The Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame has announced its inductees for the Class of 2024, continuing a tradition of honoring those who have played a major role in the progression of the industry both in front of and behind the camera. The group of 10 industry professionals will be inducted as part of a ceremony being held at the New York Hilton Hotel on Dec. 17, maintaining the 18-year practice of honoring excellence.
Every year, more than 150 industry professionals, which includes a group of past inductees and executives across all major organizations and disciplines in the sports media industry, vote to decide on the induction class. The ceremony will support the SVG Sports Broadcasting Fund, a charity designed to assist sports production professionals finding themselves in financial need because of illness, disaster or injury.
“We’re excited and looking forward to another wonderful evening on December 17 when we get together and celebrate these exceptional leaders, their contributions, and their legacy,” Ken Aagaard, chairman of the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame, said in a statement.
Mark Lazarus, the chairman of NBCUniversal Media Group, is among the inductees in this year’s class amid a career in sports media spanning more than three decades. Lazarus has oversight over sports properties at the media conglomerate and helped facilitate the agreement of new contracts with the International Olympic Committee, National Basketball Association, National Football League, Big Ten Conference and Notre Dame Football among other sports entities. Prior to his time with NBCUniversal, Lazarus worked for nearly two decades at Turner Broadcasting in executive roles where he oversaw seminal sports rights deals.
Several reporters and analysts are part of the induction class this year, including the legendary Bryant Gumbel. Over his television career that spanned for more than half a century, Gumbel helped establish the assimilation of sports journalism into television media. As the longtime host of the award-winning Real Sports monthly magazine-style program, he and his team explored issues, controversies and personalities in the world of sports.
Former show correspondent Andrea Kremer, who was also the first female producer and correspondent for NFL Films, is also included in this year’s induction class. Kremer is an award-winning journalist who has produced compelling and informative longform content across various entities and has worked on several marquee events, including the Super Bowl championship more than 30 times.
Hubie Brown, one of the longest-tenured NBA analysts of all time on ESPN and ABC, is part of this year’s induction class to the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame. Brown has been involved with the NBA as either a coach or a broadcaster for 50 years, and he has called a record 18 NBA Finals matchups. For a 12-year stretch on ESPN Radio, Brown called the NBA Finals matchups as the games concurrently aired on broadcast television. Before working in broadcasting, Brown was a lauded head coach for teams such as the Atlanta Hawks and New York Knicks, and he returned to the profession briefly to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to its first playoff berth in franchise history.
Former ESPN reporter Chris Mortensen will be inducted posthumously into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame, honoring his legacy and expertise in covering the National Football League. Mortensen was part of the network beginning in 1991 and a regular contributor to SportsCenter and its NFL shows. The award-winning reporter passed away in March at the age of 72 and was mourned by his colleagues and those across the industry.
Among the other inductees into the prestigious Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame is Tommy Roy, an Emmy award-winning producer for NBC Sports; Phil Garvin, the founder of Mobile TV Group; Steve Forsuch, a 40-year veteran of CBS Sports and the US Open; Charlie Carlucci, a seminal professional in graphics creation; and Jim Delany, former commissioner of the Big Ten Conference. All of these industry professionals will be honored in December from New York City at a ceremony that will bring together members of the sports media industry to celebrate their achievements and excellence.
