Stephen A. Smith is an American sports television personality, radio host, sports journalist, and actor. Smith is well-known for his role as a commentator on ESPN’s First Take with co-host Max Kellerman and moderator Molly Qerim. His workload remains heavy as he is frequently called upon by SportsCenter as an NBA analyst for ESPN working as a live broadcaster. Smith hosted the Stephen A. Smith and Ryan Ruocco Show on ESPN Radio New York 98.7 FM before hosting his own radio show, the Stephen A. Smith Show on the Chris Russo sports radio station: Mad Dog Sports Radio.

Smith began his career in journalism in 1994 serving as a writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer where he reported on the Philadelphia 76ers as their NBA columnist before being promoted to a general columnist. On the broadcasting side, Smith is renowned for his provocative analysis and blunt delivery. He has appeared on a plethora of ESPN shows including Pardon the Interruption, Jim Rome is Burning and an active participant on 1st and 10.

When I came to Western Illinois University in 2014, I watched ESPN’s First Take every day and decided I want to be a journalist. With dedicating myself to writing came doubters often telling me “Writers will never make any money, you should study computer science, engineering, or something more promising directly out of college.” Observing the evolution of Stephen A. Smith’s career has rekindled my journalistic flame and hope that there is still promise for me as a media personality.

In late 2014, Smith signed a multi-year deal with ESPN that paid him over $3 million a year.  For all his hard work and dedication on ESPN’s popular sports show First Take and other media endeavors, Smith negotiated a new $10 million deal with ESPN making him the highest paid media personality in ESPN history.

Although Smith is a well-established and tenured journalist, he has made some on-air mistakes as he let his emotions get the best of him. During an episode of First Take aired March 9, 2015, Smith discussed the former Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly trading away a number of African-American players.

During the episode, Smith said, “Chip Kelly has made decisions over the last couple of year that, dare I say, leave a few brothers (African-American men) feeling uncomfortable.” Former Eagles running back LeSean McCoy admitted that he believed Kelly’s roster moves were racially motivated, therefore proving Smith’s coverage of the entire situation was accurate.

Smith received a plethora of public criticism back in 2014 after he implied that victims of domestic violence should hold some accountability for the abuse they received.

“What I’ve tried to employ in the female members of my family—some of who you all met and talked to and what have you is that … let’s make sure we don’t do anything to provoke wrong actions, because if I come or somebody else comes, whether it’s law enforcement officials, your brother or the fellas that you know … if we come after somebody [who] has put their hands on you, it doesn’t negate the fact that they already put their hands on you,” Smith said on an episode of First Take.

The aforementioned comments made by Smith resulted in his suspension from ESPN for approximately a week. Smith later expressed sorrow and admitted his comments were “The most egregious error of my career,” Smith said. “My words came across that it is somehow a woman’s fault. This was not my intent. It is not what I was trying to say.”

Understanding that Stephen A. Smith is human and prone to committing mistakes, the testament and servitude of his character, work ethic, and dedication to journalism and media relations does not go unnoticed.

The only multimedia improvements I would make if I were in the shoes of Stephen A. Smith would be to think before I speak and ask myself if the public would take offense to any of the words I’m about to utter. Otherwise, Smith has been an amazing journalist. 

For aspiring journalists like myself, witnessing an African-American male grow to become the highest paid journalist in ESPN history ignites a fire in me to strive toward fulfilling my American Dream as one of the best journalists to ever touch the face of this earth.

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