Jackie MacMullan, the first woman to receive the Curt Gowdy Media Award from the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, announced that she is retiring from ESPN, effective Aug. 31.
MacMullan joined ESPN in 2010 as a senior writer. In addition to her coverage of the NBA, MacMullan has been a regular on shows including SportsCenter, Outside the Lines and The Jump. She also made nearly 900 appearances on Around the Horn.
“I feel fortunate to have collaborated with so many incredibly talented people during my 10-plus years at ESPN,” said MacMullan. “Sometimes you just know when you’re ready to dial it back, and this is the right time for me. I’m grateful for the memories, but especially for the friends I’ve made along the way. Thank you to my ESPN colleagues for all of your support.”
Her final appearance on ESPN is expected to be during the Aug. 31 episode of Around the Horn.
Before joining ESPN, MacMullan was a sports columnist for The Boston Globe, the first woman to hold that post.
“Jackie is a trailblazer not because she was one of the first women covering sports or the NBA. Rather, Jackie is a trailblazer because people talked about her without mentioning sex or gender. It was about the work, an incredible catalogue of work that has appeared on every ESPN platform,” said Cristina Daglas, ESPN senior deputy editor. “Simply put, Jackie is one of the greatest journalists ESPN has ever seen. And she did it all while providing mentorship to both editors and writers, ensuring whether she meant to or not, that pieces of her will remain here long after she exits.”
