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Emily Austin has mastered the art of combining sports and political talk in her career.
The 24-year-old interviewed President Donald Trump and Jalen Brunson, and is putting her experience into her own podcast, “The Emily Austin Show.”
The podcast launched on Tuesday and its first guest was former New York governor and the city’s mayoral candidate, Andrew Cuomo. Other episodes will feature Mitchell Robinson, Ryan Garcia and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
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Emily Austin attends the New York Screening of Lionsgate’s “Good Fortune” at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on October 13, 2025 in New York City. (Arturo Holmes/WireImage)
“It was never my intention to become political, but sometimes duty calls, that’s what I tell people,” Austin said in a recent interview with Pak Gazette Digital.
That duty was that, while attending Hofstra University, he realized that he “cannot live under another Biden presidency” while not being allowed on campus due to his vaccination status. However, at that time, Austin already had a successful NBA podcast, “The Hoop Chat,” which he took advantage of.
“I was really fed up. At this point, I had to do something about it, because I recognized that I had a platform, and what’s the point of having a platform if you don’t stand up for something you believe in?” Austin said.
So, she decided to save her love and experience for sports and become a political commentator, while mixing in sports when necessary.
Emily Austin’s first guest on her new podcast was Andrew Cuomo. (Emily Austin)
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“What I’m glad came out of the podcast is that everyone asks me, ‘How can you still be a politician and still play sports?’ What I’ve realized is that every person on my podcast who is an athlete also has their own political opinion,” Austin said. “And many of them agree with me, and many others don’t. But at least we have that relationship to talk about it.
“You don’t know how many NBA players I’ve interviewed who are MAGA, and they will never feel comfortable coming out. I’m trying to encourage them, the same way your teammates are okay with being a Democrat, you have to be okay with disagreeing with them and being a Republican. There just needs to be a safe space for people to have their political opinions.”
Bringing up athletes’ political views isn’t even Austin’s ultimate goal, he said. All he wants is the comfort of being able to discuss issues, no matter what side of the coin an athlete or politician is on.
Austin will have political and sports figures on his podcast. (Pak Gazette)
“If the conversation is strictly about sports, so be it. But if, say, I have a guest who’s going to announce that he voted for Trump, and that’s going to break the Internet, that’s coming too,” Austin said. “So it’s really like a safe space of dialogue that covers everything without limitations. I don’t want anyone to feel like there are boundaries or lines that can’t be crossed. Whatever needs to be said will be said on ‘The Emily Austin Show.'”
