On Wednesday morning, ESPN announced that Jackie MacMullan will retire at the end of August. It’ll mark the end of a decade-long run with the network.
“I feel fortunate to have collaborated with so many incredibly talented people during my 10-plus years at ESPN,” MacMullan said in a statement, via ESPN. “Sometimes you just know when you’re ready to dial it back, and this is the right time for me. I’m grateful for the memories, but especially for the friends I’ve made along the way. Thank you to my ESPN colleagues for all of your support.”
Before she joined ESPN, MacMullan was a reporter for The Boston Globe. Her skillset made her a key acquisition for ESPN. She worked her way up the ladder at ESPN, receiving appearances on Around the Horn, SportsCenter, Outside the Lines and The Jump.
Judging by the sports world’s reaction to her announcement, MacMullan will be dearly missed.
“Farewell to one of the enduring forces and icons of our industry — Jackie MacMullan is retiring from ESPN. Incredible talent, incredible friend,” ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowksi tweeted. “There will never be another Jackie Mac.”
“Jackie MacMullan always treated everyone in this sportswriting field of ours with respect and dignity,” Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press said. “Put simply, there are few like her. Maybe no others like her, come to think of it. Wishing her all the best in her retirement.”
“Obviously a fantastic written journalist, but the 1st thing I always think of when Jackie MacMullan is mentioned is back when I regularly watched Around the Horn, whenever I saw she was a panelist I’d think, ‘OK, she’s obviously gonna run circles around everyone’ & invariably she would,” Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic wrote.
Despite joining one of the toughest industries, MacMullan managed to have a 40-year career. That’s a remarkable accomplishment.
MacMullan will retire as one of the best journalists of her generation, there’s no doubt about it.
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