Post job

Sports anchor vs news anchor

The differences between sports anchors and news anchors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a sports anchor, becoming a news anchor takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a sports anchor has an average salary of $96,351, which is higher than the $43,198 average annual salary of a news anchor.

The top three skills for a sports anchor include sports content, sports coverage and social media sites. The most important skills for a news anchor are news content, facebook, and twitter.

Sports anchor vs news anchor overview

Sports AnchorNews Anchor
Yearly salary$96,351$43,198
Hourly rate$46.32$20.77
Growth rate-10%-10%
Number of jobs2,1083,607
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 91%Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Average age4040
Years of experience24

What does a sports anchor do?

Sports Anchors are responsible for presenting information and sports-related news on television news programs or sports-related programs or channels. Common tasks include supplying the reports from behind a desk in a studio, writing their script, or reading the inscribe by producers. Also, they regularly interview coaches, players, or other dominant sports figures as a segment of the show. Majority of Sports Anchors are knowledgeable about various distinct sports; however, some programs may concentrate on one sport at a designated time, or they may organize many varied programs on different sports.

What does a news anchor do?

A news anchor presents and reports the news to the public, usually through television news broadcast or radio. They must keep the people informed of the current events, locally or internationally. They typically coordinate with directors and staff to prepare for broadcast, conduct research, introduce news correspondence, ask questions, utilize or revise scripts, and deliver news articulately and professionally. They may also share insights and commentary, should the segment require. Furthermore, a news anchor must adhere to the station's policies and regulations, including the moral codes of journalism.

Sports anchor vs news anchor salary

Sports anchors and news anchors have different pay scales, as shown below.

Sports AnchorNews Anchor
Average salary$96,351$43,198
Salary rangeBetween $69,000 And $133,000Between $31,000 And $59,000
Highest paying City--
Highest paying state--
Best paying company--
Best paying industry--

Differences between sports anchor and news anchor education

There are a few differences between a sports anchor and a news anchor in terms of educational background:

Sports AnchorNews Anchor
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 91%Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Most common majorJournalismJournalism
Most common collegeMassachusetts Institute of TechnologyMassachusetts Institute of Technology

Sports anchor vs news anchor demographics

Here are the differences between sports anchors' and news anchors' demographics:

Sports AnchorNews Anchor
Average age4040
Gender ratioMale, 81.6% Female, 18.4%Male, 48.7% Female, 51.3%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 8.7% White, 67.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 9.7% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between sports anchor and news anchor duties and responsibilities

Sports anchor example responsibilities.

  • Manage five beats as reporter for ABC affiliate, including medical correspondent.
  • Interview and do live broadcasts with NFL and college athletes.
  • Post sports and news content to the station's Facebook page and launch a podcast which generate 2K fans.
  • Refine the weekend newsgathering system through pre-planning, calendar maintenance and reporter accountability.
  • Edit and time code scripts using ENPS.
  • Shoot, write, and edit packages and VO/SOTS for air.
  • Show more

News anchor example responsibilities.

  • Operate AP NEWSCENTER/ENPS and manage CNN feed services.
  • Produce Emmy award-winning features, web content, and weekly consumer blog.
  • Cover a variety of NFL, NCAA and high school events.
  • Co-Launch station Facebook brand, promote and aid expansion to 80K followers.
  • Anchor, write and produce morning newscast for Huntsville's ABC affiliate.
  • Perform live shots, on-air play-by-play, write new script and provide analysis.
  • Show more

Sports anchor vs news anchor skills

Common sports anchor skills
  • Sports Content, 9%
  • Sports Coverage, 8%
  • Social Media Sites, 7%
  • Facebook, 7%
  • Twitter, 6%
  • News Stories, 5%
Common news anchor skills
  • News Content, 9%
  • Facebook, 8%
  • Twitter, 8%
  • Social Media Sites, 6%
  • News Coverage, 5%
  • Develop Story Ideas, 5%

Browse arts, entertainment, sports, and media jobs