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New Deal for Linda Cohn Ensures Continued Connection With Fans For Years to Come

Linda Cohn has been a fixture on SportsCenter for more than 26 years but she shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, it’s full speed ahead for the program’s longest-tenured anchor.

Cohn has signed a new deal to stay with ESPN for years to come and she remains driven by her love of sports and the love she receives from viewers.

“I’m a connection to the core viewer of SportsCenter and I want to keep that connection,” said Cohn, who was inducted into the National Sports Media Association (NSMA) Hall of Fame in 2017. “Through social media I hear them, and how they respond to me, and how they’ve grown up with me.

“They make a joke about it but I have no problem with it,” she said. “That’s a compliment to me when I meet people or hear from them on social media and they say, ‘it’s so great that you’re still there, I grew up with you, and I feel I have an emotional connection to you.’ I look at that as ‘wow, that’s great, that’s awesome.’”

And even after more than 5,000 SportsCenters, Cohn is just as excited about sports and the show as she was when she did her first episode on July 11, 1992. As SportsCenter has evolved, she has evolved with it, including recently debuting as host of the ESPN App edition of SC.

“I always imagine that someone is watching for the very first time and I have to prove myself,” she said. “And that makes it still intriguing, still exciting, still challenging, still fulfilling and oh by the way, I still have a passion and love for sports.

“And hosting SportsCenter, especially doing the highlight-driven editions of SportsCenter in late night, that is still compelling because when games end, and when I’m doing a highlight of that game for the first time, the excitement is still so appealing,” she said. “It’s still a big rush for me.”

 

More Hockey for Cohn: In the Crease for Full NHL Season

Linda Cohn’s role in ESPN’s coverage of hockey will increase with her new contract.

She will continue as primary host of the ESPN+ hockey program In the Crease, which debuted during last season’s Stanley Cup Playoffs and will expand to five nights a week for the entire NHL season. In addition, she will do hockey-related interviews and features for SportsCenter and other ESPN platforms.

“What a success and breakthrough it was to get hockey back and be a host of In the Crease,” she said. “The response not only from hockey purists but from casual sports fans was tremendous because with ESPN+ they can now watch this show when they want to watch it.”

 

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