Pablo Torre Expands Investigative Sports Journalism From New York

Pablo Torre has grown his independent sports journalism operation through the video podcast Pablo Torre Finds Out, using investigations and unconventional storytelling to examine sports-related issues and broader public topics after leaving ESPN.

Torre left ESPN in 2023 and later launched the show with Meadowlark Media. According to Poynter, his reporting on the Los Angeles Clippers and Kawhi Leonard investigation won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize for Audio Reporting.

"I wanted to take on subjects and investigate stories I didn’t think I had the green light to do there," Torre told The New York Times.

The former ESPN journalist developed a reporting style centered on independent investigations, releasing findings through episodes rather than traditional long-form articles. His work has drawn both praise and criticism within sports media.

"These days everybody just talks about what’s trending on the internet instead of opening up a magazine or a newspaper and being led to stories they never expected to read," Mina Kimes told The New York Times.

Kimes, a former ESPN colleague of Torre, said the project reflects a shift in how audiences discover journalism. Torre has described the program as a way to follow stories beyond standard sports coverage.

"Growing up, I adored magazines," Torre told Poynter. "I never thought I’d be able to run one, and the version of the magazine that we’re running now is not quite a magazine, but it definitely fulfills that capacity to follow my curiosity and my freedoms."

The Clippers investigation became a defining project for the show, with Torre's team examining documents and interviews while publishing the reporting in a serialized format.

"I think whether or not the media establishment took it seriously is emblematic of the changes that are happening in the industry right now," Joon Lee told Poynter.

Lee, another former ESPN reporter who became an independent creator, said Torre's approach challenges traditional expectations of what major journalism organizations should look like.

"Because he went out on his own and does this through podcasting … it doesn’t have an internal editorial system set up like The New York Times or like ESPN editorial," John Ourand said.

Ourand, a sports media reporter at Puck, said independent outlets can operate differently from large news organizations. Torre has also continued producing new investigations, including reports involving sports technology and public figures.