BY GARY POTOSKY
If you’re a sports editor in this country, thanks to APSE, you are not alone. That is the message from the organization’s newest incoming national officer.
When you run for APSE national office, there’s a lot to consider. It’s not just about the prestige or the influence. It’s about what you envision this organization can be in your three years in office, and in the years after.
Perryn Keys, Executive Sports Editor for The Advocate and Times-Picayune, is all about seeing the future in this industry. And that’s a good thing for APSE, because Keys has been elected Second Vice President.
His time in national office will begin June 22, the final day of APSE’s summer conference in Charlotte, N.C. Keys will serve as Second VP until the last day of the 2025 summer conference in Minneapolis, when he will ascend to First VP and Contest Chair. His tenure as APSE president will begin on the final day of the 2026 summer conference and will end on the final day of the 2027 summer conference.
As the leader of The Advocate’s Sports department since 2019, Keys has been at the forefront of sports betting coverage, developed young writers into some of the industry’s best. He also led strong (and zoned!) print editions in Baton Rouge to focus on colleges, and New Orleans where the focus shifts toward the pros, and set a standard for how to cover a major university, LSU, that excels in high profile sports like football, basketball and baseball.
Where Keys’ impetus to run for office comes from, however, is his experience at APSE. He’s been a member since 2012, a contest judge since 2015 and a regular at winter and summer national conferences since 2019. All of this has given him a sense of camaraderie, not just for his own comfort, but he sees the value in that camaraderie for any sports editor.
“When we get together, we do a great job of being friendly, and it feels like maybe there are some ways to reinforce that, that we really are there for each other. We will take a call anytime and talk you through something, help you solve a problem,” he said. “I think that’s invaluable. I want us [at APSE] to be more accessible to each other like that.”
There’s always the goal of convincing sports editors around the country, especially those who have never been involved with APSE or used to be but left years ago, that we are more than our amazing contest.
“If you’re a sports editor, you don’t have anybody nearby to talk to about issues you’re facing,” Keys said. “But at APSE, we’re there for each other. Aren’t we all the best thieves of each other’s ideas? And I mean that in the best way possible. If that helps someone carry out their goals, please do! We’re here to help each other. There are only so many people who understand the very unique challenges we face in our industry. You’re not alone.”
Oh yes, the contest. It will be Keys’ job in a little over a year to put his mark on the APSE Contest, which has been called by one of the nation’s top columnists “the Emmys of sports writing.”
Keys lives in Prairieville, La., about 40 miles north of New Orleans, with his wife, Sandra, and his daughters, Megan and Emily.
