On a Thursday afternoon after I finished my classes for the day, I was anxiously awaiting my next Pipe DREAM JOB interview scheduled for 4 p.m. I stretched my hands, had my blank Word document up and ready, and dialed one of the most respected sports news anchors in the country, Len Berman. I didn’t get my interview that day, but rather a voice mail response from Berman. I knew there had to be a good reason. There certainly was.
At about 4:15 p.m., NBC anchor Len Berman was on the air in New York, reporting on a breaking news story about Joe Torre leaving the Yankees.
“We said as soon as we know something, we’re going to go on the air live,” said Berman, who as you can tell, graciously rescheduled the interview. After hearing about the Yankees announcing that there would be a conference call at 3:30 p.m., Berman’s typical day at the office took an interesting turn, as he found his way to his anchor chair before his scheduled 6 and 11 p.m. telecast.
“We like to say we are the first ones on the air,” Berman said of the late afternoon NBC report. “I was able to detail the contract offer which the Yankees itemized on the conference call.”
It is days like that Thursday that makes Berman’s job far from routine. The long-time NBC sports anchor, who started his career as a newscaster in Dayton, Ohio, never finds a dull moment working in sports in the largest market in the world.
“Day to day, there’s no beginning and end. If you’re involved in covering sports, you’re on constantly,” said Berman, who sacrifices listening to music stations for sports talk radio. Even though Berman works Monday through Friday, he must pay close attention to what is going on in the sports world on weekends, too.
Berman found a passion for working in broadcasting in college after he approached his Syracuse University station about working on the air. After tours in Dayton, Boston and a three-year stint at CBS in New York, Berman has found a home at NBC in New York, where he’s been covering sports for 22 years. Now as an established anchor at NBC, Berman has the luxury of picking and choosing where he would like to travel to report on stories.
“I pick my spots, I go to [Mets and Yankees] spring training, the Olympics or the Super Bowl,” said Berman of some of the major events he covers.
But not only has Berman been giving viewers a brief synopsis of what’s happening locally in sports, he’s doing it better than any of his counterparts. He has received multiple Emmy awards for his quality work in news anchoring.
“Emmy’s are really recognitions from peers, the people who are so-called hardened professionals, so it’s gratifying,” said Berman, who won his first Emmy when he worked at WBZ-TV in Boston. Berman received the award from one of his idols, the late broadcaster Curt Gowdy.
Berman has won six total local Emmy Awards, and has been voted New York Sportscaster of the Year five times by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association. While most viewers recognize his accomplishments, it is his weekly feature, “Spanning the World,” that has garnered popularity through the years.
“We said, ‘Let’s do a goof,’ we really didn’t take it seriously,” said Berman of the initial idea he had with a producer. “We called it ‘Spanning the World,’ because NBC wanted to cover world sports.”
The first highlight of “Spanning the World” showed a first-place horse biting the neck of a second place horse at a Midwestern county fair. One adult book and two children’s books later, “Spanning the World” has become a launching pad for a new business venture for Berman.
“I enjoy writing books, I wouldn’t mind doing a kid series,” Berman said.
In addition to going on book tours, Berman spends time outside the NBC studio emceeing charity dinners, including the yearly Thurman Munson event.
As Berman works on reaching a larger audience, that audience isn’t necessarily the ideal target market for someone working in sports. While he is providing sports news, his coverage is not as in-depth as it would be on a local station like MSG Network, the YES Network or SNY.
“A lot of people watching my sportscast on a news program may not necessarily be sports fans,” said Berman, who realizes addressing that audience could be more rewarding. “I take great satisfaction when someone comes up to me and says ‘I’m not a sports fan, but I enjoy what you say.’”
But Berman is making every effort to still attract sports enthusiasts and, like many others, has entered the online world by creating “Berman’s Blog” on the NBC-NY Web site.
“Because of the Internet and people getting the news on their cell phones, it’s a challenge to get people to watch a newscast,” he said.
Day in and day out, Berman, who chooses and edits his own sports highlights that he wants to cover, has the freedom to decide how he wants to inform sports and non-sports fans alike. For the New York native, Berman not only has a well-respected job, but a job that he loves to do.
“I can choose exactly what I want to talk about that night,” said Berman. “I have four minutes in the biggest city in the world.”
Published Oct. 30, 2007 in Binghamton University's "Pipe Dream" Newspaper.
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