Friday, Jul. 24, 2009

WSU grad Brunson feels for ESPN colleague Andrews

By Howie Stalwick, Special to the Herald

Sportscaster Cindy Brunson, a Tacoma native who earned her broadcasting degree at Washington State, expressed anger and frustration Thursday about the recent Internet release of a secretly taped video of fellow ESPN sportscaster Erin Andrews standing nude in front of a hotel room mirror.

"I'm just sick for Erin because she works really hard," Brunson said in a telephone interview from ESPN's studios in Bristol, Conn. "I've always been impressed, the times I've encountered her in Bristol or out in the field somewhere, with how much dedication she puts into the job that she does.

"You'd like to think she's just a pretty face, but she's much more than that. All you have to do is have a conversation with her about whatever sport she's covering, be it the Little League World Series, college football or college basketball, and she is really dialed in."

Brunson said she was stunned at the reaction of fans when Andrews appeared at a Florida tailgate party for the national college football title game last January. Andrews, named "sexiest sportscaster" the past two years by Playboy magazine, is a former Florida dance team member.

"It was unbelievable, the rock star status she had in that fan base," Brunson said. "My husband (ESPN sportscaster Steve Berthiaume) and me were kind of worried for her.

"We had never seen that crush of attention up close. It was intimidating.

"I immediately thought, 'Gosh, honey, if that was me, I would have somebody with me. I would have a security guy.' I think that may be the next step for her."

Brunson said she is "on guard" when she appears in public -- "You just worry" -- but said she has not experienced any particularly nasty personal encounters with fans.

"People are very nice, but I don't make the meter go like Erin does," Brunson said. "She's on the EA Sports college football video game. I mean, she has a following that's so much bigger.

"I can't even relate. I almost feel bad speaking to it because I operate in a much different orbit. People have only been good to me.

"I have never felt that sense of anxiety that I did for her when I was just standing next to her at the national championship game."

Brunson, a diehard sports fan since childhood, played junior varsity basketball as a freshman at Washington State before suffering a career-ending knee injury. The Curtis High graduate said attractive female sportscasters often struggle to earn the respect of viewers and listeners.

"I feel like I fight for my credibility every time I open my mouth," Brunson said. "I have to be right. I have no wiggle room to not be on point, because if I make a mistake, 'Oh, she can't know what she's talking about because she's moderately attractive.'

"So yeah, I think we carry that burden still. You'd like to think that wouldn't be the case in 2009."