Linda Cohn

Linda Cohn
Born (1959-11-10) November 10, 1959
Long Island, New York, U.S.
Education SUNY Oswego
Occupation Anchor, ESPN
Notable credit(s) National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame
SUNY Oswego Athletic Hall of Fame
Women's Sports Journalism Award from the Women’s Sports Foundation
Title SportsCenter Anchor and Entertainment and Sports Programming Network Writer for NY Based Sports
Website lindacohn.net

Linda Cohn (born November 10, 1959) is an American sportscaster. She regularly anchors ESPN's SportsCenter.

Early life and education

Cohn wore very large glasses as a child and faced many self-esteem issues. Originally, she turned to sports as a getaway from her loneliness. Cohn would watch the games on TV with her father, who is a huge sports fan.[1] When Cohn was 15, her mother found a hockey league where she could play with boys. Unfortunately, she had to play with boys who were eight or nine years old.[2] As a teenager, Cohn, a New Yorker, demonstrated talent at ice hockey as a goaltender, making her high school's boys team.[3] Although, Cohn didn’t make her high school hockey team as a junior, she ended up making the team as a senior. [1] She is also an avid New York Giants, New York Mets, New York Knicks and New York Rangers fan.[4] After graduating from Newfield High School, based in Selden on Long Island, Cohn attended SUNY at Oswego, graduating with a bachelor's degree in arts and communications in 1981.[3] She was also the goalie for the women's ice hockey team at Oswego[5] and was inducted to the Oswego State athletics hall of fame in 2006.[3]

Career

Early years

In 1981, Cohn debuted as a sports anchor for the Patchogue, New York-based radio station WALK-AM (also WALK-FM). After leaving that station in 1984, she worked as a sports anchor for four other New York area radio stations until 1987. The most notable stop was a brief stint as an update person at WFAN, New York.[6]

1987–1991

In 1987, Cohn made sportscasting history by becoming the first full-time U.S. female sports anchor on a national radio network when she was hired by ABC. She anchored WABC TalkRadio from 1987–89. In 1988, Cohn got her first television break, after being hired by what was at the time one of ESPN's top competitors, SportsChannel America. In 1989, she hosted a call-in radio sports show back home in New York.[6]

Cohn was a reporter at the SportsChannel America Network before being hired by KIRO-TV in Seattle, Washington to work as a sports anchor there.[6]

ESPN

Cohn returned to the East Coast in 1992, when she was hired by ESPN to work on SportsCenter, and has since become a familiar face among SportsCenter viewers. Cohn anchored her first SportsCenter on July 11, 1992 with former ESPN anchor Chris Meyers. [7] She has also been featured in many of the show's comical This is SportsCenter commercials.In 1994, Cohn was almost fired because ESPN argued that she wasn’t showing her love for sports on TV. The company gave her six months to improve and hired a video coach to help her out. [8]

In addition to her trailblazing work as a female sports journalist, Cohn made a name for herself as a prognosticator in the 1997 NCAA basketball tournament. Her bracket that year for ESPN accurately predicted 15th-seeded Coppin State's shocking victory over South Carolina in the first round, to this day one of the greatest upsets in the tourney's history.

In 2005, Cohn signed a contract extension with ESPN, which added play-by-play for WNBA telecasts to her duties.

On June 20, 2008, ESPN announced that Cohn would be a regular anchor for the new morning block of SportsCenter, which launched on August 11. She would have been the co-anchor, alongside Steve Berthiaume, of the first three hours of the block, from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. ET on weekdays.[9] Several weeks later, though, ESPN announced that the new SportsCenter morning block would be scaled back from nine to six hours.

Cohn continues to regularly anchor SportsCenter 1-3 pm eastern Monday through Friday. She is also the host of the podcast "Listen Closely to Linda Cohn".

Cohn hosted her 5,000th edition of SportsCenter on February 21, 2016, a record for SportsCenter anchors.[10]

Cohn has reported, commentated, interviewed, written, and called play-by-play throughout her career at ESPN. [7]

Author

In 2008, Cohn authored her own memoir, titled Cohn-Head: A No-Holds-Barred Account of Breaking Into the Boys' Club. In her book, Cohn recounts her passion for sports and her experiences working on ESPN's popular sports show SportsCenter. It is a tell-all about her rise to the top of a male-dominated sportscasting world. [11]

Personal Life

In 2008, Cohn’s long-time marriage to Stew Kaufman ended and the couple filed for a divorce. [12] In 2014, Cohn was named one of the 25 most influential women in sports [13]

Cohn has a daughter named Sammy and a son named Dan. [14]

References

  1. 1 2 Josephs, Susan. "Setting the Pace for Women in Sportscasting". Jwi.org. Jewish Women International. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  2. ↑ "Meet the Author: Linda Cohn". YouTube.com. Youtube. 18 November 2011. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 "Oswego Alumni Association Past Inductees - 2006". State University of New York at Oswego. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  4. ↑ Cohn, Linda (December 8, 2006). "Exorcising my Devils demons with Zach Parise". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  5. ↑ Phan, Khuong (August 27, 2009). "5 Quick Questions with... Linda Cohn". Daily Tailgate. Retrieved 2009-09-16.
  6. 1 2 3 "Linda Cohn bio". ESPN Media Zone. 28 October 2009. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
  7. 1 2 Hall, Andy (28 January 2016). "#LCo5KSC: ESPN’s Linda Cohn to Anchor Record 5,000th SportsCenter". Espnmediazone.com. ESPN MediaZone. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  8. ↑ "Linda Cohn on The Dan Patrick Show (Full Interview) 02/22/2016". YouTube.com. Youtube. 22 February 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  9. ↑ Gough, Paul J. (June 20, 2008). "'SportsCenter' rounds out its new roster". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2008-07-02.
  10. ↑ Best, Neil (February 11, 2016). "Linda Cohn to host a record 5,000th ‘SportsCenter’ on ESPN". Newsday. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  11. ↑ Hiestand, Michael (July 2, 2008). "ESPN anchor Cohn's memoir is a refreshing change of pace". USAToday.com. Retrieved 2010-11-09.
  12. ↑ Evans, Jayda (16 September 2008). "Former Seattle broadcaster Linda Cohn looks back at career in sports". Seattletimes.com. The Seattle Times Company. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  13. ↑ Lee, Amber (3 April 2014). "25 of the Most Influential Women in Sports". Bleacherreport.com. Bleacher Report Inc. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  14. ↑ Ariens, Chris (21 February 2016). "Linda Cohn’s 5000th SportsCenter Even Surprises Her". Adweek.com. Retrieved 3 April 2016.

External links

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