Daniel Francis Coughlin (born 1938 in
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
) is a longtime sports anchor/reporter for
WJW Fox 8 in Cleveland, author, and former sports writer for the
Cleveland Plain Dealer
''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday.
As of Ma ...
.
Early life
Coughlin was born in 1938 and lived in the
Collinwood
Collinwood is a historical area in the northeast part of Cleveland, Ohio. Originally a village in Euclid Township, it was annexed by the city in 1910. Collinwood grew around the rail yards of the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway (now C ...
neighborhood on Cleveland's east side until 1941, when his parents moved to a home on the city's west side near
St. Ignatius High School.
A time later, Coughlin's family moved again to suburban
Lakewood, Ohio
Lakewood is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, on the southern shore of Lake Erie. Established in 1889, it is one of Cleveland's historical streetcar suburbs and part of the Greater Cleveland, Greater Clevelan ...
, where he attended
St. Edward High School, graduating in 1956. Coughlin would later serve a two-year stint in the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
in the
First Armored Division.
Career
Newspapers
Soon after leaving the service, Coughlin would land his first full-time job in the newspaper business, when he became a
sports writer
Sports journalism is a form of writing that reports on matters pertaining to sporting topics and competitions. Sports journalism started in the early 1800s when it was targeted to the social elite and transitioned into an integral part of the n ...
for the
Cleveland Plain Dealer
''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday.
As of Ma ...
in 1964. While with the Plain Dealer, Coughlin was recognized for his work by being named Ohio Sportswriter of the Year by the
National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association
The National Sports Media Association (NSMA), formerly the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, is an organization of sports media members in the United States, and constitutes the American chapter of the International Sports Pr ...
(NSSA) in 1976,
and serving as president of the Cleveland Press Club from 1981-82.
Coughlin would leave the Plain Dealer in 1982, but would still work part-time as a sports writer in later years, writing sports columns for suburban newspapers such as the Elyria Chronicle Telegram, and the Lake County News Herald.
Television
In 1983, Coughlin would switch to television reporting, becoming a sports reporter/fill-in anchor for
WJKW (now WJW) TV 8 in Cleveland, where he remains to the present day.
For the 1990 baseball season,
Coughlin served as a play by play announcer for the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
on the then new
SportsChannel Ohio (now
Fox Sports Ohio
Bally Sports Ohio is an American regional sports network owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group and is operated as an affiliate of Bally Sports. The channel broadcasts regional coverage of sports events in the state of Ohio, with a focus on professio ...
).
In recent years, Coughlin has gone into semi-retirement, though he still works part-time at WJW as a co-host of ''Friday Night Touchdown'' during high school football season.
Author
Coughlin has written four books featuring anecdotes from his career covering the Cleveland sports scene - ''Pass the Nuts'' (2011), ''Crazy, With The Papers to Prove It'' (2012), ''Let's Have Another'' (2015) and ''Just One More Story'' (2018).
Awards and honors
*1976 Ohio Sportswriter of the Year (NSSA)
*1996 inductee - Cleveland Press Club Journalism Hall of Fame
*2002 Society of Professional Journalists (Cleveland chapter) Distinguished Service Award recipient
*Two-time
Lower Great Lakes Emmy Awards
The NATAS Lower Great Lakes Chapter is one of 19 regional chapters of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The Lower Great Lakes Chapter (formerly Cleveland Chapter) was founded in 1969. In addition to granting Emmy® Awards to pro ...
recipient (2010 and 2012 as co-host of ''Friday Night Touchdown'') - Sports Program
*2013 Irish-American Archives Society (IAAS) Walks of Life Award recipient
*2017 inductee - Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame
References
External links
Dan Coughlin's Personal BlogSports Icon Interviewsconducted by Coughlin at
Cleveland Public Library
Cleveland Public Library, located in Cleveland, Ohio, operates the Main Library on Superior Avenue in downtown Cleveland, 27 branches throughout the city, a mobile library, a Public Administration Library in City Hall, and the Ohio Library for the ...
starting in 2012 and, as of 2018, having over 40 interviews of northeast Ohio sports personalities.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coughlin, Dan
1938 births
Living people
Television anchors from Cleveland
American newspaper writers
United States Army soldiers
Cleveland Indians announcers