On Friday, a tweet set off a flurry of comments and critiques about ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith.
“Per sources: Stephen A. Smith is around $12 million annually in total comp.,” tweeted Richard Deitsch.
A harmless, matter-of-fact statement about ESPN’s star personality.
“As always (in my opinion) you are worth what a company will pay you,” Deitsch wrote in a subsequent tweet.
Nothing malicious or judgmental. Yet that single tweet ignited a social media debate over Stephen A. Smith’s value.
Some compared his contract to other ESPN talent and NHL players. Others ripped them for signing someone who does nothing but screams on air. One equated him to Bobby Bonilla, who famously gets paid $1.19 million by the Mets every July 1st through 2035 (the payments commenced in 2011). A few introduced Maria Taylor into the discussion as her contract expires on July 20th, the scheduled day of Game 6 of the NBA Finals. The New York Post reported that ESPN offered her a contract of $3 million per year.
Reportedly, she’s seeking Stephen A.-type money.
Some defended Smith, stating he deserves it. That he should get his and “secure the bag.” Others addressed the issue of race and how people didn’t complain when Tony Romo signed a reported 10-year, $175 – $180 million deal. If all incentives are met, he would receive $18 million annually.
Remember, Romo is an NFL analyst, essentially working for CBS Sports for five months.
Smith is an all year round, multi-event, multi-program talent and wasn’t rewarded with a massive deal as quickly as Romo.
Yet he’s paid his dues.
Stephen A. Smith began his media career in North Carolina before moving back home to New York City to write for the Daily News. He then moved to Philadelphia to work at the Philadelphia Inquirer. Over his sixteen-year career with the Inquirer, Smith built the foundation for his rise to national acclaim.
“I became the 21st African American in American sports history to become a general sports columnist,” Smith noted proudly in an interview with Complex Sports in 2016.
He hosted a morning show on Fox Sports Radio and ultimately started his ESPN run in 2003.
Smith was the first voice ESPN put on air when 98.7 KISS FM in New York City transitioned to ESPN Radio in April of 2012. After that, he built a following over the radio waves.
He also contributed to ESPN on-air programming such as NBA Shootaround (now NBA Countdown), ESPNews, and SportsCenter.
He’s been a permanent featured commentator on First Take since 2012 and launched his own show, Stephen A’s World, this past January on ESPN+.
But it wasn’t always all good for Stephen A.
The Need for Some “Act Right”
In July of 2014, ESPN suspended him for a week after making an insensitive (stupid) comment while discussing the Ray Rice domestic violence incident.
“We know you have no business putting your hands on a woman,” said Smith.
But then, inexplicably, he added “Let’s make sure we don’t do anything to provoke wrong actions.”
He was lambasted and issued apologies on both Twitter and First Take.
In 2017, fans destroyed him for his boxing analyst debut at the Manny Pacquiao vs. Joe Horn fight.
In 2018, Smith was roasted for multiple blunders on First Take regarding a Thursday Night Football matchup between the Chiefs and Chargers. In that segment, he mentioned two players who weren’t playing and one who wasn’t even on the Chiefs.
Everyone makes mistakes, but it was his lack of business acumen that truly impacted his media career.
During his early days at ESPN, Smith didn’t understand the media business. He didn’t prepare as well as he should have. This is why fans turned on him in 2005 after he attacked Glenn “Big Dog” Robinson for being “unavailable” for Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals. Turns out Robinson was absent as he attended his mother’s funeral. If Smith had taken the time to do some digging, he wouldn’t have made such shameful comments.
In 2007, Smith’s show Quite Frankly was canceled. Two years later, he and ESPN parted ways.
It was a time of great uncertainty for a personality that was on the rise up to that point.
But that time turned out to be the serum he needed to get right. He returned to ESPN, learned the business and what was demanded by the job. He excelled and hasn’t looked back since.
“You do your research and understand what your job is,” Smith said in an interview with Valuetainment.
Smith is pulled in multiple directions. He can be called upon to do a segment on SportsCenter or Get Up! right before First Take, so he has to know his business.
“I’m editorializing, I’m opining, I’m informing, I’m entertaining. I’m doing all of these different things,” said Smith.
But it was a process with a steep learning curve.
Understanding the Business
Smith had to pay his dues and learn the media business to climb the ladder.
Now, he’s the leading personality for ESPN and has the ratings and revenue to cement that claim.
“Everything that I do—anything that I do—for ESPN or anybody else that I work for, my No. 1 priority is to make them money,” said Smith in that Complex interview. “Priority No. 2 is to get as much of that money as I possibly can. That’s my No. 2 priority. First get them revenue by being as excellent as I can possibly be at what I choose to do and then ultimately generate money for myself because of it after. They must get paid first, I get paid second. That’s how corporate America works.”
Recently, ESPN has slowly transitioned out the old guard and ushered in new voices. Chris Berman’s role was significantly reduced. Trey Wingo and Kenny Mayne are no longer with the network. And of course, the great Stuart Scott was taken from us by cancer in 2015.
In this period of transition, Smith filled the void.
The network needed a new leading voice and that voice was and continues to be, Stephen A. Smith. It’s why ESPN signed him to a multi-year deal in 2014 at $3 million per year. He drives ratings and attracts viewers who want to see what he does and hear what he has to say, even if it’s to ridicule him later.
And he’s good with that.
There’s a reason why he went live from UFC 264 on Saturday night, flew to Milwaukee for the Bucks game Sunday night, and will be on First Take Monday morning.
That talent, work ethic, and ability to drive ratings are why he’s worth the reported $12 million per year ESPN is giving him ($8 million in salary, $4 million as part of a production contract).
Even if you disagree with his basketball analysis, rage at his flubs during his boxing and MMA commentary, or can’t stand his outbursts, viewers are watching.
And you probably are too.
