What is Stephen A. Smith working toward right now? Does he have any particular goal in mind when he goes on with Sean Hannity or Jon Stewart? Is he trying to expand his base to make a future goal more attainable, or is he trying to expand his base just to expand it?
Can you figure out what Smith’s goal is? Do you even think he knows?
Since ESPN granted him the autonomy to go wherever he wants and talk about whatever he wants, Stephen A. Smith has seemed a little unfocused. He’ll say all he wants is to grow his brand, but that is like saying “I like to have fun” when someone asks you to tell them about yourself. It’s a meaningless statement that helps you avoid saying anything that can be judged.
In Smith’s case, that desire to be available for every opportunity is not helping him. To paraphrase Ron Swanson, he’s a tourist. Vacationing in issues and debates to take pictures for his scrapbook, or to make sure the people who take the issues seriously remember him.
Maybe Smith’s future is politics. Maybe it’s still in the media, but with sports either diminished or entirely in his rearview. Whatever the goal, right now, I see a man spinning wheels and making no progress, and here’s why.
The Desire To Be Everything to Everyone
Since the idea of Stephen A. Smith running for office became a thing, he has been unafraid to share his opinions on a variety of issues. He tries to make it clear that he may not be a conservative, but he is no liberal. The Stephen A. Smith brand is a man that makes opinions, not follows them.
That’s fine, and it works in the sports media world. I remember a few years ago, maybe even before I started writing here, seeing a piece that Jason Barrett wrote about the hypocrisy on display in the way the sports media talked about LaVar Ball and thinking, “My man, this is sports talk. There are no consequences to any of this.”
People dismiss hypocrisy in Stephen A. Smith’s world because they are there to be entertained. Colin Cowherd has long pounded the drum of it doesn’t matter what he said yesterday as long as you are entertained today. But if the goal is to move into something more impactful, your opinions carry a lot more weight.
Smith has never really shown a concern or propensity for nuance. His best friend in the news/talk space is Sean Hannity, a man that famously does not do nuance.
If a nuanced persona is what he is trying to create, I don’t think going on Fox News to “check” Hannity and then turning around and bemoaning outdated narratives about crime in Memphis on ESPN is the way to do it. That isn’t nuance.
Earlier this year, Smith called himself “a fiscal conservative and a social liberal” in an interview with The New Yorker. He also invites people like Clay Travis and Riley Gaines on his podcast and nods along to their right-wing talking points. That’s not nuance; it’s standing for nothing. It doesn’t broaden your base. It gives everyone a reason to dismiss you.
Smith Hasn’t Learned To Say ‘No’
Stephen A. Smith has a lot of value as an entertainer and as a television presence. ESPN knows it. The network proved that earlier this year with a new mega contract for its biggest star.
Does Smith know it?
He certainly says he does. He will loudly defend his salary and lenient contract at every turn, and good for him. He should. He has proven to be worth whatever money and headache he costs.
But my question is: does Smith know what his presence does for the likes of Chris Cuomo? If Smith’s goal is to raise his profile and introduce himself to audiences that may not be familiar with his game, is NewsNation the answer?
There was a time when The Daily Show was one of cable TV’s unparalleled juggernauts. That time is not 2025.
I like Jon Stewart. I am happy to see him back in that chair every Monday night, but if I am Stephen A. Smith, I am not sure that an invitation to do 20 minutes on a show that draws fewer viewers than my own show does is worth my time in the middle of the NBA Finals.
FOX News has reach. The Breakfast Club has reach. Smith is a big enough star to limit his guest appearances to shows like those.
Could Smith Be Doing It All Wrong?
There is definitely money in opinion. Just see Smith’s aforementioned contract for proof. But maybe the way to grow beyond the sports world is different.
Look at Robin Roberts and Michael Strahan, two Walt Disney Company colleagues of Stephen A. Smith. Both of them have sports backgrounds and are now co-hosts of Good Morning America.
How did they do it? They are two of the most boring, least opinionated people on television. Sure, they don’t immediately elicit a reaction from the audience, but that means Disney can drop them into any lineup or scenario and they make sense—or at least they don’t stick out and distract from the larger goal.
It may seem counterintuitive to any of us that have made a living in sports media, where nothing matters more than having a clear opinion, but maybe the path to more influence for someone like Stephen A. Smith is less opinion.
Conquering new realms is definitely good for business, but Smith can’t conquer new realms until he is in them. He takes up all the oxygen of any show he goes on right now. It’s why the idea that he will be shoehorned into Inside the NBA next year is absurd to me.
Smith isn’t a side dish. You can’t give a new audience just a little bit of him. That means in some spaces, the value is not having him there at all. You can’t say that about someone like Roberts, who has become a cultural institution at this point.
I don’t pretend to know more about Stephen A. Smith than he knows about himself. Maybe his future is politics, but if he sees Donald Trump’s success as proof of his potential, I would caution him. They are not built the same.
Maybe Smith sees his future in a more general interest form of media, but I would argue that if he looks around ESPN, the only person he will see on his level is Pat McAfee. McAfee has probably already hit his professional ceiling. That doesn’t mean McAfee can’t diversify his offerings and business model, but I don’t see him adding a whole lot of new fans.
I can’t say for sure that Smith is working against his own interests. Right now, all I can say is I see someone trying everything in order to grow in whatever direction that it happens. The payoff, to this point, doesn’t seem to be matching the effort.
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Demetri Ravanos is a former columnist and editor for Barrett Media. He is the creator of The Sports Podcast Festival, and a previous host of the Chewing Clock and Media Noise podcasts. He occasionally fills in on stations across the Carolinas in addition to hosting Panthers and College Football podcasts. His radio resume includes stops at WAVH and WZEW in Mobile, AL, WBPT in Birmingham, AL and WBBB, WPTK and WDNC in Raleigh, NC.
You can find him on Twitter @DemetriRavanos or reach him by email at DemetriTheGreek@gmail.com.
I think you have to look at Stephen a Smith in terms of Bill Maher. I think he’s trying to be that guy. Socially, a bastion of the liberals. But willing to call out that same group that goes overboard on social issues, such as transgender females in sports. But most of what he does is for entertainment value.
The message isn’t always the message itself, or where it’s delivered initially, but where it goes from there.