ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith branded a hypocrite for controversial take about 'policing' sports media

ESPN viewers called out TV personality Stephen A Smith for criticizing the sports media landscape that fans believe he played a significant role in creating. 

The former newspaper columnist isn't happy that 'everyone has the freedom to have a voice' now that anyone can start a podcast or offer their opinion on social media. 

Smith, who produced the new ESPN+ series Up for Debate, also appeared to take issue with athletes accepting high-paying media gigs that previously would have been offered to traditional journalists. 

'You look at the whole stratosphere of podcasting and a lot of people believe it's not policed enough,' Smith said during a discussion on First Take last week. 

'Everybody has the freedom to have a voice, but you can say anything; you can almost get away with anything. That wasn't what the world was like,' he went on. 

ESPN viewers called out TV personality Stephen A Smith for criticizing the media landscape

In the early days of his career, he claimed not 'everyone [had] the freedom to have a voice' 

Smith explained that in the early days of his career, sports reporters had to earn their 'license' to offer an opinion.  

'In 2003, when I was named a general sports columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer, I was the 21st African American in this nation's history to become a general sports columnist,' he said. 

'Now, anybody can have an opinion. I came up at a time where you had to earn your stripes and earn the right just to express yourself.' 

Elsewhere in the discussion, he referenced personalities that have become 'incredibly popular,' and mentioned former NFL player, Shannon Sharpe, who is 'making more money' as a commentator than he did as an athlete.

Smith was promoting the new ESPN+ series Up for Debate, which he produced

Smith said he had to 'earn his stripes' to reach his level of career success 

'The level of discourse that you're witnessing right now, you don't know where it's coming from a lot of the time,' he said

'No one knows where the hell [the sports media industry] is going. Nobody is policing anything. You got out there, you have a voice, it resonates. What is this industry turning into? What has it transformed into? 

Fans were quick to slam the NBA pundit for apparent hypocrisy. 

'SAS is what's wrong with sports media. Any idiot can scream their opinion,' one person commented on the ESPN clip. 

'The pot calling the kettle black,' a second person wrote, while another echoed the sentiment, writing, 'YOU ARE THE PROBLEM WITH SPORTS MEDIA'

A fourth fan commented, 'Stephen A is indicative of the problem with sports media. People just love hearing the sound of their own voice...and they rarely say anything of value,' while another theorized, 'The mainstream media is jealous that retired athletes and rappers are more entertaining talking about sports than they are.'