AMERICANALMANAC (Ken Jacobs) - Stephen A. Smith defends ESPN after latest layoffs: 'Business is business'
ESPN's highest-paid personality publicly backed the network's decision to cut staff, including his own colleague Ryan Clark, calling the era of endless hiring "long gone" even as he admitted the move stung. Stephen A. Smith used his personal YouTube show and podcast, "Straight Shooter with Stephen A. Smith," on Tuesday to address ESPN's latest round […] The post Stephen A. Smith defends ESPN after latest layoffs: 'Business is business' appeared first on American Almanac .
ESPN's highest-paid personality publicly backed the network's decision to cut staff, including his own colleague Ryan Clark, calling the era of endless hiring "long gone" even as he admitted the move stung. Stephen A. Smith used his personal YouTube show and podcast, "Straight Shooter with Stephen A. Smith," on Tuesday to address ESPN's latest round of layoffs head-on. The "First Take" star defended the network's leadership, acknowledged the financial pressures driving the cuts, and singled out NFL analyst Ryan Clark, one of the employees let go that day, as someone he personally fought to keep. ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro, meanwhile, sent an internal memo attributing most of the job losses to the network's recent merger with NFL Network,…Open