Kevin Blackistone

Kevin Blackistone is a prominent figure in sports journalism, with a career spanning more than four decades across print, television, radio, and documentary film. Blackistone began his journalism career as a city reporter at The Boston Globe, later writing for The Chicago Reporter, a monthly investigative magazine focused on racial and social issues. He joined The Dallas Morning News as a general assignment reporter before moving to the business desk to cover economics. Blackistone later served as a sports columnist at The Washington Post, having previously written for AOL FanHouse and The Dallas Morning News. Throughout his career, Blackistone has examined the cultural, social, and political dimensions of athletics, contributing to the national conversation on sports and society.

Blackistone is a frequent panelist for ESPN's "Around the Horn," a long-running sports debate program. In addition to his television work, Blackistone has delivered sports analysis for PBS NewsHour. On radio, he appears as a frequent guest co-host on the Sports Reporters on DC's ESPN980. This multi-platform presence has established Blackistone as a recognizable commentator in sports media.

In addition to broadcasting, Blackistone has contributed as an author and filmmaker. He is the co-producer and co-writer of "Imagining the Indian," a documentary on the history of and fight against mascoting Native Americans, and co-author of "A Gift for Ron," a memoir by former NFL player Everson Walls detailing his kidney donation to teammate Ron Springs. Drawing on his journalism career, Blackistone addresses issues relating to diversity in sports and topics such as Colin Kaepernick's protest of police brutality and the role of professional sports in social justice. He also co-hosts the podcast "Our New South," which explores the evolution of the New South and how historic Southern cities address issues including equity in education, immigration, civil rights, racial equality, and socioeconomic mobility.

Blackistone is a professor of the practice at the University of Maryland Philip Merrill College of Journalism, where he holds the Shirley Povich chair and teaches sports journalism. He has authored academic journal articles on diversity in sports media and hagiography in sports film documentary. Blackistone has also served as a Davenport Fellow at the University of Missouri and a Wharton Business Journalism Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania. His academic work reflects a commitment to equity and rigorous storytelling.

Blackistone has received awards for sports column writing from the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors, for investigative reporting from the Chicago Newspaper Guild, and for enterprise reporting from the National Association of Black Journalists. He is also a recipient of the Sam Lacy-Wendell Smith Award, presented by The Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism to a sports journalist or broadcaster who has made significant contributions to racial and gender equality in sports. Blackistone was inducted into the Medill Hall of Achievement at Northwestern University’s journalism school.