Stephen A. Smith is convinced that the ESPN layoffs are far from done and that his time with the network might come to an end soon
Speaking on The Stephen A. Smith Show, the analyst believed that ESPN could fire more people in the days to come, and included himself as part of the list.
“Let me tell you all something,” Smith said. “Don’t ever, ever, ever in your life as a Black person take anything for granted. I told you before when white folks catch cold, Black folks catch pneumonia. This ain’t the end. More is coming, and yes, ladies and gentlemen, I could be next.”
I will miss the colleagues of mine who were let go this week dearly pic.twitter.com/lNbuDjRG8s
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) July 4, 2023
Smith had earlier commented on the exit of some of his friends and colleagues, and at the time of writing, his future with the top sports network remains fixed, but he does seem to be worried that he might be pushed out next.
“The one thing I could tell you about Stephen A, this ain’t 2009. I really didn’t see it coming,” he said of his previous ESPN exit. “My eyes are always wide open now. I’m never comfortable. I never take anything for granted and I never assume that I’m safe.”
In its statement, ESPN said that it needed to cut costs “in the area of public-facing commentator salaries.” And honestly, they can use a man of Smith’s caliber in their newsroom, for despite the bouquets and brickbats he earns in equal measure, he is still one of the top players in broadcast journalism.
Stephen A. Smith Had Hinted The Imminent Layoffs Earlier This Year
Before the start of the layoffs, Stephen A. Smith had warned about the firing on his podcast.
“Have you all been paying attention to the business landscape?” Smith said on his K[no]w Mercy Podcast. “Disney itself announced that over 7,000 employees are going to be let go. ESPN is under the Disney umbrella. They’re going to have cuts coming. Hell, for all I know, I might be one of them. Now I doubt that. But it’s possible. No one knows.”
All said Smith’s career with ESPN remains to be safe for now, but with the network set to lay off more employees as speculated, it’s only a matter of time before we see more names tumble out.
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