Today’s event was a huge success. Our event today featured ROOT Sports Pittsburgh personalities Rob King and Dan Potash, as well as senior vice president and general manager of ROOT, Shawn McClintock.
Thank you to everyone who attended for your participation. The day began with a PowerPoint presentation that was created by Shawn McClintock, the Senior Vice President and General Manager of the network. McClintock went over the history behind the network and how they have become who they are today.
ROOT Sports have over 3.3 million subscribers and have aired over 150 Pirates games and over 70 Penguins games each season since 2011. The Penguins have an agreement with ROOT until the 2028-2029 season.
“Local TV deals are vital to teams,” McClintock said. The long term deals with the Pirates and Penguins are a reason why ROOT has been successful for so long.
On-air personalities, Dan Potash and Rob King were also featured at the event.
Dan Potash is one of the most prominent personalities on the network. He is known for his coverage of Penguins games. ROOT was kind enough to send over a segment where they featured members of the Pittsburgh Penguins pranking the beloved anchor.
“To be deeply intertwined with a team is something that I never saw myself doing as an anchor,” Potash said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to earn their trust in order to also tell a story.”
Rob King smiled during the presentation and was quick to side with Potash about his relationship with the team. “I have never seen anyone have a relationship with the team the way that Dan does.”
An audience member asked Potash what it is like to interact with players of different teams and Potash said, “You learn to know your place. We have to know not to take advantage of the situation that we are in. When we get off the plane, they go to dinner and we go to dinner. Just because we are on the plane with them, we don’t know what’s going on with injuries and other things. Sports become your job, you learn to embrace it. PNC Park and Consol Energy Center are my office.”
Like Potash, Rob King has been with ROOT since 2000. King has been covering the ups and downs of the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise. King admits that he is a “sports nerd” and he is a fan of the teams that he covers.
“I’m an unabashed lover of sports, I’m a fan. That doesn’t mean that I can’t do my job. It’s hard admitting the truth sometimes about the guys you interact with on a day to day basis,” King said.
King is not just an on-air anchor for the network; he is also a reporter for the Pirates. Audience members today took advantage of the winning Pirates season and asked King about his experience on Monday night inside the Pirates locker room at Wrigley Field.
King with a huge smile on his face simply answered, “That last out [of the St. Louis game] that meant the Pirates clinched a playoff spot meant everything. I will never forget that moment.”
ROOT GM and Senior Vice President Shawn McClintock added, “Rob deserved that moment after being there through it all.”
McClintock also revealed that Pirates GM Neil Huntington calls King and talks about the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league farm system. “The Pirates are going to be good for a long time. They have a great farm system. This is the first season of the rest of your life if you are a Pirates fan,” King says.
Today’s event turned out better than we here at the Center expected. Thank you to everyone who came and thank you to Dan Potash and Rob King for staying around afterwards and interacting with students, as well as Shawn McClintock who networked with Students. Potash cleared his busy schedule just for the event today.
Our next event will be Wednesday October 23, 2013 when Point Park alum and Nike U.S. Director for Commercial Sporting Goods Ed Haberle joins us.
For pictures from today’s event visit www.facebook.com/PittsburghCenterForSportsMediaAndMarketing
--DeAnna Lindauer
Practicum Student
Thank you to everyone who attended for your participation. The day began with a PowerPoint presentation that was created by Shawn McClintock, the Senior Vice President and General Manager of the network. McClintock went over the history behind the network and how they have become who they are today.
ROOT Sports have over 3.3 million subscribers and have aired over 150 Pirates games and over 70 Penguins games each season since 2011. The Penguins have an agreement with ROOT until the 2028-2029 season.
“Local TV deals are vital to teams,” McClintock said. The long term deals with the Pirates and Penguins are a reason why ROOT has been successful for so long.
On-air personalities, Dan Potash and Rob King were also featured at the event.
Dan Potash is one of the most prominent personalities on the network. He is known for his coverage of Penguins games. ROOT was kind enough to send over a segment where they featured members of the Pittsburgh Penguins pranking the beloved anchor.
“To be deeply intertwined with a team is something that I never saw myself doing as an anchor,” Potash said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to earn their trust in order to also tell a story.”
Rob King smiled during the presentation and was quick to side with Potash about his relationship with the team. “I have never seen anyone have a relationship with the team the way that Dan does.”
An audience member asked Potash what it is like to interact with players of different teams and Potash said, “You learn to know your place. We have to know not to take advantage of the situation that we are in. When we get off the plane, they go to dinner and we go to dinner. Just because we are on the plane with them, we don’t know what’s going on with injuries and other things. Sports become your job, you learn to embrace it. PNC Park and Consol Energy Center are my office.”
Like Potash, Rob King has been with ROOT since 2000. King has been covering the ups and downs of the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise. King admits that he is a “sports nerd” and he is a fan of the teams that he covers.
“I’m an unabashed lover of sports, I’m a fan. That doesn’t mean that I can’t do my job. It’s hard admitting the truth sometimes about the guys you interact with on a day to day basis,” King said.
King is not just an on-air anchor for the network; he is also a reporter for the Pirates. Audience members today took advantage of the winning Pirates season and asked King about his experience on Monday night inside the Pirates locker room at Wrigley Field.
King with a huge smile on his face simply answered, “That last out [of the St. Louis game] that meant the Pirates clinched a playoff spot meant everything. I will never forget that moment.”
ROOT GM and Senior Vice President Shawn McClintock added, “Rob deserved that moment after being there through it all.”
McClintock also revealed that Pirates GM Neil Huntington calls King and talks about the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league farm system. “The Pirates are going to be good for a long time. They have a great farm system. This is the first season of the rest of your life if you are a Pirates fan,” King says.
Today’s event turned out better than we here at the Center expected. Thank you to everyone who came and thank you to Dan Potash and Rob King for staying around afterwards and interacting with students, as well as Shawn McClintock who networked with Students. Potash cleared his busy schedule just for the event today.
Our next event will be Wednesday October 23, 2013 when Point Park alum and Nike U.S. Director for Commercial Sporting Goods Ed Haberle joins us.
For pictures from today’s event visit www.facebook.com/PittsburghCenterForSportsMediaAndMarketing
--DeAnna Lindauer
Practicum Student