The 2024 Cynopsis Sports Media Awards are taking place on April 11 in New York City, and ahead of the ceremony, the company announced recipients for various honors, including its All-Star category. Several sports media professionals across various niches of the industry are set to be recognized for their work and dedication to the craft, participating in a variety of endeavors to move the industry forward.
Alexa Landestoy, host and reporter for Monumental Sports Network, is part of the All-Star category as she continues to anchor Washington Capitals coverage on the regional sports network. Landestoy joined then-NBC Sports Washington in the summer of 2019 as co-host of DC Sports Live before beginning her role on Capitals broadcasts during the 2021 season. Additionally, she has hosted several episodes of NHL Network’s whiparound highlight show, On The Fly, during the 2023-24 regular season. Landestoy is a graduate of Texas Christian University where she created original programming and hosted a weekly show that aired on FOX Sports Southwest.
Sports content creator Aliyah Funschelle will be honored as a Cynopsis Sports Media All-Star as well, recognizing how she has built an independent brand, Sports with Aliyah. Funschelle has worked in a variety of sports media roles while remaining an active presence on social media, leveraging the advantages of digital dissemination. A graduate of Columbia University, she continues to work with the school on its content and is frequently at sporting events in the New York metropolitan area producing original, compelling videos built for digital platforms.
Buster Scher, founder of The Buster Agency and HoopsNation, has also utilized social media to help construct a brand. The HoopsNation Instagram page currently has approximately 1.3 million followers and creates original basketball content that appeals to its consumers. While he was young, he learned about broadcasting and editing, starting work with the National Basketball Association at 18 years old. With The Buster Agency, he helps other brands augment their standing through social media and entertainment properties.
Laura Sonday, editor-in-chief of TennisONE at Bleachr LLC and Sofia Tsachouridou, senior corporate counsel at DraftKings, are also among the five All-Star honorees. The awards include a variety of categories recognizing studio shows, webisode series, fan engagement tools and more. CBS Sports executive producer and coordinating producer Shawn Robbins will also be part of a group accepting the Engagement Innovation Luminary Award, which is being honored to CBS Sports and Nickelodeon.
