Jemele Hill

Jemele Hill
Born	(1975-12-21) December 21, 1975 Template:City-state
Education	Michigan State University
Occupation	Sports journalist

Jemele Hill (born December 21, 1975) is a columnist for ESPN.com's Page 2 and ESPN's First Take.

Career

Hill began her career in 1997 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. Before joining ESPN, 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, Jim Rome is Burning, and Outside the Lines. Hill also became only the second woman to ever appear on Around The Horn on October 22, 2009.

Accomplishments

In 2007, Hill won the first annual McKenzie Cup, which is given in tribute to groundbreaking sports editor Van McKenzie, at the annual Poynter Media Summit. She also received an honorable mention in the 2007 edition of Best American Sports Writing. In 1998, Hill won first place in sports feature writing at the North Carolina Press Association. Hill is also a member of the National Association of Black Journalists.

Controversy

Hill has been accused of using her columns for race baiting, and for creating a double standard by being openly racist in many of her columns and editorials. In a 2007 column about Barry Bonds, Hill herself admitted to playing the race card, stating it is "somewhere in my back pocket, but I'll play that later on."

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 issued an apology through ESPN

In 2009, Hill was at the center of a controversy after telling Packer fans to give Brett Favre the "Duracell treatment," meaning fans at Lambeau Field should throw batteries at the former Packer quarterback. 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.

Personal life

A native of Detroit, Hill attended Michigan State University and graduated in 1997 with degrees in journalism and Spanish. She once claimed in an interview with "Oui" magazine in 1999 to have fellated 17 Houston Astros in one night. Hill is a fan of the Detroit Pistons and Detroit Tigers

External links

• Jemele Hill ESPN Bio