The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia

Broadcast Pioneers member Howard Eskin is SportsRadio 610 WIP’s original sports talker (now SportsRadio 94 WIP). He also appears weekly on television as a regular co-host of the Top Rated Sunday night sports show, Sports Final on NBC 10 (WCAU-TV), as well as other anchoring responsibilities on NBC Philadelphia.

Eskin started the sports talk revolution by hosting the very first sports talk show on the station in 1986. He has since broadcast nearly 6,000 shows, more than anyone else in the country. Along with hosting the first Sports Talk Show on SportsRadio 610 WIP as it turns out hosted the first Sports Talk Show on the new SportsRadio 94 WIP. In addition Eskin co-hosts Eagles pre-game shows and serves as WIP’s sideline reporter during Eagles games.

Dubbed the market’s "hardest working sportscaster" by local media for his eternal hustle on the job, Eskin has broken more sports stories than any one broadcaster in the Philadelphia market. In addition to his dominant radio presence, he has excelled as a multi-media personality throughout his career. In addition to his co-hosting duties for Sports Final, Eskin has been a frequent guest along with being a regular guest host on "The Dan Patrick Show" broadcast nationally on radio and TV, while also doing work for The NFL Network.

The Emmy-Award winning sportscaster first made the transition from radio to television in 1982 when he joined CBS 3 (KYW-TV). True to form, Eskin broke a major story less four months into his TV career, reporting that Eagles owner Leonard Tose was planning to sell, and then move the team out of town. One of his managers at KYW even credits the sportscaster with keeping the Eagles in Philadelphia. "If Howard had not stepped in when he did, Leonard Tose would have snuck the Eagles out of town," says Frank Traynor. "Howard broke the Eagles story.... and by doing so, I believe helped to keep the team in town."

Eskin later helped launch Fox29’s (WTXF-TV) Ten O’clock News as part of its original anchor team in 1986. Later, he rejoined KYW-TV in 1992 and then moved to WCAU-TV in 1996. He has also been a contributor to the George Michael Sports Machine on NBC, co-hosted a nationally-syndicated radio show, Let’s Talk Sports, written a column for the Philadelphia Daily News and has been called on for his opinions by such diverse programs as NBC`s Today Show and PBS`s MacNeil Lehrer Newshour.

Throughout his career, this Philadelphia native and Northeast High grad, has used his celebrity to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for local charities, including The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, The Terri Lynne Lykoff Child Care Foundation, The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and The National Multiple Sclerosis Society through sales of his own signature bobblehead.

Among his many honors, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society named him "Man of the Year" in 2002 and the March of Dimes named Eskin its "Media Person of the Year" in 2003. In 2007, Eskin was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. In 2010, he received the March of Dimes prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award for Achievement in Radio. On Friday, November 18, 2011, Howard Eskin was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers' Hall of Fame.

The e-mail address of the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia is pioneers@broadcastpioneers.com