Unless you work for the Hanes Corporation or you are a devoted fan of ACC sports, you may never have been to Winston-Salem, NC. If you work in our industry though, an invite to the city is coveted. Unless you are being sent to cover a Wake Forest Demon Deacons game, it means you are about to be honored at the annual NSMA Banquet.
Monday night, stars of radio, television and sportswriting gathered inside the Benton Convention Center to celebrate one another and our industry.
The National Sports Media Association had a very interesting start. Pete DiMizio and his wife, boxing promoters and restauranteurs in nearby Salisbury, NC started giving out free meals to media members that would come to cover their fights. The town kept the event going after DiMizio’s death. The annual NSMA Banquet isn’t just important for our industry. It is an important part of the state’s history.
“I’d hope that maybe the state legislature and folks in Raleigh can help us a little bit with some of the funding it takes, said Wes Durham, who serves as the President of the NSMA Board and was Monday night’s master of ceremonies. “It’s a very much a hidden gem event in this state, that a lot of people don’t realize it goes on. But hopefully in the next few years, and I think part of our mission with younger people counts there, too,. But the people that come here have an unbelievable time. It’s amazing the hospitality that this state extends, and I’m proud of my home state for that for sure.”
On Monday, two men – baseball writer Roger Angell and former St. Louis Blues play-by-play man Dan Kelly – were inducted into the NSMA Hall of Fame posthumously. They were joined in induction by two ESPN stars.
Lee Corso was happy to pose for pictures in the hallway with admirers, and there was no shortage of them. In his speech, the Sunshine Scooter thanked ESPN for standing by him after his stroke. He thanked his family and his College Gameday colleagues for making his career possible.
Every year, many students come to Winston-Salem to attend the event. Corso, who at 88 has had an iconic career, had a very stern piece of advice for them.
“Never prostitute your integrity to get a job or keep one,” he said loudly and clearly. The line drew loud applause from the room.
Bill Plaschke’s daughter MC was a surprise star of the evening. In introducing her father, she told humorous stories of him answering the phone to speak to her in the middle of an interview with Tommy Lasorda and of how he first discovered that he could buy a pride flag to hang on his poarch in June.
When it was Plaschke’s turn at the mic, he quipped, “I’m so fortunate to be standing here in front of some of the country’s best sportswriters and sportscasters. I’m so overwhelmed at the thought of the Marriott Points. There’s a lot in here. I’m just so honored by the Southwest Airlines A-listers. There’s a lot of you in here. There’s a lot of companion passes in here.”
He would go on to talk about the power of words, why they mattered to Kobe Bryant, and how he understands the struggle of kids that want to make a career in sports media but do not have the power of a Syracuse degree behind them.
The NSMA hands out its annual awards at the event as well. Sportswriters and sportscasters of the year from all 50 states and Washington, DC were recognized. There were also national awards. ESPN’s Pete Thamel and The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal shared sportswriter of the year honors. Ian Eagle was recognized as the sportscaster of the year.
“I mean, it means the most coming from your peers, because ultimately, that’s who you’re here with. They’re with you every night in the press room till after midnight,” Thamel told me after an emotional acceptance speech. “This business is great because of the people in it. I think about the honor of working with Pat Forde and Dan Wetzel at Yahoo. Craig Bishop’s, one of my best friends. I’ve worked with him three different places over the years. Jeff Passan and I went to college together. Woj, you know, he and Peter King were the ones who really sort of drove home to me just what this award means. You know, God knows who actually voted for me, but for it to come from them probably means the most.”
The awards banquet is the conclusion of an extended weekend that the NSMA fills with panels and other networking opportunities. No news is broken. Play-by-players may chat up Howie Deneroff or one of the many Learfield executives in the audience, but rarely are deals made here. People come to Winston-Salem to pay tribute to the people that inspired them. They come to see old friends and share a drink with new ones.
“People love it,” NSMA Executive Director Dave Goren says of the event and of the city. “You know, a lot of places that you don’t go, you don’t know about until you go there. They go there, we try to treat them very well. I think we do a good job of that. And they go back to wherever they’re from and say what a great time they had in Winston-Salem. That’s invaluable, I think.”
Demetri Ravanos is a columnist and features writer for Barrett Media. He is also the creator of The Sports Podcast Festival, and a previous host on the Chewing Clock and Media Noise podcasts. He occasionally fills in on stations across the Carolinas in addition to hosting Panthers and College Football podcasts. His radio resume includes stops at WAVH and WZEW in Mobile, AL, WBPT in Birmingham, AL and WBBB, WPTK and WDNC in Raleigh, NC.
You can find him on Twitter @DemetriRavanos or reach him by email at DemetriTheGreek@gmail.com.
