Mhc Spotlights Women In Sports Broadcasting On February 4 As Part Of National Girls And Women In Sports

Media Advisory

MHC SPOTLIGHTS WOMEN IN SPORTS BROADCASTING
AS PART OF NATIONAL GIRLS AND WOMEN IN SPORTS DAY

South Hadley, MA--Linda Cohn, anchor and reporter for ESPN's SportsCenter, the popular sports newscast-- will speak at Mount Holyoke College on February 4 in celebration of National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Having achieved a reputation as an exceptional sports journalist, Cohn helped legitimize the face of women in sports news broadcasting. With Cohn's lecture, Mount Holyoke students aim to honor the extensive history of women in athletics. Cohn will speak at the MHC Campus in the New York Room in Mary Woolley Hall at 7 pm, February 4. The lecture is free and open to the public.

The first full-time female sports anchor on a national radio network (ABC) in 1987, Cohn's participation on ice hockey teams in high school and college stimulated her interest in sports. She graduated from SUNY, Oswego in 1981 with a B.A. in Communications and began her career in Patchogue, N.Y. as a news anchor and sports reporter for WALK-AM/FM in 1981.

Cohn continued her work with three other New York Radio stations until 1987. In 1985 she got a part-time job as a sports/news anchor and reporter for WLIG-TV on Long Island; she also worked as anchor, news director and chief correspondent for Long Island News Tonight, a daily television news program from 1985-86.

In 1992, she joined ESPN, where she gained national recognition as an anchor for SportsCenter, a show whose viewership exceeds 28 million. She also contributes to ESPN's NFL Draft coverage, and is a host for the Mercury LPGA series which debuted in 1998. Providing varied sports coverage, in 1997, Cohn reported from Major League Baseball's National League Championship Series for Baseball Tonight, from the U.S. Open tennis tournament, and also provided reports for NFL Countdown.

Mount Holyoke is a particularly appropriate place to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day since undergraduate women there participated on sports teams long before many colleges and universities even opened their doors to female students. By the 1890s Mount Holyoke women were participating on fencing, gymnastics, tennis, riding, basketball, baseball, and archery teams. In the early 1900s, sports such as volleyball, track, and field hockey were added. Mount Holyoke today has fifteen intercollegiate sports.

For more information: contact Sarah Grolnic-McClurg at 413-538-2030.

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