The 5 Most Heated Moments From Stephen A. Smith’s Sit-Down With Jemele Hill and Cari Champion

It was the sports media reunion everyone was waiting for — and it delivered every bit of the drama promised. Stephen A. Smith pulled up to Cari Champion and Jemele Hill’s Flagrant and Funny podcast for a highly anticipated sit-down with his former ESPN colleagues.

​From the opening minute, sparks flew as accusations, long-held grievances, and deep-seated industry truths were laid out on the table in the first part of the three-hour interview.

​Here are the five most heated moments from the interview.

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Stephen A. and Cari Clash Over Who Built Her Career at ESPN

​Tensions flared between Smith and Champion over her ESPN tenure. Smith publicly took credit for her First Take hiring, claiming she built her profile through his endorsement and positioning himself as the catalyst for diversity at the network. Champion flatly rejected his narrative, denying that Smith drove her success, calling out his alleged lies, and framing her career as entirely self-made. In the exchange about her time as the moderator of First Take, Smith said, “Skip Bayless did not want to hire you.”

​Champion replied: “Neither did you.”

Smith went on to say, “You wanted the job at ‘SportsCenter.’ You wanted to come back.”

“That is not true, Stephen A. I know you lying. That is not true. We are disagreeing right now,” Champion added.

RELATED: 5 Times That Stephen A. Smith Crossed The Line

Addressing “Same Smoke” Allegations Regarding White vs. Black Media Colleagues

​Champion and Hill also held Smith to the fire for his commentary, specifically comparing how aggressively he goes after Black female commentators compared to white former colleagues. They pressed him on why he went so hard at them and figures like Jasmine Crockett, Joy Reid, and even Michelle Obama on his podcast, while offering far softer responses or avoiding direct conflict with Michelle Beadle when she criticized him.

​Protecting Black Women vs. Corporate Self-Preservation

​While Smith argued that he was the driving force behind ESPN’s decision to hire more Black voices and give Black women top-tier shows on the network, Champion and Hill forced him to answer for the times they felt unsupported when corporate leadership squeezed them out. For Champion and Hill, authentic advocacy is measured not only by opportunities, but by solidarity when execs try to minimize them. Hill then criticized Smith for hypocrisy, noting that despite his rule of talking directly to colleagues before addressing them publicly, he backed ESPN in a Washington Post interview during her 2017 suspension for calling Donald Trump a racist without calling her first. Even Will Cain, a conservative commentator, gave her a heads-up about what he said.

“During that entire time, you never called me, you didn’t reach out and say ‘Hey, sis, you good?’ And I didn’t have that expectation of you,” Hill said.

Called Out Smith For Saying He Was Embarrassed For Voting For Kamala Harris

​Champion and Hill questioned Smith over his right-wing-leaning political commentary and his public statements that he felt like a “damn fool” and was embarrassed for voting for Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.

“I supported her leading up to the election. I voted for her. I was on the airwaves talking about what it was going to take to win,” said Smith.

While Smith said he had the right to offer his opinion on Harris’s performance, Champion and Hill challenged his rhetoric, questioning why he chose to publicly trash the Vice President after her defeat instead of offering a nuanced critique.

​Smith Speaking on NABJ Controversy On Sean Hannity’s Show

​After receiving the NABJ’s “Thumbs Down Award” for his commentary about Black women, Smith appeared on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show to defend himself. Champion and Hill challenged Smith’s decision to use Hannity’s platform. “Why Hannity?” Champion and Hill asked. They went on to challenge Smith, arguing that taking grievances against Black journalists onto Fox News — a network they say has been historically hostile to Black people — amplifies conservative talking points at the expense of Black institutions