(May 12, 2016) If you had told Will LeBlond one month ago that he would have a job upon graduating from Ithaca College this month, he wouldn’t have believed you. Well, the unbelievable has happened. An STAA member, LeBlond is joining ESPN Ithaca 1160 in New York as a sports anchor and multi-media journalist.
“I’m very lucky to have this opportunity,” says LeBlond. “I was preparing for a potential long haul to find a job.”
LeBlond’s duties will be varied. In addition to sports updates and play-by-play, LeBlond will write for the station website and help to expand it’s social media reach.
“Social media is such a cool tool for local stations. I’ve had players that we just talked about in a broadcast like a Tweet in which I was mentioned,” says LeBlond.
LeBlond isn’t new to ESPN Ithaca. He’s interned at the station since last May, helping with sports update anchoring and reporting, and providing commentary on high school baseball broadcasts.
“What I really liked about my internship with ESPN Ithaca is the tight-knit community that has been established inside the station walls and the reach that our station has within the community,” says LeBlond. “When you work in a small market, the feedback you receive for your work is a lot more intimate and I deeply enjoyed helping establish better relationships with consumers of the station.
LeBlond has been an STAA member since March. “Thank you for [the STAA] site. it really is a great tool to help with the process,” he says.