Chris Buckle
BA - Communication - 1992
Purdue University
Vice President Investigative, Enterprise, and Digital Journalism
ESPN
West Simsbury, CT
Chris Buckle, who joined ESPN in 2010, is Vice President, Investigative, Enterprise & Digital Journalism. He was named Vice President, Investigative Journalism in March 2020, while leading ESPN’s award-winning investigative and enterprise journalism unit, and his duties were expanded in August of2025 to include ESPN’s digital journalism as well. Previously, Buckle was the executive editor of the investigative and enterprise unit.
An exceptional, nationally-respected journalist, Buckle has managed and edited a myriad of impactful, cross-platform investigative projects, such as “Spartan Silence,” which won a 2018 Peabody Award. The Peabody was his second, having been part of ESPN’s winning team in 2013 for “NFL at a Crossroads: Investigating a Health Crisis.” His team also received a 2014 Alfred I. duPont Award (“Outside The Lines: Youth Football Concerns”), Sports Emmy awards in 2018, 2020, and 2023 for outstanding journalism (“The Dictator’s Team,” “44 Years, 41 Allegations,” and “Remember the Blue and Yellow,”) the IRE Award for Sports Investigations (“Spartan Secrets”) and the APSE Investigative Award for coverage of the University of Maryland’s football culture.
His group’s 2022 short film, “Betsy & Irv,” won the 2023 Sports Emmy for long feature, was accepted into nine international film festivals and won two Reelscreen Awards, including the Short Form Award of Excellence. His group’s investigative work – “Bad Bets: The Shohei Ohtani & Ippei Mizuhara Investigation” – won the IRE Award for 2024.
Before joining ESPN, Buckle had a career in newspapers of all various sizes; he joined ESPN from being the personal finance editor at USA Today. He also was an assistant managing editor at The Dallas Morning News.
An avid endurance athlete cyclist and triathlete who has completed four Ironman 140.6 triathlons and 13 Ironman 70.3 triathlons, Buckle graduated from Purdue University and resides in Connecticut with his family.
Purdue University
Vice President Investigative, Enterprise, and Digital Journalism
ESPN
West Simsbury, CT
Chris Buckle, who joined ESPN in 2010, is Vice President, Investigative, Enterprise & Digital Journalism. He was named Vice President, Investigative Journalism in March 2020, while leading ESPN’s award-winning investigative and enterprise journalism unit, and his duties were expanded in August of2025 to include ESPN’s digital journalism as well. Previously, Buckle was the executive editor of the investigative and enterprise unit.
An exceptional, nationally-respected journalist, Buckle has managed and edited a myriad of impactful, cross-platform investigative projects, such as “Spartan Silence,” which won a 2018 Peabody Award. The Peabody was his second, having been part of ESPN’s winning team in 2013 for “NFL at a Crossroads: Investigating a Health Crisis.” His team also received a 2014 Alfred I. duPont Award (“Outside The Lines: Youth Football Concerns”), Sports Emmy awards in 2018, 2020, and 2023 for outstanding journalism (“The Dictator’s Team,” “44 Years, 41 Allegations,” and “Remember the Blue and Yellow,”) the IRE Award for Sports Investigations (“Spartan Secrets”) and the APSE Investigative Award for coverage of the University of Maryland’s football culture.
His group’s 2022 short film, “Betsy & Irv,” won the 2023 Sports Emmy for long feature, was accepted into nine international film festivals and won two Reelscreen Awards, including the Short Form Award of Excellence. His group’s investigative work – “Bad Bets: The Shohei Ohtani & Ippei Mizuhara Investigation” – won the IRE Award for 2024.
Before joining ESPN, Buckle had a career in newspapers of all various sizes; he joined ESPN from being the personal finance editor at USA Today. He also was an assistant managing editor at The Dallas Morning News.
An avid endurance athlete cyclist and triathlete who has completed four Ironman 140.6 triathlons and 13 Ironman 70.3 triathlons, Buckle graduated from Purdue University and resides in Connecticut with his family.