ESPN Radio host Max comes out on the air

Jared Max said he didn't tell anyone ahead of time -- not friends, not relatives, not his boss. He was not even sure it would happen until 10 or 15 seconds before the words came out.

Then, suddenly, there it was: The host of 1050 ESPN radio's 5 a.m. to 6 a.m. hour announced in the final minutes of his show Thursday that he is gay, presumably a first in New York sports talk radio.

"I was going to do it only if I felt incredibly confident," Max said later after a wave of supportive and congratulatory responses. "You get one shot doing this, and if you screw it up, it ain't good."

Max, who joined 1050 from WCBS earlier this month, said he was inspired by several sports and media figures who have come out recently, including Suns president Rick Welts, and by an interview in which Charles Barkley expressed support for gay athletes.

"To be a good sports talk host, you have to be open and honest," he said. "How could I be open and honest about everything if I'm wearing a big mask? That mask needs to come off."

Max, 37, said he came out to his mother at 21 and that close friends and colleagues were aware he is gay. He said his public revelation will not change his approach to the job.

"I'm not going to all of a sudden become 'Super Gay Jared, the sports guy,' " he said. But he said he hopes he reached others in his position.

"Let's say some player happens to hear my podcast and says, 'That inspired me,' that would blow me away," he said.

Max was discussing on the air whether the time is ripe for an active player to come out, then morphed into a bluntly candid discussion of his own situation.

"In college, I went through years of hell, suicidal thoughts on a regular basis, all because I thought I could not live my dream because there was a major roadblock," he said, recalling he has wanted to be a sportscaster from age 5.

Later, he said on the air, "I'm 37. I think it's time I've released myself from these self-imposed shackles that have kept me living in fear for too long."