Jemele Hill

Jemele Hill
Born	(1975-12-21) December 21, 1975 Detroit, Michigan
Education	Mumford High School Michigan State University
Occupation	sports journalist

Jemele Juanita Hill (born December 21, 1975) is an American columnist for ESPN.com's Page 2 and former host of ESPN's First Take. In June 2013, she replaced Jalen Rose on ESPN2's Numbers Never Lie.

Career

Hill began her career as general assignment sports writer for the Raleigh News & Observer. From 1999 to 2005, she served as a sports writer with the Detroit Free Press, mainly covering Michigan State football and basketball. While at the Free Press, she also covered the 2004 Summer Olympics and the NBA Playoffs. Hill worked as a columnist for the Orlando Sentinel from 2005 to 2006.

ESPN

Hill joined ESPN in November 2006 as a national columnist on ESPN.com. Hill also makes regular appearances on television, including SportsCenter and several ESPN programs, including ESPN First Take, Outside the Lines and The Sports Reporters. Starting the 2012 College Football Season, Hill can be seen on Friday Night's as a sideline reporter with Carter Blackburn and Rod Gilmore. She is now on the show "His and Hers" with co-host Michael Smith.

Accomplishments

In 2007, Hill won the first annual McKenzie Cup, which is given in tribute to sports editor Van McKenzie, at the annual Poynter Media Summit. She received an honorable mention in the 2007 edition of The Best American Sports Writing. In 1998, Hill won first place in sports feature writing at the North Carolina Press Association. In 2014, she served as the grand marshal for the Michigan State University homecoming parade.

Controversy

During the 2008 NBA Playoffs, Hill was suspended from her post after referencing Adolf Hitler in an article about the then-NBA champion Boston Celtics and the Detroit Pistons. In an editorial describing why she could not support the Celtics, Hill wrote: "Rooting for the Celtics is like saying Hitler was a victim. It's like hoping Gorbachev would get to the blinking red button before Reagan. Deserving or not, I still hate the Celtics." The comments immediately generated a negative response from readers and that portion of the editorial was taken out shortly after the column was published. Hill was subsequently suspended for one week and she issued an apology through ESPN.

Later in 2009, Hill once again was reprimanded for her comments after comparing University of Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball coach John Calipari to Charles Manson. She later apologized to the university.

In 2009, she also accused baseball player Sammy Sosa of being a racist for using skin creme that made his complexion lighter in an effort to hide his vitiligo.

Hill has also been criticized for taking unpopular or extreme stances, leading many to accuse her of inflating her ESPN.com page hits by creating controversy.

Personal life

A native of Detroit, Hill attended Mumford High School and graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in journalism and a minor in Spanish.

External links

• Jemele Hill ESPN Bio