 take on anticompetitive behavior in the business world. In 2022 the Justice Department filed law- suits claiming poultry processors held annual retreats where they conspired to suppress work ers’ pay and used a data-sharing platform that enabled anticompetitive behavior. The poultry industry seemed like astraightforward target for reform in contrast to more complicated batles inst Big Tech. But today the government’ case st Big Chicken feels more like a caution- ary tale about the ficult of reviving anirust ‘enforcement after a half century of neglect. SSquint alittle and the allegations made by fed ‘eral prosecutors make for some powerful imag ery: corporate executives ata beachside resortin Florida collading to tmp down pay forlow-wage poultry workers, many ofthem immigrants, while éolleagues back home collaborate with the same set of would-be competitors to increase prices for their eustomers 5 not too dissimilar from a late1hrcentury politcal carton, publishedin the humor magazine Puck, that depts Comeliu Van deci, Jay Gould and other robber barons seat ‘ed atop gant sacks of money. Underneath them, workers from various industries cary the raft of neybags on their shoulders, eyes downcast Proto mutation by Pobls Dean For antitrust advocates in Washington, newly ‘empowered by the Biden administration, the parallels between the two seenes are more than Superficial, Decades oflax antitrust enforcement have led toa new Giled Age, writes Tim Wa, a former White House oficial in the Obama and Biden administrations, in his 2018 book, “The Curse of Bigness” Inthis view, the country again finds itselfinan erain which powerful companies sun roughshod over their workers, their suppliers and the palitcians who are supposed to maintain balance of power. ‘Soon after taking office, Biden took steps to reinvigorate enforcement of antitrust law. He appointed three “antitrust hawks,” as Politico called them, to high-level government positions: ‘Wo joined the National Economie Council (he has since returned to Columbia University): Lina Khan, @ prominent antimonopoly adver cate, became chairwoman of the Federal Trade (Commission: and Jonathan Kanter, a vocal eritic ‘of concentrated power inthe tech industry, now leads tho Justice Department's Antitrust Division. ‘These lawyers and others, dubbed by some critics as practitioners of "hipster antitrust” Dave argued that federal antitrust enforcement Jost its way during the Reagan administration. The courts interpretations ofthe laws regulating competition have since been dominated by a doc- ‘rine called theconsumer-welfae standard, which holds that corporate consolidation is acceptable — even a good thing — when it lead to lower prices. Sanjukta Paul, law professor atthe Uni- versity of Michigan, summarizes the theory this ‘way: “If powerful people are doing something it nust be because is productively efficient, and therefore it's growing the pe for everyone” For Wiand others, the consumer welfare stan- ‘rd is outdated, One ofthe overarching conse: quences of all that consolidation, they argue, is that companies have acerued too much power, and now they're abusing. The resulting dynam: ies contribute to a host of societal ils, like wage stagnation, stifled innovation, rising inequality and disproportionate political influence flow- ing to the ultarich, Khan came to prominence in 2017 after she published a Yale Law Review article called “Amazon's Antitrust Paradox” Her article pointed out that while Amazon's business ‘was extraordinarily customer friendly the comps: y's dominance enabled itt control increasingly lange swaths ofthe eonsystem in which it operat ‘ed Shouldn't the government be able to limit the impacts of Amazon's market power on vendors and workers evenifits consumers aren unhappy? “atthe broadest level, there's a strong desire to turn the corner on 40 years trajectory in antitrust and try to move the ship ina diferent dreeion” ‘Wu says, "The main goal isnot to sort of tinker sroundthe edges, buttoturnthe shipina diferent ‘course andreturnto another set of American trai tions, from diffrent eras, that hada much broader view of what antitrust was supposed to da” In practical terms, this means taking legal actions that attemp to reverse the decades-long narrowing of courts’ interpretation of antitrust laws and set new legal precedents that protect ‘consumers an alo workers small businesses and startups. This is accomplished by prosecuting ‘both price fixing agreements that harm shoppers and anticompetitive behavior that harms work- ers Like wage-fxing schemes among rival comp nies. Italso means considering more than just the sticker price of goods and services when deciding ‘whether to approve mergers and acquisitions, ‘The vision sexpansive,and the Justice Depat- ‘ments Antitrust Division under Biden has taken legal action against not only companies like Goo: ‘gle — which offers many ofits products to users Freebbut stands accused of illegally monopoliing digitaladverisingand search technologies — but also small businesses like a handful of home: health-care agencies in Maine whose managers were accused of conspiring to suppress wages In November, trial got underway to decide whether the Justice Department could prevent {JetBlue from acquiring Spirit Airlines. While the ‘governments track record has been uneven ~ it lost the home health-care case. and the Google and JetBlue cases are proceeding ~ the Antitrust Division successfully blocked the merger of the publishing companies (Cawindon Mag 0 “he NewYork Times Magezine » baad Toe Pon-mtse| to “put the punk in prunctual” as he says So he was mildly dis tressed to be a few minutes fate meeting sme at the new Punk Rock Museum in Las Vegos of which he is a founder and the pubic face. had pleasantly cooled my heels atthe mascunys bar, the Triple Down. At the Triple Down, you can ordera Fletcher, double um and Coke served in an emptied Pringles ean, named fr Fletcher Dragge, guitars forthe ban Pennywise anda member ofthe museum's governing “Punk Collective” (You getthe chips on the side) Or you might choose a Double Fatty, honoring Fat ‘Mike himself double shot of ito's vodka, served with ime flavored Liquid Death sparkling water and alsoa shot of Jameson. Fat Mike, ashe told me within five mingtes of hisarrival, was afist-round investor Liquid Death Fat Mike, né Mike Burkett, is, among other things. the frontman and bassist for the band NOFX. He was wearing a black Tshirt and blu plaid shortsthat reached almost tothe tops of his blacksocks, At 56 Fat Mike has thick white hair and sideburns, except where they've been dyed the blue of plastic sharks or cotton eandy. He wore a padlock ona chain around his eck, He looked like what network executives may have imagined punks looked like when they were astaple category of bad guy on 1980s op shows, the punk ofa Sprit Halloween “punk” costume To be fi, he had ahandin shaping that image. NOFX formed in Souther California in 1983 log before punk was a viable career path or, by their own aumission, the band's members knew how to play their instruments. By the mid-39908, they had migrated to the Bay Area and improved enough to be part of a wave of groups — ‘most famously Green Day, the Ofppring and Blin 82 — that found improbable fame and commercial success The pop-punk sound of the ensuing era remains so pervasive that, listening to an episode of Slate's “Hit Parade” poclast about it, could not quite tell where the Fall Out Boy ended anda bank commercial began ‘At the Triple Down, the bartender had a shot of vodka already poured, Fat Mike drank tnd began what appeared tobe familar ‘tual of haggling ver whether the bartender wanted histipin ash rin ownership shares in the museum, Fat Mike as $3 milion in shares, hetold me later, and he is giving a portion of them out to ‘museum employees — “AL Teast the good ones’ If you believe in the museums and think we're going to kill it — which we are — maybe you take the shares” Fat Mike said I dont really nderstand the share thing, Mike” the bartender said, shaking his head, “I've never worked in a museum before” He poured another shot. Fat Mike dovwmed it, pled a roll of eash from his pocket and plunked down a S100 bill. About three years ago, Fat Mike came to Vegas with the idea of opening a punk rock tore. He asked for help from Lisa Brownlee, a longtime veteran ofthe Warped Tour, the skate- and pop-punk iuagernaut; she suggested filing the store wit punk memorabilia. From there itwas a small step toa museum The Punk Rock Muse- tum opened on April Fools’ Day, in a12,000-square-fot onetime antiques market decidedly off the Strip, Is closest neighbor san enormous pink gentlemen's cub that advertises “1000's of Beautiful Girls and 3 Ugly Ones: All around the country, there are institutions devoted to com: ‘memorating and celebrating what was once fringe, rebellious oF Tee eat ent nu pui adoneva he Win sre hope [oboe eel i onesie at Sich prc ae woul be sede. Ul punk orn sped 8 ae ee rape pee aera go atlas arsine an tearkapecteay st essing stuns Nos Nery ee fore nee ler ie tbe thing ut punks veto smash ow yes ope teneenbor of lngrmng aopan pk scare n Pemscla Le penyep Min ape iyi paca [ipod satel realepet neem dear epee nia pore Tote hareomace lola seein marae “teres ro illu chr or ur ahough hee’ nr Huge Be og al ie ero ry ape dpe reer Tharistcalurewe go clo. commenorte ands purtasitenersts ith desde Mscensindungthe Merpalan hosed unk ltd ehibuions Unfersies soe th county or Coa th ies he "Puk Cat: The Asthces an Pies fetus The aomproft be! rea acods, unde bythe longing 4g underground, Rockhas its hall of fame and museum in Cleveland: hip: At the Punk Rock Museum, you both entor and ext through the gift shop, where you can buy Pshirts, patches, shot glasses, cole table books and padlocks. Passing through on our way to tour the collection, Fit Mike and Iran into a father and son visiting from Ohio, The man was wearing a Deseendents| Tshirt, the teenager a NOFK one; Mom was inthe tattoo parlor upstairs, getting herleg inked with an image of a Doc Marten and an anarchy symbol "Vm famous” Fat Mike blurted out. They did not need tobe ‘old This was like spotting Mickey Mouse at Disney World, Like many things in Las Vegas, the elements of the Punk Rock Museum that are vulgar, eynica and/or tasteless are fir Iy easy to spot. So let me say quickly that alt of the museum isalso very cool. tis, to large extent, a photography museum ~ filled with beautifully reproduced images from chroniclers ofthe scene both famous and obscure, One room isa rere ation ofa wood: paneled suburban basement, ieoni breeding. {ground for frustrated middle-class punk energy; another con: tains Pennywise's carpet and grafiti-covered rehearsal tui, sidited wholesale from Hermosa Beach, Calif. There's also the Jam Room, where you ean actually pay instruments like Joan Jews guitar and Fat Mike's bass in a soundproof space like something at Guitar Center. ‘One challenge to any project like the museum s how many diferent things punk as come to mean to different people, *Punk has many bouses” Vivien Goldman, an adjunet profes sor of punkand reggae at NY.U, told mo ticking offa few of them: the politcal, the artiste, the bacchanalian, Of cours, some houses have more pee in them than others. tishard co ‘overstate the role of urine in “NOFX: The Hepatitis Bathtub and Other Stories” a group memoir by the band, which is light on situationist theory and heavy on bodily fluids being, expelled onto, orinto, whatever happens to be nearby, nel: ing cats, vans, silverware drawers, ice rays and strangers passed out on the floor. Fat Mike has brought ths preoceupe tion with him to the Punk Rock Museum, The reconstruction | of Pennywise's garage, he told me, was made all the more exact by Fletcher Dragge relieving himself on the Noor, a kind of benediction before the museum openeditsdoors. The top tier of patronage during pre-opening fund-raising was 825,00 package of perks tht inclided having your name fon plaque over one of the museum's urinals or toilet stalls, ‘The museums not big on written text or other forms of eontextualza tion, content instead to It its eases filled with artifacts and memorabilia speak for themselves. Many ofthese are of a morbid cast, relis in the saintly sense. Fat Mike pointed out “Joe Strummer’ last bag of weed” a ‘music publisher Matt Pineus and the band merchandiser Joe Nelson, has been rereleasing classic out-of print records — starting with C Group Sex" — digitally and in deluse vinyl editions, Pineus believe stash supposedly found withthe co-founder of the clash when he died, and the key to the New Orleans hotel room where Johnny Thunders was found dead winder mysterious eirumstances in 1991. He showed me a black leather couch that once sat in Razor's Edge Recording, a studio in San Francisco, beneath aphoto of Kurt Cobain lying onitunconsciows. Fat Mike sat on the couch and posed fra photo, slumped inthe same postion, A foyer outside the bathrooms attempts a partial answer co the ques tion of whya punk rock museum should be located in Las Vegas, which has never had a punk seene of any significant repute. The walls are covered in fliers from a brief period of exception, when a scene sprung tp around shows played ata water-etention basin off a desert highvvay called Losee Road. Generally, though, the museum is upfront about the fact that i is in Las Vegas because it's a place millions of people visit every year. Ib also makes sense because the Punk Rock Museum's

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