Stephen A. Smith Blasts NABJ 'Thumbs Down' Award Over Comments on Black Women

Q: Why did a prominent sports host vow to expose the very journalism group that helped launch his legendary career?

He vowed to “expose” NABJ because the group that helped launch his career publicly gave him its “Thumbs Down” award, and Stephen A. Smith viewed that as an unfair, personal attack rather than legitimate journalistic accountability. At its Atlanta gala, the National Association of Black Journalists said Smith had shown a recurring pattern of disparaging prominent Black women in politics, sports and media, and that his commentary undermined respectful representation of Black women in public discourse. The criticism drew in part on backlash to remarks such as his comments about Rep. Jasmine Crockett, which he later apologized for. Smith responded angrily because he believed NABJ should have contacted him privately before publicly rebuking him. He said he reached out to NABJ President Errin Haines for a conversation that never happened, and argued the organization acted more like activists than journalists. In his view, the award was not simply criticism of his work but a “personal hit job” approved by board members he now intends to scrutinize. That is why his reaction was so sharp: the dispute was not with NABJ’s historical role in his life, which he still praised, but with what he sees as hypocrisy and unfair treatment by its current leadership. Smith specifically noted that an NABJ job fair more than 30 years ago helped start his career, while saying he had stayed quiet about the organization’s problems for years and now planned to speak out.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Aug 18

Monday's on-air rant saw Stephen A. Smith call NABJ's weekend "Thumbs Down" award a "personal hit job" and accuse the journalism group of condemning him without reporting or contacting him first.
The award was presented Saturday at NABJ's Atlanta gala, where organizers said Smith had shown a recurring pattern of disparaging prominent Black women in politics, sports and media.
Smith said the criticism likely centered on his past attacks on figures including Rep. Jasmine Crockett, and said NABJ President Errin Haines declined his push for a public discussion after the award.
Despite the dispute, Smith said he would keep supporting NABJ because an NABJ job fair helped launch his career more than 30 years ago, while blaming only a few board members for the decision.