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Ellis Cannon

Broadcasting ∙ Midland

With roots extending back to high school in the 1970’s, when he served as the stadium announcer and team scorekeeper and statistician for Midland football and basketball teams, Ellis Cannon has had successful careers in sports broadcasting and publishing for over a decade, emerging as one of the region’s most respected, knowledgeable and entertaining sports personalities.

Following a career in civil trial litigation and partnership in the downtown Pittsburgh law firm of Robb, Leonard & Mulvihill, Ellis co-founded the Pittsburgh Sports Report in 1996 with his brother, Henry, and has served as its publisher since inception. Pittsburgh Sports Report is the most successful sports-only publication in Pittsburgh history, winning five Golden Quill Awards, recognizing excellence in journalism. Since its creation in 2004, Ellis has also been the publisher of KidSPORTS Magazine, A Parent’s Guide For The Young Athlete.

Between 2004-2010, Ellis served as the weeknight host of the highly-popular "Ellis Cannon's Sportsline Pittsburgh" radio show on WPGB-FM, believed to be the first sports-talk on a local FM station in at least a quarter-century, while also producing on-air, drive-time sports reports and commentaries. Ellis’s show was the only daily sports program in the station’s political newstalk format and was consistently rated as the top evening talk show in the Pittsburgh market and among the top overall rated broadcasts in his time slot. In recognition, Ellis received numerous honors, including as a multi-year recipient of annual Pittsburgh A.I.R. Awards for Achievement in Radio ("Best Evening Show on a News Talk, Personality or Sports Station", "Best Sports Reporter" and "Best Sports Coverage Reporting").  

Ellis was an on-air member of the Pittsburgh Steelers Football Network between 2004-2010, serving as the network gameday anchor and host of all Steelers’ network pre-game, halftime and post-game coverage. He was also a member of the on-air broadcast offering in-game updates and analysis and covered the Steelers in Super Bowl XL and XLIII. Excerpts of Ellis’s in-game comments during Super Bowl XLIII were included in the game’s official NFL Films DVD. He also hosted several Pittsburgh Steelers players' radio shows through the years.

Beginning in 2007, Ellis’s evening radio program served regularly as the lead-in to the Pittsburgh Pirates Radio Network and game broadcasts. He also appeared as a daily sports commentator on WDVE-FM (2004-2010). Ellis previously served as a sports anchor for Pittsburgh’s Fox Sports Radio 970 (WBGG-AM, 2004-2006) and hosted numerous programs at Pittsburgh’s ESPN Radio 1250 (WEAE-AM, predecessors), including, "The Pittsburgh Sports Report with Ellis Cannon" (2001-2004), "The Pittsburgh Sports Report with The Cannon Brothers" (1998-2001) and others dedicated to the NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers, MLB, Pittsburgh Penguins and professional golf. He has also covered NFL Drafts, Stanley Cup playoffs and the 2007 U.S. Open.  

Ellis has appeared extensively on local and national television for many years in various capacities, including as a sports/sports law/ expert, commentator, panelist, host and/or analyst, on the Fox News Channel and other national cable networks (Court TV, MSNBC), the #1 Cochran Sports Showdown (KDKA-TV) and Steelers Saturday Night (Pittsburgh’s CW). Ellis has also engaged in speaking, hosting and appearances for several local, regional and national companies such as ATT and Nissan and charitable organizations, including United Way of Allegheny County and the Myasthenia Gravis Association of Western Pennsylvania.  

Ellis and Yvonne Cannon have been married since 1985 and have three sons, Ellis II, Michael and Joseph. He is a 1977 graduate of Lincoln High School in Midland and received his B.A. and J.D. from the University of Pittsburgh (1977, 1984). Ellis is the son of Henry and Betsy Cannon and brother of Priscilla, Henry and Sarah.