We have such a weird celebrity culture in our country where we elevate talented, successful, or beautiful people to a level of perceived greater value.
Samantha Ponder
I am grateful for FaceTime.
I got some big breaks early on, and the attitude around it was always 'You're just lucky to be here.' No one came out and said that, but that was the clear message. And I felt that way.
The sexist comments are simply the low hanging fruit for any critic of a woman on TV. 'I don't know what to do with my dislike for this woman so let me just tell her to get in the kitchen.' Well I love the kitchen, that's where all the food is.
I couldn't be more grateful to be a part of the Sunday NFL Countdown family.
One of the things I have learned is some of the most judgmental people have been other moms, and there have also been a ton of moms who have been very supportive and encouraging.
I still get a rush of adrenaline after a big game, but the older I get, the more I laugh at the days when I was nervous to interview an athlete or coach.
The funny thing that still cracks me up is when you get a grown man coming up to you shaking asking for a picture. I'm like 'Dude, you know I'm a scrub, right?'
At the end of the day, I thought to myself, 'What do I want to be doing?' And yes, I want to be a part of this industry and in sports broadcasting, but more than anything else I want to be a great mom - the best mom I can be.
I grew up in a family where we had dessert for breakfast.
Charles Barkley is always a good interview because he's honest.
I didn't have cable growing up. I never saw ESPN or GameDay.
Knowing and being secure in yourself keeps you from being held hostage by the approval of others.
Scout has been on 95 flights before she was 1 years old. I remember in the beginning I felt guilty.
We were wearing jeans and t-shirts, and we just decided to drive to the courthouse and get married. We went to Arby's and had lunch - that's always been like one of my favorite places - so we decided to celebrate our holy matrimony with some roast beef.
I'm of the opinion that fans are often best served by broadcasters who have the best relationships with the people they are talking about.
We are not cool at all. We are probably the most lame couple ever.
As long as you have a firm foundation elsewhere and don't depend on other people to make you feel good or bad, then I think Twitter can be a great thing.
Within the industry, and maybe people don't want to hear this, but everyone has a conflict of interest. It's a relationship-based industry. There are people we like and don't like.
Look, no one grew up watching NFL football with me. I'm well aware of that.
I don't know how I lucked out so much because I have a baby who likes to fly. She is awesome on the plane.
There is such a stigma on both sides of being a working mother, and you can fall into the trap of what you think everyone else thinks you should be doing instead of what your instincts and standards say you should do.
Shame alone makes people hide, not change.
There is no such thing as replacing Chris Berman, but the chance to build on his incredible legacy while simultaneously taking new risks to serve NFL fans is the opportunity of a lifetime.
I know many women in this industry have to deal with men who are belittling, unsupportive or even inappropriate.
There are always going to be some people who are uncomfortable getting any football information from a woman. And honestly, I know that's supposed to bother me, but it doesn't, really.
Growing up in a sports household where my dad was a coach, I never had to fake my knowledge.
I think there is pressure when it comes to the perceived notion that if you are woman in sports you're there for your looks. You cannot try to look nice on TV and also know what you're talking about.
I have so much respect for women that are full-time moms in the house. It's such a difficult job.
I've been asked a lot about filling Chris Berman's role - to be honest, I don't even allow myself to see it that way. He is a total legend and created so much of what ESPN is known for and specifically our NFL coverage. That's an impossible task.
My dad was a high school and college coach, and in my house my dad muted sideline reporters because he wasn't interested in what they had to say.
I was always the sideline reporter or something similar to that - which is essentially, but this isn't always true, the 'woman's job.'
I'm abundantly aware of the undeserved goodness of God I've experienced early in life. Especially when it comes to the health of my children and loved ones.
I got into sports broadcasting because I loved sports, not because I loved TV.
Like any woman in the public eye, I get a considerable number of sexist/misogynistic tweets from people.
What I'd always liked about Art Briles before is he seemed like a straight shooter, in all my time with him. I respected that.
How can you accept an apology from someone if they don't say what they did?
TV and social media has such as huge impact for what we think is normal and what is OK. And that's for good and bad a lot of the time.
It's so important for young girls see that it's not weird for girls to understand what happens in the red zone. It's not rocket science. For a lot of the girls that I grew up around, that's common knowledge.
Sideline reporting was a great way to be a part of the game and develop relationships, but it's no big secret that it's relatively limiting.
I really enjoy hosting, not necessarily because it provides more airtime, but because it allows me to be a part of more substantive discussions.
The best thing about college football, to me: You can tell when you're on campus.
It's kind of cool to see the different aspects of American culture on different college communities.
I had friends from Somalia and Eritrea and all these different counties, and I was getting to learn about people that I would have never known anything about.
It's scary to criticize Beyonce in this country. People take their Beyonce very seriously.
I thought I wanted to be on ESPN, but I didn't know what the heck it was. I knew it was sports television, but we didn't have it. We didn't really watch TV growing up.
You can find me sleeping on the floor at Terminal B at the Atlanta airport any time.
Yes, I did move to New York when I was eighteen to do sports broadcasting. I didn't know how I was going to do it, so I got a job at ESPN Zone, thinking I would meet people in the business. People give me a hard time for it, but they don't realize that they shot 'Sports Reporter' there and that folks from ESPN and ABC were in there all the time.
I spent so much time on the field while my dad had practices growing up that I actually developed a pretty good arm playing catch with my sister.
Whenever someone says something to me like 'Oh, another blonde at ESPN,' I would like to crunch the numbers. First, I think we have more brunettes than blondes. And second, there are only three normal hair colors. You're either a redhead, brunette, or blonde. It's really not that complicated.
