It looks like ESPN is staying in the Stephen A. Smith business.
According to a report by Brian Steinberg in Variety, ESPN and Stephen A. Smith are “close” to reaching a new deal that would see the First Take host stay with the network. The news comes after Smith publicly expressed his desire to become the highest-paid talent at ESPN.
Per a report in the Wall Street Journal earlier this year, Smith’s current deal nets him about $12 million annually. ESPN offered Smith a multi-year deal that would’ve represented about a 50% raise this summer, which he did not immediately accept.
Steinberg suggests that negotiations for the new deal have been ongoing for several months, which would make sense given the WSJ report earlier this year. The two sides are supposedly “just weeks away from finalizing a deal,” per the Variety report.
The new deal will reportedly include what is known as “first-look” rights that would give ESPN/Disney the first opportunity to develop any Smith-backed content. This will include “concepts across Disney’s general entertainment properties.”
In the past, Smith has mulled various other entertainment gigs outside of sports including political commentary, and a late-night show. Recently, Smith has done several cable news appearances and hosts his own podcast The Stephen A. Smith Show, where he dives into a wide variety of topics outside of sports.
Retaining Smith would be a major coup for ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro. It would signal that there is still value to be had for big players like Smith to remain in the network.
In today’s day and age, an individual with the prevalence of Smith does not necessarily need to be on cable television all the time to stay relevant. But even in a diminished landscape for linear TV, there’s still a level of importance to being the face of a network like ESPN. Smith likely knows this, having seen the profiles of people like Chris Cuomo and Bill O’Reilly — who Smith ironically yuks it up with on NewsNation — considerably diminish after losing their prominent shows.
Even in 2024, it remains a reality that ESPN needs Stephen A., and Stephen A. needs ESPN. No matter how hard a bargain either one drives.
[Variety]
