Terry Taylor, the first and only woman to serve as Associated Press sports editor-in-chief, brought a tireless management style to her coverage of the Olympics, the World Cup, and leagues and teams around the world.Terry Taylor died at her home on Nov. 14. She lives in Paoli, Pennsylvania. She was 71 years old.
Her husband and sole survivor, Tony Rentschler, said the cause was breast cancer, which she was diagnosed with in 2013.
Ms. Taylor became the AP’s sports editor in 1992, 15 years after joining the news agency. Over the next 21 years, she became known for raising the standards of journalism among reporters and editors. She emphasizes the importance of investigative stories, in-depth features, and incisive commentary. And she persuaded reporters to look for news beyond scores and on-field action.
“She was the most focused journalist I’ve ever worked with,” said Tom Curley, president and chief executive officer of The Associated Press from 2003 to 2012. . She can be trusted with everything on Sportswire, but if there was a mistake, she was working on the case like no one else. ”
Lewis D. Boccardi, who Mr. Taylor appointed sports editor while he was the station’s president and chief executive officer, recalled in a telephone interview that there was some surprise that the job went to a woman. did.
“She was creative, aggressive, innovative, and had the toughness necessary for the job of invading the male preserve,” he said in an interview. “People knew right away that she was in charge.”
Terry Rosalind Taylor was born on October 4, 1952 in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, and raised in Chester, Pennsylvania. Her mother, Ann (Bistrek) Taylor, was an administrative assistant with the Internal Revenue Service. She divorced Terry’s father, Thomas Taylor, when Terry was about four years old and he left their life.
Terry was an only child and played baseball, football, and hockey with his sports-loving cousins who lived next door. She was an avid reader of Sports Illustrated and the sports pages of her local newspaper, the Delaware County Daily Times.
He attended Temple University in Philadelphia, worked for the campus newspaper, and graduated in 1974 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.
After graduating from college, her first job was at the Charlotte News in North Carolina, where she covered education on weekdays and rewrote sports stories on Saturdays. She joined her Associated Press in Philadelphia in 1977.
It was the beginning of a 35-year love affair with news agencies.
“We cover everything from train wrecks to mob murders to Phillies games,” she said in a 2014 interview with the University of Maryland Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism. “You did everything. It was very valuable training for me.”
She moved to the Associated Press’ New York bureau in 1981 and covered figure skating at the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics. She was promoted to deputy sports editor in 1987. She left in 1990 to join the New York Times as assistant sports editor, but she lasted less than a year and returned to the AP because she missed its fast pace, Rentschler said. .
During her career at The Associated Press, she worked on location for 15 Olympics, including one as an editor, ending with the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. She retired the following year.
Kristin Brennan, sports columnist for USA Today and president of the Women’s Association in Sports Media, said in a text that Terry’s hiring and success is “certainly a great historic move that will lead to more respect for women across sports journalism.” It was part of a trend.”
Roxana Scott is the sports editor at USA Today, and Iliana Limón Romero holds that role at the Los Angeles Times. Mary Byrne was also the sports editor for USA Today. In 1978, Lu Ann Schreiber was appointed by The New York Times as the first woman to head the sports department of a major American daily newspaper.
Ms. Taylor’s honors include the Mary Garber Pioneer Award from AWSM in 2016; The award is named after a pioneering female sportswriter who began her career in the 1940s, when women were prohibited from press boxes and locker rooms. Winner of the Red Smith Award. The Associated Press sports editor is named after the Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times sports columnist.
After the 1993 Super Bowl in Pasadena, California, there were rumors among Associated Press reporters that Buffalo Bills coach Marv Levy suffered a heart attack following a 52-17 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. It spread. As reporters frantically checked with the fire and police departments at the scene, Taylor asked, “Has anyone thought about calling the hotel?”
An Associated Press article about the incident said, “When Ms. Levy answered the phone and assured the AP that she was fine, she simply laughed and said, ‘I’ve had enough excitement for now.'” has been written. So everyone, let’s get back to the follow-up. ”