Quite Frankly
Posted August 2, 2006, 9:42 AM ET

Stephen A. Smith, the bombastic host of the train wreck known as "Quite Frankly", has been in the news recently. It seems that the host of ESPN's disastrous late night talk show is upset at the network for a lack of promotion.

Recently, Smith ripped his own network in the Chicago Tribune...Smith said "ESPN has been good to me, but I'd be lying if I said I'm happy with what has transpired with the show. There hasn't been promotion and marketing for a long time, though I'm confident that's something they will address....But that's not the source of my unhappiness. People don't know where to find me. The show is supposed to come on at 11pm, but almost never does."

My reaction to that quote comes in two forms. First, Smith was the most over-hyped and over-promoted talent (and I use that term loosely) in the history of the network. I'm sure there were times that Stuart Scott questioned what was going on with the buzz surrounding the Winston-Salem native. For Smith to question the Bristol suits' lack of promotion surrounding him is laughable.

The second point involves Smith bitching about people not being able to find him at 11pm. No, Screaming A....you got that one wrong. We know where to find you, we just have no interest in watching you or the show. The ratings point this out. It wouldn't matter if your show was on at 6:30pm or 11pm....it stinks. Maybe one of the reasons that HYPE has cooled in promoting you is that you have yet to deliver any ratings. All you've been able to accomplish is being the loud, non-player panel member on the NBA preview show.

The ratings are so bad that ESPN would probably wish Smith and the show would go away. And this brings me to another great point. In the same Chicago Tribune article, Smith mentions that he "does not know whether he is going to want to continue the show."

That's brilliant. In fact, I have a newfound respect for him. The guy doesn't even understand that it isn't his call on whether the show continues. Based on the lack of ratings and virtually no buzz surrounding ESPN's botched hype of him and the show...the suits in Bristol will determine his fate, not Stephen A. Smith.

On top of that, when you generate no ratings, no revenue and no buzz...you also have no leverage. Stephen A. Smith would be smart to realize that ESPN tried to make him a star. He should happily take the check and hope that nobody knows how bad the product is on the air. I suggest that HYPE somehow finds a way to incorporate "Quite Frankly" with "Cold Pizza"....surely they can squeeze that show between another "Rock, Paper, Scissors" program.

But the story surrounding Smith and ESPN gets even better. After the Tribune published his remarks, Smith has backstroked on the issue. In Newsday this week, Stephen A. said "I got quoted in an emotional moment. I reacted inappropriately."

Let me break it down for you...Stephen A. got his ass ripped by the brass in Bristol. "Keep your mouth shut, if that's possible, and see if you can get your show's ratings over a 0.5"

For the record, "Quite Frankly" celebrated one year on the air on August 1st....and, to think: some people said it had no chance to survive. Stay tuned for further details.