Interview: Ron Bracken
Date of Interview: June 16, 2009
Place of Interview: University Park, Pennsylvania
Interviewer: Russell Frank
Biographical Summary
Ron Bracken was born on November 6, 1943, in Port Matilda, PA. He graduated from Bald Eagle High School, spent several years at Penn State, and then began working at the Centre Daily Times in 1964. Beginning as an editorial assistant, he became a sportswriter and eventually sports editor at the Centre Daily Times. During his career, Bracken covered high school sports as well as Penn State. He also wrote a sports column.
Interview Highlights
Bracken speaks about his family and growing up in Centre County; about the nature of high school sports reporting in the area; about how Penn State's increasing popularity impacts local reportage of its success; about covering Penn State football during the tenure of coach Joe Paterno; and about the experience of working for a newspaper during its acquisition by a major publishing company (Knight-Ridder followed by McClatchy).