Josina Anderson, an American sports journalist, has been a part of the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN). She discovered her love for sports at a young age and realized her true passion while announcing for her school’s basketball team.
Early Life & Education
Josina Anderson, the daughter of Lloyd and Yasmin Anderson, was born on August 15, 1978, in Washington, D.C. She has a brother who works as a film producer.
After completing her education at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Maryland, she worked as an announcer for the Blazers. Later, she enrolled at the University of North Carolina, where she specialized in sprinting for track and field events, specifically the 200 and 400-meter races.
Furthermore, in 1997, she completed two internships consecutively with two renowned radio programs in the US capital, ‘The Tony Kornheiser Show’ on WTEM and ‘The Donnie Simpson Morning Show’ on WPGC-FM.
This was after she had earned a degree in Exercise and Sports Science and even secured a gold medal at the AAU Junior Olympics.
In addition to her success as a ballet dancer, Anderson has completed residencies with the Dance Theater of Harlem and Pennsylvania Ballet. She has also showcased her talents as a soloist for the American Youth Ballet.
Josina Anderson’s Professional Journey
Josina Anderson’s career took off on the right path in 2000 when she was recruited by the CBS affiliate news channel in Coos Bay, following a successful year of interning for prestigious radio news programs. This was a rare opportunity for a recent graduate to be employed so soon after completing their studies.
Despite her satisfactory new job, she refused to become too comfortable and was motivated by her ambition and strong desire for success. She was already contemplating her future career possibilities.
After printing her resume and gathering recordings of her work, she sent them to various places around the nation. However, none of them resulted in a job offer with more promising potential than the one she had previously. Therefore, after residing in Oregon for about a year, she returned to Washington, D.C.
Initially, the early months in the city were difficult for her. She had to find accommodation outside of her parent’s home and rely on her experience as a track athlete to become a personal trainer.
During the day, Josina Anderson would receive $100 from her clients for training sessions on the track, and at night, she would report on the activities of different sports teams such as the Redskins, Wizards, and Mystics, as well as the basketball teams of Georgetown and the University of Maryland, for the city’s cable news programs.
She became a part of Fox 31 in Denver, Colorado in 2005. Two years before, she had applied for the same position at the station but was not selected.
During her six-year tenure, Josina Anderson uncovered notable stories such as NFL players violating the league’s steroids policy in October 2008, NFL players Ricky Williams and Travis Henry testing positive for marijuana in July 2008, and Charles Woodson and the Packers reaching a contract extension agreement in September 2010. In her final year at Fox, she served as a reporter for Showtime’s Inside the NFL.
In 2011, she embarked on a new phase of her professional life when she joined ESPN after leaving Denver for Chicago. In 2014, the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) recognized her with a Radio – Feature Salute to Excellence award for ‘Outside the Lines and The Sporting Life: “Chamique Holdsclaw,” which she co-produced with Greg Amante, Brandon Lowe, Carolyn Hong, and Dwayne Bray.
Controversy
Josina Anderson received a lot of backlash in August 2014 for her on-air coverage of Michael Sam, a former defensive end for the St. Louis Rams.
While reporting from St. Louis, where Sam had made it through the initial round of cuts, Anderson shared that an unidentified player had told her that Sam, the first openly gay player in an NFL training camp, would not shower until all of his teammates had finished showering.
After the incident, both she and ESPN faced significant criticism. People from Sam’s colleagues to LGBT supporters to other media figures expressed their disapproval of the segment.
Rams’ coach Jeff Fisher even went as far as labeling it as “staged” and accusing Anderson of acting in an “unethical” and “unprofessional” manner. Initially, ESPN stood by the segment but eventually released a public apology.
Net Worth
With a net worth of $2.2 million, Josina Anderson’s accomplishments in the field of sports have contributed to her success.
