Mike Pesca
Mike Pesca first reached the airwaves as a 10-year-old caller to a New York Jets-themed radio show and has since been able to parlay his interests in sports coverage as a National Desk correspondent for NPR based in New York City.
Pesca enjoys training his microphone on anything that occurs at a track, arena, stadium, park, fronton, velodrome or air strip (i.e. the plane drag during the World's Strongest Man competition). He has reported from Los Angeles, Cleveland and Gary. He has also interviewed former Los Angeles Ram Cleveland Gary. Pesca is a panelist on the weekly Slate podcast "Hang up and Listen".
In 1997, Pesca began his work in radio as a producer at WNYC. He worked on the NPR and WNYC program On The Media. Later he became the New York correspondent for NPR's midday newsmagazine Day to Day, a job that has brought him to the campaign trail, political conventions, hurricane zones and the Manolo Blahnik shoe sale. Pesca was the first NPR reporter to have his own podcast, a weekly look at gambling cleverly titled "On Gambling with Mike Pesca."
Pesca, whose writing has appeared in Slate and The Washington Post, is the winner of two Edward R. Murrow awards for radio reporting and, in1993, was named Emory University Softball Official of the Year.
He lives in Manhattan with his wife Robin, sons Milo and Emmett and their dog Rumsfeld. A believer in full disclosure, Pesca rates his favorite teams as the Jets, Mets, St. Johns Red Storm and Knicks, teams he has covered fairly and without favor despite the fact that they have given him a combined one championship during his lifetime as a fully cognizant human.
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After the death of cyclist, the British star made the case for helmet laws. For that, he's been denounced in the U.K. by those who say such a law would make cycling less popular. -
If the Olympic badminton players could be faulted for anything, it's for not throwing their matches better. Manipulating the draws in tournaments has a long tradition in sport. In the early rounds of track or swimming competitions, athletes who've qualified will routinely not push to win a heat. -
The result of a judo men's quarterfinal bout was announced, and then reversed, Sunday. Since then, it became the source of international indignation over a perceived injustice. But the controversy stems from judo officials' attempt to avoid such confusion. -
The 37-year-old New York Met makes his All-Star Game debut on Tuesday, and it's been a long, strange trip. Abused as a child, missing a crucial ligament in his throwing arm — Dickey overcame obstacles by putting his faith in a rare and fluttering pitch. -
In Monday night's Stanley Cup championship, the Los Angeles Kings won for the first time, defeating the New Jersey Devils 6-1.
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Big name medal winners in high-profile Olympic sports can count on support from sponsors. But not so for lesser known athletes. That's forced some of them to take an unorthodox approach to fundraising.
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The University of Kentucky defeated the University of Kansas 67-59 in the men's basketball final in New Orleans. It's the Wildcats' first title since 1998 and the first ever for head coach John Calipari. Led by tournament MVP Anthony Davis and other young stars, Kentucky dominated the tournament. -
The national championship game in men's college basketball is set. The Jayhawks beat Ohio State in a close one and Kentucky got past Louisville. -
John Calipari's detractors argue that he's less of a head coach and more of a head recruiter. But his success rests on the fact that he can honestly tell his potential players that he will prepare them for success in college — and then success in the NBA. -
This weekend, Ohio State beat Syracuse and Louisville stunned the Florida Gators in the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
