It's impossible to understand why the ESPN personality won NABJ's Thumbs Down Award without knowing the history, the mission and the series of events that preceded the decision.
Congrats to Contraband Camp for the award. Well deserved.
Everything that needs to be said about Stephen A, you said it better than I ever could. I don’t watch anything he does. And I’m sure he screamed for an hour. So what. He deserves the thumbs down.
I really don’t care to hear why Stephen A. thinks enough is enough. Like Ms. Angelou said, when people show you who they are believe them the first time. The first time I heard Stephen A. speak many many years ago I thought he was an ass. I was right.😕
One thing a lot of people seem to be forgetting in this hailstorm of commentary about NABJ's history with Stephen A.: NABJ elected a new president, a Black woman, Errin Haines, in August 2025. She unseated an incumbent; that year also saw other new members join the group's board and its longtime executive director departed. In other words, NABJ had different leadership running the Atlanta convention this year than had run the group when Smith appeared in past years. Just like Black people, NABJ is not a monolith and its actions may change as its leadership changes. As far as Donald Trump's appearance at the Chicago convention goes, longtime members like me have noted the group always invites the top two candidates for president to visit the convention during an election year. Through a few twists of circumstance, Trump accepted and came to the convention while Kamala Harris couldn't work out a physical visit that week. An organization of journalists should always be willing to interrogate a major candidate for president, especially months before an election, which is what NABJ did.
Congrats to Contraband Camp for the award. Well deserved.
Everything that needs to be said about Stephen A, you said it better than I ever could. I don’t watch anything he does. And I’m sure he screamed for an hour. So what. He deserves the thumbs down.
In short: because he's a coon.
I really don’t care to hear why Stephen A. thinks enough is enough. Like Ms. Angelou said, when people show you who they are believe them the first time. The first time I heard Stephen A. speak many many years ago I thought he was an ass. I was right.😕
One thing a lot of people seem to be forgetting in this hailstorm of commentary about NABJ's history with Stephen A.: NABJ elected a new president, a Black woman, Errin Haines, in August 2025. She unseated an incumbent; that year also saw other new members join the group's board and its longtime executive director departed. In other words, NABJ had different leadership running the Atlanta convention this year than had run the group when Smith appeared in past years. Just like Black people, NABJ is not a monolith and its actions may change as its leadership changes. As far as Donald Trump's appearance at the Chicago convention goes, longtime members like me have noted the group always invites the top two candidates for president to visit the convention during an election year. Through a few twists of circumstance, Trump accepted and came to the convention while Kamala Harris couldn't work out a physical visit that week. An organization of journalists should always be willing to interrogate a major candidate for president, especially months before an election, which is what NABJ did.
Well deserved thumbs down. Sadly, he will get a lot of mileage out of this. And, more sadly, become even more Stephen A. Snith.
He can't uncouple himself from his handlers. So we should not let him forget who he is.