Stephen A. Smith
Sports Journalist, Analyst and Talk Show Host on ESPN's First Take
Stephen A. Smith, along with Max Kellerman, is a featured commentator on ESPN’s First Take weekdays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET, discussing and debating the sports topics of the day. He joined First Take on a permanent basis in 2012. In September 2014, Smith began hosting the daily Stephen A. Smith Show on…
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Full Bio
Stephen A. Smith, along with Max Kellerman, is a featured commentator on ESPN’s First Take weekdays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET, discussing and debating the sports topics of the day. He joined First Take on a permanent basis in 2012.
In September 2014, Smith began hosting the daily Stephen A. Smith Show on SiriusXM’s Mad Dog Sports Radio.The two-hour show is produced and broadcast from ESPN Audio’s headquarters in Bristol, Conn.
From 2011 until 2014, Smith hosted a two-hour (1-3 p.m.), weekday local show on ESPN Radio 98.7FM in New York. For one year, starting in 2011, he also hosted a local show on ESPN LA 710AM in Los Angeles, covering both coasts.
Smith made a variety of contributions to ESPN from 2003-08. Smith hosted The Stephen A. Smith Show on ESPN Radio from 2005-08. He was also the host of ESPN2’s Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith, a one-hour show featuring sports news, commentary on sports issues, and interviews, from 2005-07. Smith joined ESPN in 2003 as an analyst for the network’s NBA Shootaround (since renamed NBA Countdown) pregame show. He regularly appeared on ESPN’s SportsCenter, ESPNEWS, ESPN2’s First Take and as guest host of Pardon the Interruption and Jim Rome is Burning.
Smith also hosted a morning show on Fox Sports Radio. Previously, Smith held several positions – most recently as a general sports columnist – during 16 years with the Philadelphia Inquirer (1994-2010). Prior to joining the Inquirer, Smith was a reporter with the Winston-Salem Journal, the Greensboro News and Record and the New York Daily News.
After attending the Fashion Institute of Technology for one year, Smith received a basketball scholarship to attend Winston-Salem State University, a historically black university in Winston-Salem, N.C., where he graduated in 1991.
Smith made his acting debut on the ABC soap opera General Hospital in a cameo appearance as a television reporter on the February 2, 2007, Later the same year, he was in the Chris Rock motion picture I Think I Love My Wife. Smith returned to General Hospital in April 2016 as ‘Brick,’ a surveillance expert for the Mob.
Since 2014, he has appeared in a series of Oberto all-natural beef jerky commercials as “The Little Voice in Your Stomach,” each time appearing alongside sports figures, such as Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, pro snowboarder Louie Vito and ESPN’s Dick Vitale.
Testimonials
Ernie was perfect for our Elders Conference at Little River Casino Resort in Manistee, Michigan. We will definitely be using PDA again!
LITTLE RIVER BAND OF OTTAWA INDIANS
Our speaker was great and the crowd enjoyed her! She was very engaging. Thank you again PDA for the great list of suggestions!
MEDTRONIC
Everything went great! and our speaker was wonderful! Thank you so much for all your help PDA! Looking forward to the next one.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI – KANSAS CITY
I hope that this message finds you well. We had a phenomenal time with Atsuko this past Thursday. We wanted to just let you know how amazing she was. All those that were in attendance thoroughly enjoyed her and had nothing but amazing things to say about her. Thank you for working with us to make sure this happened!
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
We had a fantastic day with Inge! She was very engaging with all those that attended. Her personal stories about the holocaust were very special and we were moved that she was willing to share them with everyone. Thank you again, PDA for all your hard work and dedication to make this program such a success!
SALT LAKE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Dear PDA Group, Thank you so much for your hard work in scheduling our speaker! From the moment we reached out to you the first time, you worked with us on all details and logistics and kept us up-to-date on the progress. Thank you for all your hard work on making our event such a success! We couldn't have done it without you and your team!
SAP COMPANY
Thank you again, Dr. Kimbrough, for a great presentation, our attendees are still talking about it!
CAMPUS LABS
Dr. Henry Lee's presentation was entertaining, insightful and wise. I, and everyone at Pfizer, especially appreciate the remarks you directed about following your passion and preparing yourself to excel. Thank you, everyone, at PDA for helping to make this happen!
PFIZER
The event was successful! I received many messages expressing how awesome, outstanding and inspiring Ms. Webb-Christburg's speech was."
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. MEMORIAL BREAKFAST, BOSTON, MLK SPEAKER
Everything went well. Atsuko was very easy to work with and the students enjoyed her performance! Thank you again for your recommendation and I hope to work with you again in the future!
CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Dr. Novello left this morning after a very successful event on our campus! Thank you PDA Group for your help from the first phone to the last you were with us every step of the way.
GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
Jordan Carlos was very very entertaining! A majority of students who answered the event survey indicated they really enjoyed Jordan and definitely will bring him back!
WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY
On behalf of myself and my organization Entertainment Unlimited the Campus Programming Board of Ferris State University, we thank you PDA and Dan for a successful event!! Dan was magnificent! Students really enjoyed the presentation. I know I did. Can't wait to bring in more programs with PDA Group.
FERRIS STATE UNIVERSITY
It was a great pleasure to work with PDA Group! The communication was always prompt, friendly and helpful. We loved the speakers and events we booked through Mr. Peter Walker (PDA Group).
WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Thank you, Peter, for all your help, you'll be happy to know that the event went incredibly well! Aneesa Ferreira was by far one of the best speakers we've ever had!
FURMAN UNIVERSITY
Topics
Adversity: Keep Your Head in the Game!
From heart-wrenching defeats to capturing glory, rarely is anyone faced with adversity more than the modern-day athlete. True champions have learned not only to overcome their adversities, but to use them as a tool. From his roots in Hollis to covering some of the biggest names on planet Earth, keynote speaker Stephen A. Smith uses his life experiences and sports-as-life references to offer his perspective on how to keep your head in the game using courage, determination, and patience so you too can use adversity to your benefit.
The Road to Great Leadership
Stephen A. Smith’s career has allowed him to be up close and personal with great leaders, and he has learned firsthand and through interviews about the trials and tribulations on the road to great leadership. Leadership is now more important than ever, and Smith’s anecdotes will enthrall, entertain, and educate as he talks about goal setting, motivation, tough decision making, and inspiration.
Ethics, On the Field & Off
What is the right thing to do when the lines of ethics are increasingly blurred? Being the best and having more power and money enables those on the way up to be filled with praise, big paydays, and role-model status. But the headlines are filled with fall-from-grace storylines all the time. Is there a new model for success, or do we just have more access to information? From sportsmanship to gambling, steroid use to point shaving, sports journalist Stephen A. Smith has seen and covered a wide spectrum of ethical issues both on the field and off… and interviewed a lot of the major players. He uses this unique insight to offer perspective on today’s current events, politics, and youth. This engaging presentation will make you think and feel about ethical decisions in a new way.
Reaching the Black Community: Why the Republican Message Is Falling Short
Videos
Columbus Connections Stephen A Smith Interview
Stephen A Smith Guest Speaker - PDA Speakers
Books
News
Testimonials
He was wonderful. He delivered! Overall the whole program was a huge success and we can attribute much of that to Stephen. He hit the mark with the parents and the boys – several times. Hope to get him back again someday.
-Partner, Godsey Martin, P.C
The event was nothing short of incredible. I wish I could screenshot all the texts I received after the event detailing how great, moving, and unique Stephen A. Smith’s speech was to my peers. He even called into a student’s radio show! On behalf of the Lecture Fund, thank you for making this event memorable and incredible!
Georgetown Lecture Fund
Last night’s lecture was a great experience for the student body of Providence College. The students all enjoyed Stephen’s message and his delivery. The campus is still buzzing from the excitement the lecture provided and the “shout-out” on ESPN was another added bonus. Thank you for providing us with a great speaker!
Providence College
I wanted to let you know that our program last night with Stephen A. Smith went very well. He was gracious and approachable with our students. In addition, the students were very engaged during the Q & A. In short, it was a success.
Syracuse University
The event went great! Stephen was captivating and we had some really good feedback. Him and the moderator were also really entertaining together and our attendance reached over 1000 students.
Ohio State University
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