FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 14th, 2015

COMCAST SPORTSNET HIRES SIERA SANTOS AS FULL-TIME REPORTER/ANCHOR FOR “SPORTSNET CENTRAL”AND ADDITIONAL ON-AIR/ONLINE INITIATIVES

Chicago, IL (October 14, 2015) – Comcast SportsNet, the television home for the most games and most comprehensive coverage of the Chicago Blackhawks, Bulls, Cubs and White Sox, today officially announced the hiring of sportscaster Siera Santos as its newest on-air talent member for the network’s signature nightly sports news program, SportsNet Central.  Santos will primarily handle on-site reporting duties covering a variety of Chicago’s professional, collegiate and high school sports stories, along with co-anchoring the program on occasion.  In addition, Santos, who will begin her on-air duties this evening on Comcast SportsNet, will also participate in a variety of digital initiatives that will be showcased on CSNChicago.com.  The announcement was made by Kevin Cross, Senior Director of News & Original Content for Comcast SportsNet Chicago.

“We are very pleased to bring someone of Siera’s news reporting experience and local sports enthusiasm to our network,” said Cross.  “A variety of successful multimedia achievements in her rising career has certainly prepared her for her arrival at Comcast SportsNet.  We are looking forward to Siera joining our already talented roster.”

Santos most recently was a sports anchor/reporter for CBS affiliates KCBS/KCAL in Los Angeles, CA (since August 2014), where also hosted KCAL’s Sunday night “Sports Central” program, along with hosting sports web briefs on CBSLA.com, handling social media/update hosting for “Thursday Night Football” and “March Madness” postgame shows, and providing live pre/postgame reports for all area MLB, NBA, and NHL teams.

Prior to making the jump to Southern California, Santos was a sports journalist at CBS affiliate KWTV in Oklahoma City, OK where she handled numerous multimedia duties including reporter, photographer, producer, editor, and fill-in anchor. Her stint in Oklahoma City was highlighted by the NBA’s Thunder’s 2014 playoff run into the Western Conference Finals. She also covered the Big 12, primarily the University of Oklahoma.

Santos got her start a news reporter/multimedia journalist at NBC affiliate KOAA-TV in Colorado Springs, CO covering national news stories including the Waldo Canyon Fire and Aurora Theater Shooting.  As an auxiliary sports journalist, she has served as the NFL’s Broncos game day reporter, shooting post-game interviews in the locker room and filing stories from Mile High Stadium.  She also spent two stints with Fox Sports Arizona, ranging from being a production assistant to hosting/producing Arizona State Sun Devils multimedia content.  Among her numerous career achievements include earning the distinction of being the first woman to ever win the award for “Best Television Sports Anchor” from the Broadcast Education Association.

Santos, who was raised Phoenix, AZ, graduated Magna Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree in Broadcast Journalism from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, where she was named “Outstanding Undergraduate Student” for her accomplishments.  In 2006, her internship at Telemundo solidified her decision to minor in Spanish and complete her minor in overseas in Spain. She has also added a third language, Dutch, while studying communications at the University of Amsterdam.

Comcast SportsNet Chicago, a partnership between the Chicago Blackhawks (NHL), Chicago Bulls (NBA), Chicago Cubs (MLB), Chicago White Sox (MLB) and the NBC Sports Group, features over 275 live pro games in high definition each year.  In addition, CSN delivers extensive pre/post-game coverage for its core pro team partners, as well as the Chicago Bears, along with Emmy Award-winning regional sports news and analysis via SportsNet Central and SportsTalk Live.  Through the network’s growing digital platform, CSNChicago.com, Chicago sports fans tap into the most comprehensive and dedicated 24/7 online destination for breaking news, up-to-the-minute game previews/recaps, highlights, multimedia video clips, blogs and standout coverage from CSNChicago.com’s team of “Insiders.”  Follow the network on Twitter via @CSNChicago.

NBC Sports Regional Networks, part of the NBC Sports Group, consist of 11 regional networks that deliver more than 2,400 live sporting events annually, along with award-winning breaking news, comprehensive analysis, digital content and original programming to more than 43 million homes. The NBC Sports Regional Networks are: Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, Comcast SportsNet California, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, which serves Baltimore and Washington D.C., Comcast SportsNet New England, Comcast SportsNet Northwest, The Comcast Network, Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia and SportsNet New York. For more information, visit ComcastSportsNet.com. For more information about NBC Sports Group properties, including press releases, photos, talent and executive bios and headshots, please visit NBCSportsGroupPressBox.com

 

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