Stephen A. Smith is not letting the National Association of Black Journalists’ criticism of him slide. After NABJ gave the outspoken media personality its 2026 “Thumbs Down” award, Smith responded on his “Straight Shooter” show with a message that was as clear as it was heated: “It is BS.”
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NABJ presented Smith with the award during its annual Salute to Excellence ceremony at the 2026 NABJ Convention and Career Fair in Atlanta. The organization accused Stephen A. Smith of establishing a “recurring public pattern of disparaging commentary directed at prominent Black women across politics, sports, and media.” NABJ also said that kind of commentary can reinforce harmful narratives and undermine respectful representation of Black women in public discourse.Smith rejected that assessment outright during his response. While acknowledging that members of the public are free to dislike him or disagree with his commentary, he argued NABJ should be held to a different standard.
“And I get a lot of people want to pile on, and they wanna jump on it because you have your own individual feelings about me,” Smith said. “I’m here to tell y’all, y’all are entitled to that. Not the NABJ. You’re not entitled to that.”
Stephen A. Smith then turned to his history with NABJ, questioning how the organization could now publicly condemn him after previously welcoming his involvement. Smith pointed out that ESPN’s “First Take” broadcast from NABJ conventions in Chicago and Cleveland in consecutive years. “First Take” also appeared at the 2025 convention in Cleveland.
Smith credited ESPN and former network executive Dave Roberts for making those appearances possible, but he also stressed that his participation was essential.
“If I’m not willing to show up, we ain’t coming,” Smith said.
He added that his involvement extended beyond television. Smith said he spent more than an hour at the convention’s job fair, delivered a speech and spoke directly with aspiring Black journalists. He also described mentoring young Black journalists as something he has done consistently for decades.
That history made the award especially personal for Smith. He recalled attending an NABJ job fair early in his career and said the organization played a role in connecting him with Sandra Long, a longtime Philadelphia Inquirer executive. Smith said that connection ultimately helped launch his career at the newspaper.
“My career started because I was at the NABJ Job Fair,” he said.
The criticism was presented onstage by NABJ President Errin Haine. Haines was elected to lead the organization for the 2025 through 2027 term. During the awards ceremony, she described the “Thumbs Down” recognition as a call for accountability and improvement, saying the organization would continue speaking up when it believes influential people or institutions fall short of its standards.
Smith, however, made clear that he sees the decision as more than professional criticism. After recounting his relationship with NABJ and his work with younger journalists, he said the accusation that he disparages Black women landed differently than other attacks he has faced.
“I received a lot of insults in my day,” Smith said. “That might be the lowest.”
The response now sets up a larger debate over Stephen A. Smith, his increasingly broad commentary outside of sports, and whether NABJ’s criticism fairly represents his record. Smith is making one thing unmistakable: he does not believe an organization that has benefited from his participation and watched his work with Black journalists up close gets to reduce that history to a “Thumbs Down.”
