Stephen A. Smith's Rocky Tenure At ESPN May End With A $20 Million Annual Salary
Stephen A. Smith wants ESPN to pay him $25 million annually (and he might get it).
In 2009, Stephen A. Smith was seen as an up-and-coming star in sports media. ESPN had hired him after a successful career covering the professional sports scene in New York City and Philadelphia. He was an increasingly important member of the network’s NBA coverage. He had his own show on ESPN Radio, and Stephen A. spent three years hosting “Quite Frankly,” also serving as the show’s executive producer.
“I did 327 shows, interviewed nearly 800 guests, had practically everybody on there but Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan,” Smith recalled.
But then everything came crashing down. After ESPN canceled “Quite Frankly” due to high production costs and low ratings, an ESPN executive met Stephen A. in the lobby restaurant of the Marriott hotel in Stamford, Connecticut, telling the Bronx native that not only was he not getting a raise, but that ESPN wouldn’t renew his deal.
“That was devastating,” says Smith. “I was driving home, I pulled over in one of those Mobil gas station rest stops. [I took] both my hands and buried my face in my hands. I knew it was over. I had no prospects. Zero. I wasn’t knowledgeable. I was stupid.”
Stephen A. landed on his feet 10 months later, securing a job at Fox Sports. However, his annual salary dropped 72 percent — from $1.3 million at ESPN to $360,000 at Fox.