Former ESPN host Sage Steele blasted her ex-employer, and one of the company’s faces had something to say about it.
Steele went on the “The Megyn Kelly Show” on Aug. 17 and claimed to be treated differently by The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) -) and ESPN for her political comments.
“If we are allowing my peers to go on social media, much less on our own airwaves, saying things … then I should be allowed on my personal time to give my opinion on my experiences personally, without telling others what to do,” Steele said. “I think that’s just what breaks my heart. That there were different rules for me than everyone else.”
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Stephen A. Smith responded on his “The Stephen A. Smith Show” on Aug. 21, saying he disagrees that Steele was treated differently by his employer.
“I don’t necessarily vibe with her assertion that there were different rules for her than everybody else,” Smith said. “The rules are different depending on the circumstances of the situation, which are analyzed and dissected on a case by case basis by ESPN.”
Steele’s initial comments came from a 2021 podcast with former NFL player Jay Cutler where she called out the vaccine mandate of the company and also made comments about racial identity of former president Barack Obama. She was suspended by ESPN after the comments, and filed a lawsuit against the company for violating her First Amendment rights shortly after.
Smith, who identifies as an independent voter, said he’s not dismissing the claims of Steele. He asserted that the company’s concerns aren’t always about the politics, and in fact more about the bottom line.
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“The company is gonna respond and react to that because we have stockholders and shareholders, you have to be sensitive to those things,” Smith said. “But I do not deny that she's very passionate about what she feels, she's not faking it, and she certainly had examples to point to,” Smith said.
Smith said that ESPN is not full of liberals the way it may seem on the outside. He believes the company’s greater concern is its bottom line, and thinks that companies in general should have free reign to make these types of decisions if they feel that their bottom line is being hampered by an employee.
“I think it's a mistake when a corporation tries to silence anybody,” Smith said. “If I say something and it ultimately cost ESPN dollars and as a result ESPN says ‘You got to go,’ they’re not saying I have to go because of my politics. They’re saying I have to go because I compromised their bottom line. And I think that's the position all corporations should take as opposed to trying to curtail or silence anybody.”
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