Ashlyn Sullivan, a Philadelphia sports reporter, fell in love with sports when she was a kid, reports NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Seeing a woman covering sports made her realize her dream of becoming a sports reporter was a possibility.
“My dad always tells the story of me growing up watching Erin Andrews and grabbing the sports page to catch up on the news because I had an example of someone doing what I wanted to do,” said Sullivan.
To this day, the industry has a stigma of being very competitive, especially when it comes to women.
“But when I got this job here with NBC Sports Philadelphia, Amy Fadool and Kate Scott were the first two people to text me, welcoming me and asking what I needed.”
She felt that it went a long way toward helping break down that competitive barrier.
Sullivan emphasized that she was fully accepted by her male colleagues, as well.
Her male co-owners value her opinions, make sure she’s heard, and she feels respected as a woman.
While there is still a lot of work to be done to make sports more inclusive, Sullivan noted that strides are being made.
Learn more about Ashlyn Sullivan at NBC Sports Philadelphia.
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Editor’s Note: This post first appeared on PHILADELPHIA Today in February 2024.
