Gossip Corner: Paul Finebaum

Paul Finebaum has been the leading authority in Southern sports for over 20 years, writing and commentating on regional and national sports issues.

Paul Finebaum arrived in Birmingham in 1980 and became a columnist and investigative reporter for the Birmingham Post-Herald.

Paul Finebaum is an American columnist, author, television and radio personality based in Birmingham, Alabama.

Finebaum broke the story of Antonio Langham, a University of Alabama football player who signed a contract with a sports agent while playing for the school, which led to a probation for the school.

Finebaum’s radio career in Birmingham began in the 1980’s and his popular radio program arrived at WERC in 1993.

In 2003, Finebaum was selected for the third consecutive year as the Alabama “Sportscaster of the Year” by the National Association of Sportscasters and Sportswriters.

In the Spring of 2001, The Paul Finebaum Radio Network debuted with affiliates throughout Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida.

Beginning in 1980 with The Birmingham Post-Herald, Paul’s satirical wit and merciless humor quickly earned him national acclaim as he has been awarded over 250 national, regional and area sports-writing awards.

In 2001, Finebaum was interviewed live on CNN concerning the Albert Means’ recruiting scandal and he was also featured on the CBS Evening News with Dan Rather.

Finebaum’s books include his popular I Hate… series, including I Hate Notre Dame: 303 Reasons Why You Should, Too, and several dozen similarly-titled works which humorously attack most major college athletic programs.

He attended the University of Tennessee, where he received a liberal arts degree.

He is also in much demand as an after-dinner speaker outside the Birmingham area and in the past year spoke in Memphis, Orlando, San Antonio and recently lectured at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst.

In September 2003, Finebaum was interviewed by Mike Wallace of 60 Minutes about the corporate scandals at HealthSouth.

His insight and commentary on Southeastern sports issues has gained national exposure as he has appeared on ESPN, CBS, ABC, CNN, MSNBC and HBO.

The Paul Finebaum Radio Network, comprised of Finebaum with producers Pat Smith, Kerry Adams and Dave Sibley was named by Sports Illustrated as one of the top 12 sports radio shows in the United States in 2004.

In 1993, Finebaum began his afternoon sports-talk show on WERC-AM.

Finebaum’s investigating style of journalism has carried over to radio, as he has broken numerous stories on his program including the Antonio Langham case, Terry Bowden’s firing at Auburn, and Bob Gilbert’s accusations of academic fraud at Tennessee.

Along with being the state of Alabama’s most listened to show for over nine years, his radio program has won numerous broadcast honors including five consecutive Associated Press Awards for “Best Sports Show” and four straight awards for “Best Sports Anchor”.

The Tennessean in August, 2002 named Finebaum as the fourth most influential powerbroker in the Southeastern Conference.

As a spoof, his friend and colleague Tommy Charles published I Hate Paul Finebaum: 303 Reasons Why You Should, Too in 1996.

Finebaum’s articles have appeared in a number of national publications, including the New York Times, Sports Illustrated and The Sporting News.

Finebaum’s other books include The Worst of Paul Finebaum , a 1994 compilation of some of the newspaper columns he has written; and Finebaum Said , a 2001 collection of columns and interviews.

In October, Finebaum also gave the keynote at the 2004 Ingram Lectures Series at AUM.

Along with his writing and radio duties, Finebaum served as Sports Director at WIAT TV in Birmingham for five years.

Recently, Finebaum returned to Fox 6 where he cohosts a Saturday Night program and appears on the station’s evening newscasts three times a week.

The program was dropped from XM altogether in 2006 and Dave Ramsey fills the slot today.

He was also showcased in 2001 on the CBS documentary on the late Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant.

The fourth hour of Finebaum’s show was, for a time, simulcast on XM Satellite Radio channel 165.