On Tuesday, the National Sports Media Association announced their annual awards for sportscaster and sportswriter of the year, both nationally and in each of the 50 states. The NSMA also announced their latest batch of Hall of Fame honorees.
There was a tie for the National Sportscaster of the Year award for the first time ever, with Turner’s Ernie Johnson and ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt sharing the award. Jeff Passan of ESPN was named as the National Sportswriter of the Year. It’s the first national honor for each of Johnson, Van Pelt, and Passan.
Four new members were elected to the NSMA Hall of Fame: Curry Kirkpatrick and Jackie MacMullan in the sportswriter category, and Hubie Brown and the late Stuart Scott in the sportscaster category.
Last year, The Athletic’s Nicole Auerbach won her first National Sportswriter of the Year award, while Doc Emrick was named National Sportscaster of the Year for the fourth time. Seven were inducted into the Hall of Fame last year: Bill King, Jim Nantz, and Dick Stockton in the sportscaster category, and Larry Merchant, William Nack, William Rhoden, and Rick Telander in the sportswriter category.
A whopping 115 winners were announced at state level, including 70 first-time honorees in their specific state. The Athletic claimed eight winners overall at state-level: Marcus Thompson (California), Chris Kirschner (Georgia), James Fegan (Illinois), Jeff Zriebec (Maryland), James Edwards (Michigan), Aaron Gleeman (Minnesota), Joe Person (North Carolina), and Zack Meisel (Ohio). All except Zriebec (four times) are first-time winners. Last year, the company also had eight winners at the local level, along with Auerbach nationally.
Several other people with national profiles won awards locally, including Kate Scott (California), Adam Amin (Illinois), and Mike Breen (New York).
