ESPN is starting to feel the nerves as their most known analyst Stephen A. Smith enters his contract year. Up until now, the discussions about his negotiations have seen multiple fronts. Some say the revered analyst wants to be the highest-paid talent at the company. However, to Smith, it’s not money that matters, it’s freedom. Hence, when it comes to his friend Pat McAfee who is also part of ESPN, the 57-year-old took a bold stance against his employers.
The host of The Pat McAfee Show came under fire for some of the comments made during the show. They could be perceived as distasteful or even unhinged at times. That reportedly led to frustration among some at ESPN. But the former kickoff specialist has the leverage to speak his mind in whatever manner he wishes. That’s due to his unique arrangement with ESPN.
As Smith revealed to CNBC’s Alex Sherman, “No, I think they’re being immature. And I love my colleagues. We have a great team at ESPN. And I’m not speaking against any individual But understand the business. Pat McAfee is not an employee of ESPN… So if you’re not an employee, you operate under different rules,”.
Oct 23, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Stephen A. Smith (Stephen Smith) on the ESPN NBA Countdown live set at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
The blueprint set by McAfee is one that has inspired Stephen A. Smith. In his decades of doing media, he never thought such leeway would exist. With his inclination to be something beyond the confines of sports, the First Take analyst feels grateful to his colleague for opening the pathway to achieve that.
“To me, what I think people at ESPN who are critical of Pat McAfee are missing is that he opened the gates for us to be able to do that. I’m incredibly appreciative for Pat McAfee’s presence on the air. And I don’t think Pat McAfee realizes how appreciative I am of what he’s brought to the table. He’s opened the flood gates to a potential level of freedom we never knew existed at the Worldwide Leader until he arrived,” Stephen A. Smith states.
And as mentioned before, at this point in his illustrious career, money isn’t an influential factor for Smith. He wants the openness to explore as McAfee has with his show.
Stephen A. Smith wants to be more than just sports
Since media opened up the avenues for podcasts, Stephen A. Smith, an opinionated individual hasn’t hesitated to bring his loaded takes to a world beyond sports. His Stephen A. Smith show is where he presents his candid self talking about issues around the world. And as far as his contract with ESPN, he insists that it be the deciding factor for an extension.
“The aspiration for me is to be in Pat’s position to a large degree. It’s never going to be the case with First Take. But it’s damn sure gonna be the case with everything else if I’m gonna remain at ESPN, because I have other things that I wanna do. And I don’t wanna hear from them, oh, we don’t want this. We don’t want this,” he told Sherman.
In recent years, Smith has made appearances in the political sphere. Notably, during the latest presidential race, ESPN’s headliner appeared on shows such as NewsNation to provide his spin on the race. Smith has also pondered on the idea of possibly being a presidential candidate in the future.
His role in such shows impressed those in the concerned circuits. Furthermore, even ESPN is supportive of Smith’s willingness to grow to something bigger. According to LA Times, a representative of the company said “Stephen A. has his own podcast/show outside of ESPN where he dives deeper into topics that are more than just sports, and we support him with that, and will continue to do so given his interests in growing outside of the sports realm”.
The new contract may still be lucrative and it would be well-earned for a man of Smith’s stature. But the bottom line is the ability to hold creative freedom in his independent projects. And it seems the media giants aren’t willing to risk losing their top personality over his request to branch out.
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