ESPN debate forum Around The Horn had its 3,000th show last week, but hit perhaps an even more significant milestone Thursday; its first show with all female panelists. Kate Fagan, Jemele Hill, Jackie MacMullan and Sarah Spain had all previously appeared on the show, but this marked the first time they all appeared together. From ESPN Front Row’s Bill Hofheimer:

Kate Fagan, Jemele Hill, Jackie MacMullan and Sarah Spain will appear together as the four featured panelists debating and discussing the sports news of the day with moderator Tony Reali.

“While today is certainly special, our female panelists have always been an important part of Around the Horn, particularly in recent years as we’ve broadened the roster of core contributors by adding even more diverse voices,” said coordinating producer Aaron Solomon. “Today, we were just fortunate that all of their schedules aligned so they could be on together.”

MacMullan is a long-time ATH vet, appearing first during the show’s second week on the air in November 2002, and before this show, she had posted 611 appearances and 180 wins (seventh all-time). Hill has appeared on the show since 2009, and had 19 wins and 67 appearances heading into Thursday’s show. Fagan and Spain are newer, with Fagan starting on the show in October 2014 and Spain starting just this February.

It’s certainly positive to see ESPN featuring its talented female contributors this way. There still aren’t a lot of forums where women in sports media are encouraged to present their opinions, and it says a lot for Around The Horn to run an all-female-panelist edition. All of these women have proven to be impressive presences for ESPN, and they certainly deserve this kind of a forum. Here’s hoping they’ll all get to appear on ATH much more in the future.

[ESPN Front Row]

About Andrew Bucholtz

Andrew Bucholtz has been covering sports media for Awful Announcing since 2012. He is also a staff writer for The Comeback. His previous work includes time at Yahoo! Sports Canada and Black Press.