EAST LANSING, MI; Sunday, December 10, 2023 – WKAR Public Media, an award-winning PBS member station, premieres “Beyond the Score with Al Martin,” on Thursday, December 14, 2023, at 8:30pm ET on WKAR-TV in mid-Michigan. The special edition sports magazine show explores stories where sports and society intersect.
At the same time as the television premiere, “Beyond the Score” will stream live at YouTube/wkar and in the free PBS App.
In this WKAR original special, former Lansing-area quarterback Michael Lynn III shares his experiences before, during, and after taking a knee; a boxing coach's adaptive job-sharing program makes a big impact in Lansing; and pickleball is popping up all over mid-Michigan.
“This show aims to be different from other local sports TV shows,” said Al Martin, WKAR sports host and reporter. “It’s not about the score or predicting who will win or lose. We’re telling stories that connect sports to larger issues in our community.”
“During our 100th anniversary celebration last year, we renewed our commitment to listening to the people who give us purpose – all of our current and future WKAR friends and supporters,” said Shawn Turner, WKAR general manager. “Our goal is clear. We want to better understand what programming, collaborations, and events matter most to our community. We have a new strategic plan that will guide these efforts and we are already planning to roll out more new programming in 2024 than in the past several years. ‘Beyond the Score with Al Martin’ is one of the first new show ideas to come out of this process.”
The “Beyond the Score” special is supported in part by Capital Insurance Services.
More about the featured stories
Former Lansing-area quarterback Michael Lynn III shares his experiences before, during, and after taking a knee during the national anthem. Michael’s parents, Geoff Kimmerly of the MHSAA and Ketra Armstrong, Ph.D., weigh in on the discussion. Al Martin looks to see the broader context of athletes’ activism, and potential outcomes.
Boxing coach Ali Easley’s adaptive job-sharing program provides opportunities and a creative outlet for youth and young adults in the Lansing area. Al Martin meets Cesar and Isaiah to learn about how the program has impacted their lives.
Pickleball is popping up all over mid-Michigan! This easy to learn but difficult to master sport has found its way into the hearts of amateurs and professionals. Al Martin finds out what makes this unique sport a staple for adaptive rec and local communities. He even gets a lesson from professional pickleballer Andrea Koop!
MORE INFO AND VIEW TRAILERS HERE
More about Al Martin
Al Martin is a sports host and reporter for WKAR. He was the host of “Current Sports,” the daily radio call-in program from WKAR NewsTalk, for 10 years. Martin is now on the WKAR news team as a regular sports contributor and plays a key sports reporting and content role on all other WKAR media platforms. Prior to joining WKAR in April 2013, Martin was a sports reporter at WLNS-TV/6 in Lansing, Michigan. The Detroit native is a 2012 graduate of the College of Communication Arts & Sciences at Michigan State University.