TNT Seahawks writer Gregg Bell honored as NSMA’s Washington sportswriter of the year

For the second time in four years, The News Tribune’s Gregg Bell has received the Washington sportswriter of the year award from the National Sports Media Association.

Bell was one of 55 state writer and broadcast winners who attended the NSMA’s 63rd annual ceremony Monday night at the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He received his award from Los Angeles Times sports columnist Bill Plaschke.

The NSMA inducted into its sports journalism Hall of Fame Plaschke, ESPN college football analyst Lee Corso, late legendary hockey broadcaster Dan Kelly and late essayist Roger Angell.

Bell was selected through a nomination then vote by Washington’s NSMA members this past winter. He also won the award for his coverage of the Seattle Seahawks in 2018.

He joins Dave Boling (2014) and Earl Luebker (1973) as The News Tribune’s winners of the NSMA’s Washington state award. The NSMA first gave state sportswriter of the year awards in 1959.

Bell is among 25 reporters honored for 2022 who have won a NSMA state sportswriting award multiple times.

He joined the TNT’s staff to cover the Seahawks in 2014. That was after he covered the NFL team and other Pacific Northwest teams as Seattle’s sports writer for The Associated Press. He began his sports journalism career in 2000 as The Sacramento Bee’s beat writer covering MLB’s Oakland Athletics.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic and Pete Thamel of ESPN.com were co-recipients of the NSMA’s 2022 national sportswriters of the year honors Monday in Winston-Salem.

Chris Egan of Seattle’s KING-5 television received the award for 2022’s Washington sportscaster of the year.

CBS Sports’ Ian Eagle was named the 2022 NSMA national sportscaster of the year.