Sports Biz: Stephen A. Smith back at ESPN UPDATE: becomes ESPN highest-paid sportscaster $100M 10 yrs

[playahaitian]

Stephen A. Smith back at ESPN

I actually like this dude and he was the ONLY big time sportshead who called Lebron going to the Heat

Stephen A. Smith is returning to ESPN as a radio host and columnist.

Smith will host a pair of two-hour, weekday local radio shows -- one airing on ESPN 1050 in New York from 7-9 p.m. ET and another on ESPN 710 in Los Angeles from 6-8 p.m. PT. The shows will concentrate on local sports with a concentration on the NBA on game nights as both stations are the flagships for the Knicks and Lakers, respectively.

"Stephen A. consistently offers strong opinions on a wide variety of topics," said Norby Williamson, executive vice president, production, in a statement. "He has a proven track record as an authoritative voice, which will lead to insightful conversation leading into Knicks and Lakers game coverage."

Smith will also be a featured ESPN.com columnist, contributing to both ESPNNewYork.com and ESPNLosAngeles.com.


Stephen A. Smith returns to 1050
NBA analyst Stephen A. Smith joins 'The Michael Kay Show' to talk about his return to 1050 ESPN New York, the Knicks' future and the latest in the Melo drama.

More Podcasts »

Smith worked on a number of ESPN projects from 2003-08, hosting "The Stephen A. Smith Show" from 2005-08 and ESPN2's "Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith" from 2005-07. He was also a columnist for ESPN The Magazine.

"Words cannot express how excited I am to return to ESPN," Smith said in a statement. "The five-plus years I spent here in my previous stint were unquestionably the best years of my professional career. To have the opportunity to return to a place where I have an abundance of friends -- with individuals whose contributions to my life, both professionally and personally, deserves far more credit than I can describe -- simply makes my return that much more special. I'm sincerely grateful. And very, very ready. As in right now. Let's go!"

Smith will start contributing this week.

He most recently hosted a morning show on Fox Sports Radio.

 

[djkidrich]

 

[Jumbodicc]

 

[5th_Ward_Day]

 

[thereason]

should of never cancelled his show

 

[vandamation]

Stephen A. Smith vs Skip Bayless... Great Television Banter...

 

[JD Walker]

Never liked this dude.

 

[djbreeze]

why did he ever go

 

[woodchuck]

What happened, did he realize that Juan Williams' spot was solid?

 

[Brother Blues]

Whether you like him or not...I sometimes found him annoying,his voice is needed.

So I'm glad he's back on the big channel.

 

[3sacrowd]

In a word

 

[Mrbonner]

why did he ever go

Or why was he let go?

 

[dirtyd]

Whether you like him or not...I sometimes found him annoying,his voice is needed.

So I'm glad he's back on the big channel.

Stephen A Smith > Skip Bayless

Everybody Else > Stephen A Smith

 

[alexw]

So did he get fired by fox? I know in my area he was replaced by zak and jak. He must have lost all his markets.

 

[crossovernegro]

I used to enjoy listening to him and BT. Sometimes dude screams a tad too much, but all in all, it'll be good to have him back on the radio.

 

[alexw]

I used to enjoy listening to him and BT. Sometimes dude screams a tad too much, but all in all, it'll be good to have him back on the radio.

Back?

Dude had his own national show for the last two years.

 

[playahaitian]

So did he get fired by fox? I know in my area he was replaced by zak and jak. He must have lost all his markets.

Stephen A. Smith leaving Fox Sports Radio

Tuesday, December 21, 2010 01:49:59 PM 2 Comments

A lot of people had their doubts about whether or not Stephen A. Smith would be the right fit at Fox Sports Radio in competition with ESPN's Mike and Mike show early mornings.

Smith, for one is not a morning person, and secondly he tends to be polarizing and if he changed to become more Vanilla, he's no longer Stephen A., he's just Steve, tired Steve. If you are polarizing, sometimes even people who hate you will listen, but that doesn't sound like it was the case for Smith.

Smith said Tuesday that he's got other things brewing but that Thursday will be his last show on Fox Sports Radio, after about a year on the job. He will appear on CNN Tuesday night discussing politics, which although he's a sports veteran, it sounds like his heart is in discussing the beltway.

Smith wrote on Twitter Tuesday, "I just announced that Thursday (Dec. 23) will be the last day of the Stephen A. Smith Show on Fox Sports Radio. I’ve got a few things brewing that I’m simply not allowed to discuss at this moment in time. And to be totally honest: 3:30 AM wakeup calls, then traveling 80 miles 1-way to work everyday was very taxing. I’m incredibly grateful to Fox Sports Radio for the opportunity, but I’m excited about the future awaiting. Trust me when I tell ya’ll: you will be hearing from me very, very soon. In a Big way, to"

Via Sports Newser

Early mornings is interesting spot on the radio for Sports, and you have think that if Stephen A. couldn't do the trick, the network would need to bring in a big name or a couple of big names to win the time slot.

 

[Onpoint]

Stephen A Smith > Skip Bayless

Everybody Else > Stephen A Smith

Sad but true

 

[crossovernegro]

I should say back on ESPNradio

Back?

Dude had his own national show for the last two years.

 

[alexw]

Stephen A. Smith leaving Fox Sports Radio

Tuesday, December 21, 2010 01:49:59 PM 2 Comments

A lot of people had their doubts about whether or not Stephen A. Smith would be the right fit at Fox Sports Radio in competition with ESPPoN's Mike and Mike show early mornings.

Smith, for one is not a morning person, and secondly he tends to be polarizing and if he changed to become more Vanilla, he's no longer Stephen A., he's just Steve, tired Steve. If you are polarizing, sometimes even people who hate you will listen, but that doesn't sound like it was the case for Smith.

Smith said Tuesday that he's got other things brewing but that Thursday will be his last show on Fox Sports Radio, after about a year on the job. He will appear on CNN Tuesday night discussing politics, which although he's a sports veteran, it sounds like his heart is in discussing the beltway.

Smith wrote on Twitter Tuesday, "I just announced that Thursday (Dec. 23) will be the last day of the Stephen A. Smith Show on Fox Sports Radio. I’ve got a few things brewing that I’m simply not allowed to discuss at this moment in time. And to be totally honest: 3:30 AM wakeup calls, then traveling 80 miles 1-way to work everyday was very taxing. I’m incredibly grateful to Fox Sports Radio for the opportunity, but I’m excited about the future awaiting. Trust me when I tell ya’ll: you will be hearing from me very, very soon. In a Big way, to"

Via Sports Newser

Early mornings is interesting spot on the radio for Sports, and you have think that if Stephen A. couldn't do the trick, the network would need to bring in a big name or a couple of big names to win the time slot.

translate it the white boys took his job

 

[swiftandsilent]

I am glad to see Stephen back, he is one writer that I do respect because he says true and instead of the BS corporate line.

Fuck ESPN, they kick brother's to the curb for little shit and they hire Bobby Knight with his racist ass.

 

[playahaitian]

why did he ever go

Stephen A. Smith off ESPN Radio


Stephen A. Smith is not the first person, and won't be the last, to achieve star status at ESPN only to wind up as a role player.

Sir Blunt announced Friday that he soon will be a former radio host (Thursday is his final show on ESPN-1050). Once upon a career, Smith hosted "Quite Frankly," his own ESPN TV interview show, was a regular NBA analyst/reporter, had the radio show and a newspaper column (ESPN does not own the Philadelphia Inquirer).

So, Smith went from having a liquor cabinet fully stocked with premium spirits to one containing a can of beer and a jar of Cheese Wiz.

Granted, the beer and cheese is a high-profile NBA gig (that's what he is left with), but you get the point. To those familiar with the faculty at Bristol Clown Community College, this isn't surprising. This is part of a pattern in which ESPN brass takes a particular talent and assigns him multiple marquee gigs. Once the cat signs on the dotted line he is totally under control of the Worldwide Leader.

The "star" usually fades - or burns out - and, for whatever reasons, loses most of his glitzy portfolio. Smith should talk to his ESPN colleague, the great Bill Walton, and compare notes. They have much in common.

When Big Red arrived on the Bristol campus in 2002, ESPN's first season airing the NBA, the Clown Community faculty made him its go-to guy. Not only was he the network's No. 1 NBA analyst, ESPN produced a reality series about him.

Walton made regular appearances on ESPN Radio and TV. He also was point man for some ridiculous NBA promotional tour in which he was showing up at games every night.

Walton became overexposed and burned out. By 2004, he was busted down to a second-tier NBA analyst. Walton, who has been out of action with medical issues, is now part of ESPN's NBA studio operation and often works with Smith.
Friday, during Smith's I'm-leaving spiel, he mentioned that ESPN wanted him to concentrate on TV. Behind the scenes, there was plenty of talk about Smith really not liking radio.

It's also likely that Smith - like the rest of the world - likes the color of money. Smith lost "Quite Frankly" in 2007 and now, with his radio days soon to be over, the value of his contract has diminished. No doubt he is losing in the bucks department, too.

Whether Smith wanted out of radio or ESPN served the eviction notice, or the network did indeed want him to focus on TV, is not worthy of debate.

What's sad is that a strong, entertaining voice is leaving the local radio scene.

Anyone intelligent enough to get past the screaming shtick found a mouth with a conscience. A guy with a different perspective on things. There have never been that many black sports talkies in New York, but when one with a style such as Smith's arrives, impact follows. Smith could infuriate, but when he did, what he said was not contrived, not telegraphed, like the drivel of many talkies on the scene today.



In a time where sports radio program directors covet voices who can deliver sexual innuendo, while reciting on-base percentages, Smith injected social commentary into the dialogue.

Maybe the brainiacs running ESPN didn't get it.

Or maybe they just didn't want to.



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/m...hen_a_smith_off_espn_radio.html#ixzz1D0p4CLBG

 

[playahaitian]

Stephen A. Smith is leaving ESPN

Comments (31) (15)(0)April 17, 2009 | 5:20 pm


Stephen A. Smith, an ESPN reporter and once a rising star who had his own show called "Quite Frankly With Stephen A.Smith" on ESPN2, is leaving the station as of May 1. On his own website, Smith confirmed rumors that had been circulating that he would be gone at the end of his contract.

Through ESPN, Smith issued a statement: "It's been a wonderful, wonderful ride, filled with great accomplishments, great memories and, most importantly, great friendships. It's difficult to express how appreciative I am to ESPN for all it's done for my career. But nothing lasts forever. It's time to move on.

"While my love for sports has never dissipated -- of course, I'll never let go of Sports -- my desire to venture beyond sports into the world of news, politics and entertainment has grown. Where that will take me? Who knows! But I'm about to find out. I'll just do so with some degree of sadness, knowing all the friends I'll leave behind."

And also through a statement ESPN says: “We thank Stephen A. for his many contributions to ESPN and wish him well. We decided to move in different directions."

"Quite Frankly" was highly promoted and ran from Aug. 1, 2005, through Jan. 11, 2007. Smith kept his job as a sports columnist at the Philadelphia Inquirer while working for ESPN until he left the paper in 2008 after editors told him he would no longer be able to write a column but could stay as a reporter.

According to a media website, The Big Lead, ESPN and Smith could not come to a contract agreement

Enjoy Stephen A. Smith While You Can – He’s Got About Six Three Weeks Left at ESPN

ESPN, Media Gossip/Musings TheBigLead April 16th. 2009, 2:31pmWe hear that Stephen A. Smith, who just four years ago soared to incredible sports media heights – simultaneously juggling a sports column in the Philadelphia Inquirer, an ESPN radio show, and a TV show on ESPN – will be actively looking for work this summer after his ESPN contract expires following the NBA playoffs.
Within the last month, a source says that ESPN and Smith went to the negotiating table and couldn’t reach an agreement. Apparently, ESPN’s offer was considerably lower than Smith’s previous contracts – which were multi-media faceted – and Smith passed. He was then offered the decision to work through the remainder of his contract, or walk away and still get paid, and a source says Smith decided to work.

“Stephen A. Smith moves the needle on ratings,” says Mark Shapiro, executive vice president of programming and production at ESPN. “Is he more liked or disliked? Who knows? Who cares? He leaves an imprint. People might come back because they hate him. The bottom line is, they come back.”

That’s a quote from this 2005 profile in Sports Illustrated. He was also profiled by the New York Times at the height of his stardom, when he was so busy across so many mediums that he once famously filed a column to the Inquirer via Blackberry.

As the blogosphere emerged in 2006, Smith’s screaming antics were well-chronicled – this heckling at the NBA draft was a popular one – and his downward spiral picked up as the year progressed. In 2007 it began to unravel – his TV show was cancelled – and that accelerated in 2008 when he lost his column and his radio show. Though Smith’s screaming has been dialed back significantly in the last six months –

Stephen A Smith > Skip Bayless

Everybody Else > Stephen A Smith

Skip Bayless remains as loud and annoying as possible – one wonders if it was too little, too late.


This season, Smith hasn’t been out front on ESPN for the sport he knows best, basketball – replaced by guys like Avery Johnson, Tim Legler and JA Adande – but his front-of-the-book column in ESPN the Magazine seems to be well-received.

What’s up next for Smith? Writing gigs in this down economy are difficult to come by, but perhaps if he were only writing and not pontificating across multiple mediums, he could find work at a newspaper or magazine. And he seems to enjoy the political/social commentary.

 

[Soul On Ice]

So did he get fired by fox? I know in my area he was replaced by zak and jak. He must have lost all his markets.

i used to listen to him every night/morning.
He actaully quit and was supposed to have his own Showtime cable show. Apparently that deal fell through so he went to plan B hosting local shows on espn....

zak and jak suck btw

 

[jasonblacc]

Never liked this dude.

Me either I think dude is annoying...... He can't host a show because he wants to be the star.

 

[theoriginalgreatone]

Never liked this guy... I used to see him at the store in moorestown, he's a coon @ss nigga... never liked him on paper or in person.. wish he would just disappear

 

[4 Dimensional]

 

[Ruff Ryder]

I'm glad he is back.

 

[april69]

Another LeBron ass kisser at ESPN
Move over Chris Broussard

 

[durham]

was a big fan, till he started espousing his so called fiscal responsible fox attitudes, dude was on fox for the last few years making some salty ass comments imo

felt he really tapped out per say lol

espn is soo wack now anyway, not sure he could change that

 

[A to Dah K]

skip bayless>>>>

 

[lexdiamonnyc]

good thing he's on when I'm not listening to the radio.......used to have to change the station when he was on during the day.......


I'm not a fan of loud people.....

 

[MoneyInTheBank]

 

[jett42]

That show quite frankly was ass. Just like everything at espn, everyone on there bashes athletes for every little thing but when it comes to any kind of controversy, everyone takes the safe route and never offers a real or different opinion. Basically you just see one point of view on every issue. It's clear that Disney owns espn cause everything is clean and happy. I swear espn commentary is strictly for the simple minded. It's a reason why whenever you heR interesting, thought provoking comments it's on NFL network or inside the NBA. Espn sucks

 

[SickMyDuck]

"THE NEW YORK KNICKS ARE TERRIBLE..."

Glad he's back.