ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith branded a hypocrite for controversial take about ‘policing’ sports media

ESPN viewers called out TV personality Stephen A Smith for criticizing the sports media landscape that fans believe he played a major role in creating.

The former newspaper columnist isn’t happy that “everyone has the freedom to have a voice” now that anyone can start a podcast or voice their opinion on social media.

Smith, who produced the new ESPN+ series Up for Debate, also seemed to object to athletes accepting high-paying media gigs that previously would have been offered to traditional journalists.

“If you look at the whole stratosphere of podcasting, a lot of people don’t think there’s enough oversight,” Smith said during a discussion on First Take last week.

‘Everyone has the freedom to have a voice, but you can say anything; you can get away with almost anything. That’s not what the world looked like,” he continued.

In the early days of his career he didn’t claim ‘anyone’ [had] the freedom to have a voice’

Smith explained that in the early days of his career, sportscasters had to earn their “license” to express an opinion.

“In 2003, when I was named general sports columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer, I became the 21st African American in the history of this country to become a general sports columnist,” he said.

‘Now everyone can have an opinion. I came up at a time when you had to earn your stripes and earn the right to express yourself.”

Elsewhere in the discussion, he referred to personalities who have become “incredibly popular,” and mentioned former NFL player Shannon Sharpe, who “makes more money” as a commentator than as an athlete.

Smith was promoting the new ESPN+ series Up for Debate, which he produced

Smith said he had to “earn his stripes” to achieve his career success

“The level of discourse you’re witnessing now means you often don’t know where it’s coming from,” he said

‘Nobody knows where [the sports media industry] go. Nobody checks anything. You came there, you have a voice that resonates. What is this industry turning into? What has it turned into?

Fans were quick to criticize the NBA pundit for apparent hypocrisy.

‘SAS is what’s wrong with sports media. Any idiot can shout his opinion,” one person commented the ESPN clip.

“The pot calling the kettle black,” a second person wrote, while another echoed the sentiment, writing, “YOU ARE THE PROBLEM WITH SPORTS MEDIA.”

A fourth fan commented: ‘Stephen A points out the problem with sports media. People love to hear the sound of their own voice…and they rarely say anything of value,” while another theorized, “The mainstream media is jealous because retired athletes and rappers talk about sports more nicely than they do.”