I discovered Jemele Hill sometime in April after the NFL Draft. I was reading a bunch of articles on Matt Jones, the quarterback turned reciever, who was the 1st round pick of the Jaguars. I came across a piece by Jemele panning the pick. Immediately, I was struck, not by the fact that she was female and African-American, but by the sheer force of her talent. The more I read, the more I liked. Jemele is a true sports fan, writing with verve and a real depth of knowledge about her chosen subject.

A columnist for a major daily at only 29 years old, she is ahead of the curve. Her Detroit roots and experience covering Michigan State (her alma mater) football and basketball for the Detroit Free Press provide a real edge to her commentary. Black oices is proud to present our interview with Jemele Hill as part of our continuing coverage on the world of African-American sports journalism.

In your opinion, what went wrong with John Weisbrod and the Magic?

Well, I think he made the mistake of thinking this was hockey. In the NBA, it's all about the star players. granted, Tracy McGrady was pouting, but he was no worse than any of the league's other stars. He was still good enough to get them to the playoffs. I think the Magic's problem is they don't have an identity and they just don't know what they want to do. They have Dwight Howard, who is a great building block. But they need to get a for real point guard. Steve Francis is not the answer.

You're originally from Detroit, do you think Larry Brown is leaving the Pistons?

I do, which is sad. i think Karry should be held accountable for what happens. He should have never flirted with those other teams and now he's upset Joe Dumars and owner Bill Davidson, who were put out by Larry's antics.

I'd like to see both parties use a little common sense. Larry has finally found a team that "plays the right way." This is the group of guys he's been trying to get his whole career, so why leave?

For the pistons, it was much easier to trade up from Rick Carlisle because the best coach was available -- Larry Brown. they can't just disregard Larry because they don't like how he handled things. this time, the best coach isn't available. if Larry wants to come back, they need to let him come back.

Who's your most quotable athlete?

That's a tough one. I've run into a few at the college level. a lot of the guys i covered at Michigan State were. Shane Battier was probably the best quote I ran across at the college level. On a larger scale, I'd say Shaquille O'Neal. that guy delivers every time.

How would you rate Orlando as a sports town?

I wouldn't. People here have a passion for sports, but only one pro sport is here. It's tragic that Orlando doesn't have a pro football franchise. Orlando should have gotten one way before Jacksonville, for sure. People here are sports fans, but the problem is the people in charge are tourism fans. All they care about is people spending their life's savings at Disney. It doesn't bother them the Magic might leave, and they don't seem to care about the lack of pro sports here.

In your opinion, what makes a good sportswriter and who is/was your greatest influence on your career as a sports journalist? I think great sportswriters have to be willing to think outside the box. Sportswriters are given a lot of packaged information -- quote sheets, things like that. there is a lot of pack journalism. i think to separate yourself, you have to be able to step away from the pack and stand out on a limb.

It's hard to pick just one great influence, but I really respect a lot of the columnists out there. I'd say I respect Mike Wilbon the most and really look to him as a mentor. He's a superstar, but he's still out here reporting. There are a lot of great writers out there, but i think the best sportswriter in the country is Sports Illustrated's Gary Smith. He only writes a couple times a year, but you always remember it.

What are the greatest advantages/greatest obstacles of being female and African-American in this field?

Well, right now, i still can use age as an advantage. i'm not some old, gnarled sports writer, so I can travel in the hipper circles. That makes a difference with athletes.

I think the hardest part of being a black female sportswriter is getting criticism for both being black and being a woman. you feel like people are ganging up on you. You're either a racial slur or you belong writing for Ladies Home Journal (Yes, I've heard both). that gets annoying.

It also gets annoying when people question how you got your job. you get hit with the affirmative action thing, which gets old. I get tired of being put in the position where i have to justify myself.

How will Nick Saban do as coach of the Dolphins?

I think nick will do fine as a coach, but the media will hate him. If it were up to him, he'd banish reporters from covering his team. He hates distractions, interference and being questioned. all he wants to do is eat, sleep, and breathe football. and if you aren't the same way, he has little use for you. He's one of the most driven people you can ever meet, which is inspiring to those that play for him. But he's not in this to make friends, but to win. that brusque approach is hard for some to get used to. Considering how strict he's made the media policies, i hope he does win. if he doesn't, he'll get hammered.

One of my favorite columns by you was your column on Kirk Reynolds and the 49er scandal. What is your take on the attitude (expressed by many of your colleagues) which shrugs at it, saying "boys will be boys"?

Well, any sports reporter that's been in the locker room knows that it's a lot of shenanigans in there. That's OK on some level because that is an athlete's private space. We can't expect a football team to be PC. If you've played sports before, you know you have certain jokes with your teammates that are crass, just like you would your friends.

However, I think the locker room has become fair game. I mean, Phil Jackson wrote a book about what happened in the Lakers' locker room. What coach would have done that back in the day? The lockeroom used to be safe, but not anymore.