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ESPN Overreacts, Tosses Stephen A. Under the Bus
by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700
Copyright
July 30, 2014
All Rights Reserved.
Disney Corp’s ESPN Sports Network
suspended controversial 46-year-old journalist Stephen A. Smith for one week
following a comment on “First Take” about Baltimore running back Ray Rice’s
two-game suspension for a domestic abuse issue.
Rice was caught on videotape Feb. 15, 2014 dragging his then fiancée and
now wife Janay Palmer out of an Atlantic City hotel elevator. Rice’s two-game suspension by the
NFL July 28 for domestic abuse prompted apologies from his wife and politically
incorrect remarks from Smith.
“Let’s make sure we don’t do anything to provoke wrong action . . . we got to
also make sure that you can do your part to do whatever you can do to make, to
try to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Smith said on ESPN3’s “First Take,”
hinting that Palmer might have “provoked” or deserved the beating. ESPN CEO John Skipper suspended
Smith yesterday for one week.
Suspending Smith for one week showed that Skipper sought to minimize the
fallout from sponsors and women’s groups ready to pounce on the male-dominated
sports network from making sexist comments.
Apologizing profusely yesterday, Smith hoped to regain his good graces
sullied by what his critics see as sexist remarks. Smith’s female counterpart on SportsNation Michelle Beadie commented on Twitter that “I
was just forced to watch this morning’s First Take. A) I’ll never feel clean again B)
I’m not aware that I can provoke my own beating,” said Beadie, ripping Smith for
implying that woman are agents in their own domestic abuse. “It was not what I was trying to
say,” said Smith, first reacting to his public remarks. “Yet the failure to clearly
articulate something different lies squarely on my shoulder,” Smith said
continuing his carefully packaged mea culpa.
ESPN’s suspension of Smith said more about nipping the controversy in the
bud than taking a position on domestic abuse.
“I believe his apology is sincere and that he and we have learned
something from what we’ve collectively experienced,” Skipper insisted. No one really knows what happened on
the night of Feb. 15 when Rice was caught on tape dragging Janay out of an
elevator looking unconscious. While
no one knows what happens behind closed doors, including the amount of drinking,
drugs, verbal altercations or whatever, Skipper acted harshly against Smith for
crossing the politically correct line.
Smith’s comments about “provocation” don’t reflect negatively on Disney
Corp. or ESPN, only on Smith’s taking on a controversial matters all-too-common
in professional sports or the public at large.
Smith is known as one of ESPN’s most controversial reporters.
Slapping Smith on the wrist suspending the feisty TV and radio host for
one week proves that ESPN executives saw his public remarks as inconsequential. “We’ve said publicly and in this
space [Smith’s] remarks did not reflect our company’s point of view or our
values. They certainly don’t
reflect my personal beliefs,” said Skipper, announcing that Smith would be on
the bench until Aug. 6. Looking out
for the corporate bottom line, Skipper sought to minimize any damage from
sponsors, offended by the suggestion that in domestic abuse cases
it-takes-two-to-tango. Imagine
that: Two parties play a role in
domestic abuse. Whatever the
feminist position, namely, that there can be no excuses for domestic violence,
it’s naïve to think that there wasn’t some provocation that pushed Rice or
Palmer over the line. “I’m not
aware that I can provoke my own beating,” said Beatie, getting to heart of the
controversy.
Given enough alcohol, drugs, sleep deprivation, low blood sugar, hormonal
imbalances or any other stress or mental health factors, anyone’s capable of
domestic abuse. Yes, it’s up to the
aggrieved party to maintain their cool, avoiding the kind of incident that
leaves innocent couples swept up in domestic abuse. Even high profile celebrity domestic
abuse cases like rapper Chris Brown and Rihanna, professional boxer Mike Tyson
and Robin Givens or former NFL star O.J. and Nicole Brown Simpson, there’s
always precipitating factors leading up to the incidents. Whether or not it’s drugs or alcohol
or dysfunctional personalities prone toward violence, many things contribute to
domestic abuse, including both parties provoking each other into violent acts. While it’s true everyone bears
ultimate responsibility, provocation, of one kind or another, contributes to
domestic abuse.
Blowing Stephen A’s words out of proportion, taking them out of context,
vilifying them as sexist or whatever, ESPN suspended Smith not for his
infraction but as a damage control strategy to minimize any fallout from the
politically correct crowd. Everyone
knows there are precipitating factors in domestic abuse, including “provocation”
by one or both parties. What’s
truly unknown are the mental health histories of individuals most likely to
succumb to domestic abuse. While
there are varying degrees of abuse, including verbal abuse, slapping, hitting,
throttling even murder in extreme cases, blaming Smith for honestly reporting
what everybody knows about domestic abuse makes no sense. Overreacting, vilifying Smith,
booting him off the air can only be seen as propitiating today’s politically
correct crowd. ESPN clearly acted to nip the incident in the bud to protect their commercial interests.
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