After Stephen A. Smith publicly addressed Dan Le Batard choosing to continuously talk about ESPN on his eponymous show, Le Batard responded back to him and addressed the issue at hand. Le Batard believes the issue is being misplaced upon him, instead pertaining to journalist Jemele Hill regarding comments she made on his show. Nonetheless, the ongoing media layoffs and pronounced changes across the world of sports media have led some people to question the viability of journalism. Dan Le Batard’s co-host, Jon “Stugotz” Weiner, believes people like Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless have lost their journalistic integrity by participating on television debate shows such as First Take, and that the profession has already changed for good.
“If you’re a driver, you drove a yellow cab and you were loyal to the yellow cab,” Weiner explained. “The game has changed to Uber; to Lyft; to private driving, and you know what, you have to ditch the yellow cab and you have to drive an Uber. Why? Because you’ll make money. Why? Because more people are taking Uber than the dirty yellow cabs. That’s what you do.”
Weiner explained that Smith and Le Batard “jumped inside the circus tent” to appear on television and, in doing so, forsook traditional journalism. The decision, he says, was made in an act of social Darwinism in order to remain pertinent and relevant. As a result, Weiner does not have a vested interest in whether or not the insiders at ESPN are doing genuine reporting or subservient towards their sources. He recognizes the attitude among consumers is nonchalance regarding who gives them news so long as it is credible and accurate.
“Just give it up – you all want to be journalists, you’re not journalists anymore,” Weiner lambasted. “None of you. Not one of you – sorry.”
Roy Bellamy, the producer of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, told the cast that he drove his daughter to school this morning and noticed her inquisitive qualities. Upon the realization, he suggested to her that she should pursue a career in journalism. After hearing the conversation between Weiner and Le Batard, he immediately began to think differently and have her pursue something else instead.
“No one cares about journalism – you know what they care about? Laughing [and] being entertained, and you do a great job of that,” Weiner told Le Batard. “And Stephen A. Smith does a great job of that. No one cares about journalism; people care about smiling, that’s it.”
Le Batard realizes that his show, produced and disseminated through Meadowlark Media, has a monopoly on the Miami job market since he does not see any other company hiring for the types of jobs they recruit. Even though Stephen A. Smith is making more money and has a sphere of influence at the “Worldwide Leader,” he is still viewed as a credible source of information and maintains relationships with sources throughout the business. This is not the case for most journalists though, many of whom are yearning to make a living wage in an industry demanding more content while enduring shrinkage in terms of job stability.
“I heard local TV reporters are making $45,000 a year,” Le Batard said. “I couldn’t believe that that’s how bad local television is struggling, that that’s the place where [it] has arrived.”
While First Take is one of the highest-rated morning shows in sports television, Weiner believes it has reclassified Smith into a different kind of journalist than is traditionally known. These debate shows and other programming on sports networks where information is shared and then subsequently debated have reshaped the industry – and it is something Weiner does not recognize from the time he began working at 790 The Ticket.
“Every single episode, his journalistic integrity… shreds away,” Weiner said. “Little by little, piece by piece, it just does. He is doing a debate show debating some of the most ridiculous topics in the history of sports. It has to affect your credibility.”
