Renee Washington is a woman who wears many different hats in the sports industry, growing up around professional athletes to become a great one herself. Washington is a 3-time All-American D1 soccer player who hung up her professional cleats for the other side of the camera. She is now a sports personality. Working for ESPN, Fox Sports, MLS Philadelphia Union, WNBA/NBA, and hosting her own podcast “Beyond the Headlines“, Washington continues to use her platform to inspire others while still reaching her own goals.
She spoke with us about her career journey and being able to find a work-life balance. More importantly, how she has used her platform as a Black woman to speak up through these trying and historical times and much more!
Tell us a little bit about yourself, where did your love of sports develop?
I come from a very big sports family. My father played professional basketball overseas, my uncle played in the NFL, and my cousin was a professional boxer. My mom played basketball in college, and I closely kept up with my two older sisters, who were the ones that I was always chasing after. My parents gave us a chance to play literally every sport growing up and for me, I stuck with soccer, basketball and track. Those were my three main, and then soccer was without a doubt, my best sport.
Everything in my life has been around sports. A lot of our family trips and vacations and my best memories come from something involving sports. Whether it was playing around the house or actually playing in tournaments and games.
How did you get your first start in broadcasting?
Yeah, it’s honestly a very complicated story, but I will give you the short version of it!
I actually have an undergrad degree in public relations and double minor in Spanish and psychology. My grad school degree is in education leadership, and none of that has to do with sports reporting specifically.
As I was in grad school, I started trying to find any job I could get into. I started working with the Lehigh sports media department. I was creating highlights, doing camera work and stuff for games, doing freelance writing. Just started doing as much unpaid work that I possibly could to start building up my resume.
From there I did have one opportunity that took a chance on me. It was an internship, which led to my first full-time job, where I stayed for the first two years of my career, literally learning all aspects of being an MMJ and anchor. I was doing news and sports…it really allowed me to get a lot of reps, a lot of experience.
From the beginning, I wanted to learn, I was just a sponge. I had a tremendous group of people around me that were giving me so much inside information. The irony is I actually applied to that internship for a copy editor role. My then supervisor was like, ‘You would be so bored in this job, you know, based on your ambitions in our conversation. How about we create an internship for you?’.
So it literally was me just applying, trying to get my foot in the door, and from there I was able to turn that internship into a full-time job.
Working as a reporter, anchor, and host for multiple companies and sports teams, how have you been able to manage it all?
Balance is a big key part of it, that definitely allows me to do so many different things…I don’t have a Monday to Friday, 8 to 5 schedule. Even when I was in school, I always had multiple internships and they were always overlapping. I was a two-sport athlete. I’ve always been a juggler, so that’s just how I operate best. In terms of balance, I’ve always tried to figure out some sort of structure.
I’m very big on trying to set aside time that I’m able to be off, to step away from my phone, my computer from work to just be present and to decompress. Whether it’s stepping away to watch cheesy Hallmark movies…just even being able to watch a game as a fan where I’m not working while I’m doing it.
I’m very big on things like, I read a lot, I listen to a lot of music, all different genres. Whatever it may be, depending on the mood, depending on the day, as well as just finding time to just get away.
One of the things that actually helps me is, because of the different areas I work in, they all provide me balance. I’m not doing the same work all day, every day I’m sometimes behind a computer, sometimes out and about, sometimes at a game.
I think balance is key, and that’s the biggest thing to being successful in general. Whether you are working one job or countless jobs, whatever it may be. Figure out a way to be at your best as much as possible, so that you can make sure that you’re as productive as you can be coming into any work.
What is one of the proudest moments in your career?
I actually have a number of moments, but I think as a whole…The underlying theme is the moments where I have people reach out, and in some way mentioned that I’ve helped them, inspired them, motivated them, encouraged them.
I’ve had people that have reached out all over the country, over the world! I’ve had people reach out from Nigeria, Canada, the UK, that I’m like, how the heck did you ever come across my work?!
I always say more than any social media post or anything that’s what’s most validating to me. That the work I’m doing is extending so far beyond what I can even see and know. And it’s empowering.
Those moments when someone’s reached out saying that a story I did helped inspire them in some way. Or they were able to learn from an interview or how they were so moved by something that I said…That’s very encouraging for me because that’s the biggest reason why I do what I do. It’s all to use my platform to help give back, to help hopefully inspire someone in some positive way.
It’s not about me, and I will always say that, but it’s the truth. It’s really not about me. It’s about using my talents and the opportunities I’ve been given that God has given me to help others.
This past year has been emotional for many when it comes to racial inequality, the Black Lives Matter movement, Black women leading the country at the voting poll to change in the recent presidential election. How have you used your platform as a Black woman to inspire or teach others through these historic times?
Oh, yeah. I mean, I think that’s something that a lot of people that I spoke to had that struggle of, ‘How much do you say? And how much do you do?’. Because we’ve always been taught that you have to separate, especially on social media.
This past year, especially with everything that’s gone on, going back to George Floyd and the fight for social justice, I was one that has always been saying, if I’m going to sit back and not speak up in these moments, ‘How is that helping me in any way, forget who I am as a professional? How is that helping me as a person? How is it helping my family?’.
I’m a Black woman first, and I’ve been a Black woman longer than I’ve been anything else in this world! So it’s more important to me, to speak up on those when it directly affects the core of who I am. I have a brother, a father, siblings, a nephew that’s growing up in this world. I have relatives that look like the very people that are out fighting for their lives. Can’t sit back and act like this doesn’t affect me.
In my opinion, if a network, a job, a company or even a person is going to write me off because I speak up on one in peace, justice, and equality I don’t want to be friends with them. I don’t want to work for them. It’s not where I want to be. I will never bend who I am for a job. I know I’ve taken upon myself to speak up openly.
I’ve dedicated a number of shows…a summer show that I was doing called “Redefining Us” on social media. Simply having conversations around the elephant in the room. Racial, sexism, discrimination, any sort of conversations around just growing who we are as people.
I think for me again going back to how I want to try to help others. I can’t be quiet in some of the biggest moments where we need to have voices that are stepping up and speaking out on the same topic.
I’m hoping that I can continue to help advocate for the fact that you can be, more than an athlete, more than a reporter, more than whoever or whatever your profession is…more than your job. At the end of the day, it’s when it affects you are as a person, you have to speak up.
As we celebrate Black History Month, do you have a favorite Black journalist or reporter that you look(ed) up to as you grow your career?
I definitely have, over the years that have inspired me in some way.
The biggest names that always come to mind, David Aldridge, who is actually a friend of mine now, Cari Champion, Pam Oliver. For me, not only them but also athletes that I’ve looked up to when I was growing up. People like Serena Williams that have been showing that it’s okay to be a successful Black person in sports.
I think that for me I have people I look up to for different reasons. Someone like Cari Champion, the way that her careers evolved. Jemele Hill, how she openly has been able to speak up on her opinion and honestly show that you can speak up. Even if you do have the president or anyone that is going to speak against you for it, you’ll be okay.
Best advice for Black women in sports?
To summarize everything I would say is to always be, strive to be 10 times better than everyone around you. And that’s something that my parents taught me as an athlete growing up and in soccer being in a sport where I was always being judged for what I look like or judged for reasons other than my talent…And it’s something that I still carry with me to this day. That’s why I do so many different things and wear so many different hats, you know, I feel like the moment you get complacent and settle for just getting by and doing the bare minimum is the moment you start to go in the wrong direction.
You need to celebrate those small victories, I’m not saying you only dream big. Of course, you celebrate the small victories along the way, but don’t settle. And that’s in all aspects, professionally, socially, in dating, financially, always strive to continue to learn and do more in some way.
I think even just the stimulation of always thinking and learning really goes a long way in helping you to continue to evolve as a person. Whether that’s reading more books or going out and growing your network, going to different events. There’s so many ways to do it. Doesn’t always have to be overly strenuous.
You have to hold yourself to a higher standard for your reputation, for how you dress, how you talk, how you look. They are always watching. People are always, especially as a Black woman. You can’t leave any room for anyone to doubt you. They still will try, but that’s why you continue to just grow and learn. Just keep investing in yourself, because nobody else will. And so you have to make sure you’re continuing to turn a corner in your evolution as a person, but definitely as a sports media personality.
When it comes to your career what is your end goal/mission?
My biggest thing for me is what that goal looks like, what does my career goal look like, more than just the job itself. I love working on air and all the different roles that I have.
I think definitely for me, being an anchor of a show is something I enjoy the most being able to have different dialogues. So maybe some conversations are more specific to discussing games, previewing games, recapping games, and then maybe some are more specific to like human interests. I just love the flexibility of being on the show.
The biggest thing for me is working in professional sports fully. I prefer to work in basketball, football, or soccer since those are my big three within sports. I think whatever network, whatever station, whatever league, whatever team that may be a career-wise as a broadcaster. That’s my career goal.
Follow Renee Washington on Social Media:
Instagram – @Reneepwashington
Twitter – @ReneePwash
