Blog #3: Most Influential Person

In the last week alone, the music and acting communities lost 3 incredible talents: David Bowie, Alan Rickman, and Glenn Frey. The sports broadcasting world also lost an announcing legend last week in Jim Simpson. Consider people of today or the past who have made their mark on the world in some way. What individual has made the greatest impact on the field of ____? Defend your position. Be sure to explain the accomplishments this person made and why these matter so much.

Your entry should be thoughtful and thoroughly developed and no fewer than 250 words. As always, draft your prompt (and save a backup) on Word. You must cite any sources that you use to help gather information about this person at the conclusion of the blog entry (accurate citation is expected—URLs will not be accepted). Be sure to add at least one picture that depicts this entry.

John Madden, former head coach of the Oakland Raiders and football commentator, had the greatest impact on the field of sports management. Madden commentated for many different networks for many years; he worked for CBS from 1979-1993, FOX Sports from 1994-2001, ABC from 2002-2005, and NBC from 2006-2008. Through his nearly 30 years of commentating, Madden became one of the most iconic sports announcers of all time. He ranked #2 on Yahoo Sports list of Top 50 All Time Network Television Sports Announcers. He also won the Emmy award 14 times. Madden's distinct announcing style contributed to the rise of the NFL during the 1980s and 1990s to help entrench football as the top sport in America. Madden was so popular and iconic, that a video game series titled "Madden NFL Football" took off and has now become the top selling sports video game in the United States. Madden's style of commentating has also influenced modern day announcers such as Jon Gruden, Cris Collingsworth, and Phil Simms. Madden began commentating around the time where most people began to watch football on their television as opposed to listening on the radio, and Madden helped ease that transition and made people want to become a sports broadcaster.

"John Madden." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2016.