Sage Steele knows what it’s like to leave ESPN amid chatter about your political views. On Thursday, the former SportsCenter host came to the defense of her friend and fellow ESPN host Sam Ponderafter Ponder was fired by the worldwide leader.
After relaying that Ponder had been fired for “cost-cutting reasons” (and using hand quotes to emphasize that she did not believe that explanation), Steele said she would not “waste any time discussing ESPN.”
But Steele spoke in support of Ponder, who she said has been “standing tall” at ESPN recently.
“When I was still at ESPN, we would talk about it all the time,” Steele said. “And I just need everyone to know, this is a brilliant woman, an incredible mother who’s also made me an incredible mother … and I’m so excited for her future. It’s so scary when you’re in it; you don’t know if you’re going to ever be OK. Sam already knows that this is such a blessing that God is bestowing upon her because there’s so much more for her to do.”
I love you, @samponder ❤️ pic.twitter.com/2IMwURVfMN
— Sage Steele (@sagesteele) August 15, 2024
Steele was suspended by ESPN for one week in 2021 for criticizing the network’s COVID-19 policy on a podcast hosted by Jay Cutler. In response, Steele sued ESPN the next year and eventually settled last August. Steele left ESPN shortly after agreeing to the settlement and now hosts a podcast for Bill Maher’s media network.
Since leaving ESPN, Steele has continued to criticize the network over its handling of political speech, including its handling of her interview with President Joe Biden in 2021.
Last May, Steele came to Ponder’s defense after USA Today columnist Nancy Armour accused Ponder of “bigotry” over Ponder’s support for the “fairness in girls’ sports” movement led by conservative commentator Riley Gaines and others, which often involves anti-transgender rhetoric. Steele called Armour’s column a “pathetic attack,” while Ponder wrote on X that “biology is not bigotry.”
Next, it was Ponder’s turn to defend Steele. Soccer star Megan Rapinoe called Steele out for her critiques on trans athletes in an interview with TIME later in 2023, and Ponder accused Rapinoe of silencing “good-faith discussion.”
“Sage says bio males shouldn’t compete in female sports and now she’s to blame for violence? This is an attempt to silence good-faith discussion and debate,” Ponder wrote.
Trans-athlete participation in sports isn’t the only issue Ponder has taken on. In 2022, she articulated a scathing criticism of Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson amid his legal proceedings after dozens of accusations of sexual misconduct.
Most recently, Ponder added to the uproar around Algerian boxer Imane Khelif competing in the Paris Olympics after some, including ESPN host Pat McAfee, drummed up controversy around Khelif, who allegedly failed a chromosome test put on by the International Boxing Association in 2022.
The IBA has not released details of that test, and the IOC allowed Khelif, who was assigned female at birth and identifies as a woman, to compete as a woman in Paris. Ponder wrote, “ENOUGH is what all of us should be saying!!” on X in response to a post about Khelif’s first-round opponent, Angela Carini, who quit the match after less than a minute.
Steele seems to believe Ponder is destined for bigger and better after leaving ESPN as well.
“This is another loss for ESPN, but it is a gain for literally the rest of the world because now you’re going to see the true Sam Ponder,” Steele said in her video. “It’s all going to come out, and I hope you’re ready. She is a gem.”
While it is unusual for ESPN to dismiss talent in the direct lead-up to football season, Ponder’s only consistent gig at ESPN was hosting Sunday NFL Countdown.
On Thursday, ESPN sources told Awful Announcing that neither Ponder nor her colleague Robert Griffin III’s dismissals were related to social media activity.
But if Steele is correct in her assessment of her friend’s future, we will likely be hearing a whole lot more from Ponder before long.
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