The National Sports Media Association (NSMA) honors, preserves and celebrates the diverse legacy of sports media in the United States.

Each June, the NSMA holds an awards weekend to honor those voted by their peers as:
• Hall of Fame inductees
• National Sportscaster of the Year
• National Sportswriter of the Year
• State Sportscaster of the Year (49 states, plus DC)
• State Sportswriter of the Year (49 states, plus DC)

This June, the NSMA will honor Hall of Fame inductees Woody Durham (UNC radio play-by-play announcer), Bryant Gumbel (NBC Sports, HBO Sports), Thomas Boswell (Washington Post) and Dick Weiss (New York Daily News, Philadelphia Daily News); National Sportscaster of the Year Kevin Harlan (CBS Sports, Turner Sports, Westwood One); National Sportswriter of the Year Adrian Wojnarowski (ESPN.com); 104 State Sportscasters and Sportswriters of the Year.

Other honorees will include the Roone Arledge Award for Innovation winner (TBD), the Big House Gaines College Basketball Coaches of the Year (NCAA Division I and Division II) and the Jim Nantz College Sportscaster of the Year (presented by the Sportscasters Talent Agency of America).

During the awards weekend, the NSMA hosts events at different Winton-Salem venues to expose the City to award winners and their guests. These events focus on education and networking, with the signature awards banquet capping off the weekend.

The 59th NSMA Awards Weekend will be held June 23-25. In the next month, the NSMA will be announcing a local recognition dinner that will kick off the awards week on Thursday, June 21.

The NSMA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that seeks to develop educational opportunities for those who are interested in pursuing a career in sports media, through networking, interning, mentoring and scholarship programs.

Above: The 58th NSMA Awards Banquet, June 25, 2017. From left, NSMA executive director Dave Goren, 2017 Hall of Fame inductee Mike Lupica (NY Daily News), 2016 NSMA National Sportscaster of the Year Tom Verducci (Sports Illustrated), and 2017 Hall of Fame inductee Linda Cohn (ESPN), at the Millennium Center, downtown Winston-Salem (Daniel Coston Photo).

The Chamber’s Keep it Local initiative promotes community support for local business ventures. Spending locally creates a strong economy and a sense of place which gives our town its unique lifestyle. The Keep it Local campaign will feature a different segment of businesses each month in 2018. March is Sports Month.