Why Do You Write? A Simple Question That Defies a Simple Answer.
A few days ago, I joined a friend and colleague to record a series of short publishing industry rela...
updated May 5, 2025
Who Is Andrea Kirby?
As stated on her website, “Andrea Kirby was not a professional athlete. She had no connections in the television industry. But, in 1971 [she] talked her way onto a start-up television station as a sportscaster. This first break led to a bigger one in sports-rich Baltimore. Here she made an impression on a network producer who hired her. As the first full-time female reporter in ABC Sports history, Kirby was a regular on College Scoreboard and Wide World of Sports with the world as her office.”
When I learned about International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, Andrea sprung to mind. Her perspective as a world-traveling sportscaster and someone who interviewed athletes from many different countries is interesting to me. I hope this interview entertains and empowers you and helps you see athletes and diplomacy in a different way.
Andrea, how did you become interested in sports?
At a young age, I enjoyed the sounds of a sports crowd while I played under the bleachers at Friday night football games. There were no sports for girls in small town Alabama, but after moving to Memphis, I was introduced to girls basketball which I played throughout my school years. Even as a lifelong amateur, playing a sport made me feel alive.
What drew you to sportscasting?
I was in my twenties when I witnessed a young woman on an Atlanta television station giving football predictions. Shocking—a woman sportscaster—I decided to do the same. Jane Chastain, the trailblazer, was the Jackie Robinson of women sportscasters.
How did sports and sportscasting help you develop as an individual?
Working at something I loved kept me grateful, and the athletes who modeled commitment held me to my highest standard. And broadcasting gave me a platform to tell stories of people of all races and religions. I’m a better person for all of it.
As a former world-travelling sportscaster, what connections have you seen between sports and diplomacy?
In 1979 when the USSR was still a communist country, I spent three weeks with an American crew covering the Soviet National Games. Surprisingly we made friends with the Russian television crew, sharing food, joking in broken English, and watching the international competition. When the Games ended, our preconceived notions of the Russian people were gone, It’s likely our new Russian friends thought better of Americans, too. It was a miniscule bit of diplomacy, but powerful.
What was your favorite thing about working around athletes as a sportscaster and later with them as a media trainer?
The athletes I met over the years were often down to earth, fun to be around, and respectful of me as a professional. As a media trainer, I became more of a mentor and a friend, a very different gift. The ultimate compliment came from a client who dubbed me “the athlete whisperer.”
Why do you think the UN’s International Day of Sport for Development and Peace is important?
We’ve all seen pictures of kids and adults in third-world countries finding a way to play a sport, even with few resources. The United Nations does have resources and is committed to making an impact with them.
When President Nelson Mandela took office in in South Africa 1994, his goal was to heal a painfully divided country following apartheid. Mandela used sport to do this. In honor of the UN’s International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, I recommend the film “Invictus,” Mandela’s story of using the sport of rugby to bring two races together.
Want to Read Andrea’s Sports Media Memoir, The Athlete Whisperer: An Improbable Voice in Sports?
From the publisher: Andrea Kirby was not a former athlete and had no ties to television. Still, in 1971, this single mom talked her way onto a small television station as a sportscaster. A rare female in the all-male culture of her beloved sports, she was harassed and discriminated against, but she wasn’t deterred.
Kirby excelled at her first break and then moved to a bigger market in sports-rich Baltimore. Male colleagues said she didn’t belong, but fans loved her, teams respected her, and networks noticed her. In 1977, ABC Sports hired Andrea Kirby as its first full-time female announcer. Hosting the College Football Scoreboard and traveling the world for Wide World of Sports was her hard-fought dream come true.
Heartbreakingly, the dream ended. Kirby’s survival became another great adventure. Then, a chance interview with a famous basketball player changed everything, inspiring an idea so original that it appeared as a question in the board game Trivial Pursuit.
A rare, entertaining, and uplifting story, The Athlete Whisperer will inspire any reader with an improbable dream.
“This lively tale of a tough, canny, driven single mom who blazed a trail in sports broadcasting not only settles some scores but shares tips on how to make it without losing your humanity.” –Robert Lipsyte, Former New York Times sports columnist
“I was with the Colts when Andrea arrived in Baltimore in 1974. She was a trail blazer full of energy and commitment to her profession. It wasn’t easy for her. Her remembrances and recollections make this a book you will not put down.” –Ernie Accorsi, former G.M of the New York Giants Cleveland Browns & Baltimore Colts
The Athlete Whisperer: An Improbable Voice in Sports is now available for purchase. If you appreciate what I do and want to support my efforts to provide high-quality free resources, you can purchase this and other books from the Red Cricket Bookshop.
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