It’s been seven years since the death of Stuart Scott, but even to this day, the impact the former SportsCenter anchor had on the sports media, particularly on Black journalists, lasts.
Ryan S. Clark of The Athletic spoke to Dave Sims, Mike Hill, Cindy Brunson, Everett Fitzhugh and Kayla Grey for a story that came out Thursday. Each one spoke about how Scott directly influenced their careers and lives.
“He allowed me and other people to be who they are,” Hill, who is with FOX Sports, said. “He allowed us to smile and have fun. He brought hip-hop culture into sportscasting. He allowed us to feel like we have a place.”
“He made sports cool and for non-Black folks watching that broadcast, watching SportsCenter was another way of Black culture being cool,” said Fitzhugh, the radio voice of the Seattle Kraken. “He incorporated so much of Black culture within the way he did things. I go back to him being such a cultural phenomenon and an icon. He helped shape the culture. That was a large part of it.”
Grey, an Ontario native working for TSN in Canada, told Clark that at a time when there still wasn’t much representation in the sports media space, seeing Scott on her screen struck a nerve.
“The young Black girl in me felt he was so authentic with how he showed up and how he presented. It felt at home,” she said. “We are used to it now but at that time, sports broadcasting was rigid and here was a brother who brought this level of warmth.”
Brunson shared a personal story about how Scott lifted her spirits up following a mistake she made hosting SportsCenter. She said it inspires her to do good for others in the industry who look up to her.
“I look at it like I am driving down the highway in the front seat,” she said. “In the back seat are a bunch of Black and brown faces. Is my job going to be something that helps them see what is possible or will it be a negative? That all started with Stuart.”