Stephen A. Smith, featured commentator and executive producer of First Take on ESPN, is in the midst of contract negotiations with the company before his current deal expires on June 30. Even though there was a report surrounding the value of a potential deal being $120 million, he had denied that figure on a previous radio appearance and divulged that the money was there. Smith appeared alongside Christopher “Mad Dog” Russo on SiriusXM’s The Howard Stern Show ahead of the Wednesday edition of First Take. Within the interview, Smith was asked directly by Stern whether or not he would re-sign with ESPN, to which he replied, “I believe so.”
During his explanation, he cited having recently been with ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro and extolled him for having always been good to him and keeping his word. Moreover, Smith mentioned Bob Iger, the chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company, as another person who keeps their word when they tell him things. Outside of ESPN, Smith owns and operates his own company, Straight Shooter Productions, hosts a multiplatform digital show and appears on news networks to discuss politics.
“Especially in the case of Jimmy Pitaro, there are things that I have been able to do, allowed to do talking politics and doing a lot of things,” Smith said. “He came to me and gave me his word years ago, and he followed through, and so when you have a boss like that, you learn to have a lot of love and respect for people in positions of power who could exercise their power for the negatives and they don’t do it – they do it for the positive. In this case, he does that for me.”
Earlier in the segment, Stern reminisced on when Russo revealed that he was paid $10,000 per appearance on First Take. Russo divulged that he got in trouble for that statement and that his agent received a text that read “Not helpful.” Smith also added that while Russo had gotten in trouble, he was also taken care of and opted to leave it at that. Russo signed multiyear contract extensions with ESPN and SiriusXM last year through which he continues to deliver content to national audiences on radio and television.
“You like to peel out stuff that nobody else gets, and nobody, nobody is better at it than you,” Smith said of Stern. “I’ve done thousands upon thousands of interviews over the years. No one has generated as much buzz from an interview they did on me than when I was on your show. It is unbelievable – people still talk about it.”
As it pertains to Smith’s contract discussions, Russo believes that there is more to do with the freedom to do other things beyond the money. When asked if his ESPN colleague was working too hard, Russo divulged that he is competitive and wants to be a major component in American culture. Stern then surmised that one of the reasons Smith got sick was because he was trying too hard.
“Yeah, but it was a combination, guys, of doing that and not taking care of myself,” Smith said. “I wasn’t in the gym, I didn’t work out, I didn’t take my vitamins and supplements, I didn’t eat right. All I did was work, and then I ate fast foods and sugared cereals and sodas and all of that stuff. I was in terrible, terrible condition, and I don’t have that problem now.”
At a different point in the segment, Russo discussed how he was initially asked to come on First Take to discuss Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens not being selected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in their final years of eligibility. The very next morning, he remembered receiving a call from Smith asking if he would be interested in doing the show once a week, and it has led to him expanding his reach in sports media.
“What I will say about Stephen is that Stephen allows you to shine,” Russo explained. “He wants the show to be good, he doesn’t have to be the only guy doing the show, and I told Steve a long time ago. I said, ‘Stephen, put me on the Wednesday. It’s the hardest day of the week because it’s off the football, and I can help you that day get through the [show],’ and he said, ‘You know what? It’s a good idea,’ but he has brought me to an audience that I never had before.”
Russo also mentioned how Smith ostensibly does not enjoy the early morning meetings for First Take and asks if they are done and if he can leave. Yet when the red light turns on at 10 a.m. EST, he is prepared and ready to disseminate his thoughts to the viewers. The morning program has achieved several viewership milestones in the last few years, and it continues to serve as a destination for sports fans to hear compelling opinions and debate.
“I don’t compare myself to legends in the business, pioneers who paved the way for people like myself,” Smith said. “But outside of that – I’m not going to lie – I think I’m the best in the world. When I’m in front of the camera, I don’t believe that anyone can touch me. I’m ready for everybody, and even my colleagues have always said when the lights come on, it’s something different that happens to me.”
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