Sage Steele Rips ESPN’s ‘Hypocrisy’ About Allowing Political Opinions During An Interview With Megyn Kelly
- The longtime host spent 16 years with ESPN and announced the split this week
- Steele was visibly moved as she discussed her departure from the Bristol company
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Sage Steele has spoken emotionally about the internal turmoil she went through while working at the four-letter network after expressing her views that went against her ethos.
Steele announced on Wednesday that she had settled her case with Disney/ESPN and was moving on after 16 years with the Bristol conglomerate.
The former Sports Center host sued the network in April 2022 after alleging ESPN violated her First Amendment and free speech rights in Connecticut by suspending her over comments about former President Barack Obama and the COVID-19 vaccine.
Steele refused to take the jab and has consistently taken positions that vehemently oppose those of a largely vocal, hyper-liberal staff, including Malika Andrews, Elle Duncan and Sarah Spain, among others.
In her first public interview since acquiring her professional freedom, Steele was visibly emotional as she discussed the Four Letter Network and her experience with Megyn Kelly on SiriusXM.
Megyn Kelly was joined by Stage Steele for an emotional first interview after leaving ESPN
Sage Steele freed himself from the Bristol conglomerate on Wednesday after 16 years
Steele was known for being critical of former President Barack Obama and the COVID-19 vaccine
“All I ever wanted was consistency,” Steele said Friday. Steele criticized ESPN for allowing the likes of Andrews, Duncan and Spain to voice their perspectives both on air and online, but instead took Steele off the air for comment on Uncut with Jay Cutler.
“I should be able to express my opinions about my experiences in person in my personal time, without telling others what to do or how they should feel about being biracial or being forced to take a vaccine,” she said. ‘And I think that’s what breaks my heart; is that there were different rules for me than for everyone else.’
The ban was enacted in October 2021 following Steele’s interview on Jay Cutler’s podcast, in which she dismissed COVID-19 vaccine mandates as “sick,” criticized women for dressing provocatively, and objected to Obama’s claims that he identifies as African-American. American. .
She was forced to apologize before reappearing on the air.
“I didn’t mean to apologize,” Steele told Kelly. “I fought and I fought and I begged and I screamed. And I was told if I want to keep my job I have to apologize. And I need my job, and I love my job, Megyn. I loved it. I loved it! Every moment.
“I knew there was a line somewhere. I just didn’t know what it was until it was crossed.” And then it came, that moment for Steele was her removal from ABC’s coverage of the Rose Parade.
“That’s it,” she said. “I knew I had mentally checked out and was heartbroken again by the hypocrisy of the rules. Either a rule rules for everyone or no one but you can pick and choose and especially if it’s just one person it’s just me.
Terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Front Office Sports previously reported that Steele was offered $501,000 by the network to have her lawsuit dropped.