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Stephen A. Smith questioned why Cari Champion waited years to publicly raise grievances about their time together at ESPN. Smith said he believed concerns between colleagues should have been addressed privately before becoming part of a public discussion.

Champion explained that she previously stayed quiet to protect the First Take team and keep internal disputes “in the family.” The exchange also included Jemele Hill, who discussed her own experience with Smith surrounding her 2017 ESPN suspension.

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Fun
Transcript
00:00Stephen A. Smith asks Carrie Champion why she waited years to criticize him publicly.
00:06Stephen A. Smith sat down with Carrie Champion and Jameli Hill on their flagrant and funny podcast.
00:12The conversation turned to when grievances should be aired.
00:16Smith asked Champion why she waited to voice criticisms publicly rather than privately at ESPN.
00:22Champion said her silence was her way of supporting him, keeping disagreements in the family.
00:27Hill noted Smith had not reached out during her 2017 ESPN suspension.
00:33The exchange drew hundreds of thousands of views and sparked debate.
00:39Stephen A.'s question was procedural.
00:41Champion left first take in 2015, yet he only heard grievances roughly a year before this taping.
00:48He argued a colleague should call before going public.
00:51He said,
00:52Plenty of black women show him nothing but love.
00:55Champion turned Smith's line back.
00:58Silence is support.
01:00She applied that rule herself, keeping it in the family.
01:03She cited times he may have misspoke about black women and didn't have her back.
01:09The community needs him to be better.
01:12Jamel Hill tied silence's support to her experience.
01:15During her 2017 ESPN suspension after calling Donald Trump a white supremacist,
01:21Smith never reached out.
01:23She noted he spoke to the Washington Post siding with the company.
01:28Sentiment was mixed and harsh.
01:30Many sided with Smith.
01:32If you have the person's number, say it to their face.
01:35Others rejected that black women comments are special.
01:38Some accused Hill of race grifting.
01:40Others called Smith out of touch.
01:43The fuse was a November 2025 fight when Champion questioned why Smith would not bring the same energy to Michelle
01:51Beadle.
01:52Smith said she was hired at first take, in large part because of me.
01:56Hill called taking ownership, cringe.
01:59The National Association of Black Journalists gave Smith a thumbs-down award.
02:06The National Association of American
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