Stephen A. Smith will be honored as the recipient of the 2024 Joseph M. Quinn Award for Lifetime Achievement given by the Los Angeles Press Club. As a featured commentator and executive producer on the ESPN morning show First Take, Smith has kept the audience both informed and entertained for over a decade. The show averaged 496,000 viewers last year, making it its most-watched year in show history, and it continues to bolster its digital media presence through engagement across various platforms. Smith is also in the second year of serving as a studio analyst for NBA Countdown and is frequently on-site for several marquee matchups, including the NBA Finals and In-Season Tournament Championship.
Outside of his work with ESPN, Smith hosts The Stephen A. Smith Show podcast at least three times per week where he welcomes luminaries from sports, entertainment and news for enlightening and invigorating conversations. Smith also released a best-selling memoir titled “Straight Shooter: A Memoir of Second Chances and First Takes” detailing his career in sports media and upbringing.
In the years prior to his television work, Smith served as a print reporter for several local newspapers, including the Winston-Salem Journal, New York Daily News and The Philadelphia Inquirer. Smith was named a general sports columnist for The Philadelphia Inquirer while he was also hosting a weekday radio program for ESPN New York with Brandon Tierney. Over the years, Smith has broken a variety of stories across multiple platforms, including the retirement of Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson. Smith joined First Take with Skip Bayless on ESPN after returning for his second stint with the network, before which he guest hosted several shows and worked with FOX Sports Radio.
Smith will receive this award as part of the 66th SoCal Journalism Awards Gala, which takes place on June 23 in Los Angeles.
“Stephen A. Smith is one of the most accomplished sports journalists in the country and brings unparalleled passion to his job,” Lisa Richwine, president of the Los Angeles Press Club, said in a statement.
The Quinn Award is the highest honor bestowed by the Los Angeles Press Club and has recognized several trailblazers in the industry, including Otis Chandler, Walter Cronkite, Willow Bay, Lester Holt, Andrea Mitchell and David Ono. The award is named in honor of Joseph Quinn, who was an experienced reporter, war correspondent and editor who went on to own City News Service starting in the mid-1950s.
“In the ever-evolving landscape of sports and media, Stephen A. Smith stands tall as a trailblazer, entertaining audiences with his unparalleled charisma, expertise and unwavering dedication,” the Los Angeles Press Club stated in his biography. “With each endeavor he embarks upon, Smith continues to redefine the boundaries of what it means to be a true maverick in the industry.”
