After a month in which ESPN star Stephen A. Smith has dominated the headlines, newly leaked audio appears to show a Los Angeles-based producer at the network discussing the racial undertones of Smith’s on-screen persona and how ESPN staffers perceive his supposed empty-calories approach to broadcasting. A clip shared by Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe III on Instagram features a person he identifies as Ryan Bertrand, an L.A.-based assignment editor at ESPN. The clip seems to have been secretly recorded during a conversation Bertrand had with a woman following Smith’s signing of a $100 million extension with the network and his confrontation with NBA superstar LeBron James during a game in L.A.
“We have this one guy, his name is Stephen A. Smith, he plays the angry Black man on TV,” says the person in the clip. “The angry Black man stereotype is basically, you’re loud, you talk over people, what you say is not necessarily important; it’s more about how loud you are and how you deliver your speech.”
Since the publication of the clip, Bertrand has deactivated his LinkedIn account and made his X account private. Moreover, the individual also critiques Smith’s recent foray into news talk and political commentary, asserting that he has “no idea” about important issues like the Israel-Hamas conflict and that Smith only comments on such matters to “create attention.”
“He goes on Fox News probably like once a week, and he’ll talk about, like, Gaza. And he has no idea about Gaza,” the person states. “He’s talking about, like, his views on Gaza and we’re like, ‘Brother, you were just talking about the Lakers three hours ago. What do you know about Gaza?’” Despite these criticisms, the individual insists that Smith is well-compensated by the network, stopping short of delivering too harsh of a critique. “[ESPN staff] just think he’s crazy, just trying to create attention, you know? Which is his job, I guess,” the person adds. “He gets paid a lot of money to … create chaos, create controversy, like an argument. That’s his job, basically.”
Last year, O’Keefe’s operation released audio that allegedly showed a Washington Commanders executive crassly describing the religious and racial background of the team’s players during a Hinge date, leading to the suspension and later firing of VP of content Rael Enteen. ESPN has not commented on the leaked audio incident, nor have Smith or Bertrand issued public statements regarding the matter.
