Stephen A. Smith Q-and-A Part 4: "I am a catalyst"
== On the fact that the worst thing that anyone could ever write about him is that he got his facts wrong:
"Absolutely. They could say that all they want. People are going to attack. And again, this is one of those situations where color comes into effect. We all know the world that we live in and it’s extremely difficult for an African American to get a plethora of opportunities. You don’t see African American radio hosts all over the place. You certainly don’t see a bunch of African Americans in my position on television. There is no way on earth I’d be in this place if I didn’t have my facts straight. ...
"Have I made mistakes? Sure, but if I made mistakes it’s because a source told me the mistake. I’m on TV every day and the one thing I will say -- and I’ve said this on TV before but it hasn’t been printed -- is I don’t care what anybody says. Go back to my roots on television and my work in newspapers. Go back to my work on radio. And I assure you better than 95 percent of the time, my information is correct. Nobody can doubt it. It’s there. On tape or airwaves or written words in the archives. I stand by my work and my integrity and my name are first and foremost, which is one of the reasons why I’m fighting the Inquirer. My name, you put it out there and I dn’t deseve that and I will fight anyone who does that."
==On whether its disappointing that race ever gets into an argument about things he says or does, or things he chooses to talk about:
"It is disappointing at times. One of the things I love about radio -- I didn’t always like it, I happen to love it now -- is it exerts a level of energy and drainage from me that no other thing does. When you’re talking, you’re catching your breath and thinking, 'I gotta get into the gym and build up my wind.' But I would say that -- and my mother always said this about me -- I always viewed myself as a catalyst for change. I’m one of those people who, the way my mother and father raised me, I’ve never looked a white folks and said, “You’re white, you’re wrong, you’re white, you’re evil, you’re white, you’re … this (or that).” And I’ve never looked at black people and said, “You’re black, so you’re good and you’re honest and …”
"People are people. Content of character is judged on a case by case basis. I think the important thing to remember for me as a voice, what I always try to do is create the dialogue. That’s extremely important to me …
"I had a story of a guy who calls my radio show by the name of Howie who’s in his 70s, who took offense to a position I took in the Michael Vick situation. I said, 'You listen to my show not just for sports but because you want to hear me. That means you want to hear my thoughts, how I feel, how I come to my conclusions from the enviroment from which I come from. Right?' He said, 'Absolutely.' Well, then how can you tell me I’m wrong? That’s where I’m coming from. This is what I believe based on what I know. Now if you feel that I’m wrong, explain to me why. Don’t be offended. Because that’s like me being offended from where you’re from.
"I don’t think racism is a problem any more. Obviously, it’s still an issue. But it’s not nearly the problem that people make it out to be. I think the lack of dialogue is what the problem is. You have white folks that are scared to say stuff to black America because they’re petrified about how black America will act. You have black America that’s overly sensitive, but righteously so because of the level of deception sometimes that’s beamed in their direction. And the combination of the two are like oil and water. It doesn’t provoke any kind of communication. And it leaves us all stagnant and stuck in a rut and unwilling to venture out and go forward.
"What I like to do is I like to make sure no matter who you are or what you are, if you have something that makes sense, that’s intelligent to say, you can call my show and, even if I disagree with you, I’m going to say, 'I respect your opinion, I understand where you come from, here’s how I look at it.' Or 'Here is why you have people in a different society, a different culture and different backgrounds, here's why they feel differently.'
"Sports is basically an escape from the real world. And in some ways it’s a microsm of society that you can use to touch on a varity of different things. And if you don’t take advantage of that opportunity, you have no business being on radio. It’s a waste of time. Because it’s the one thing (where) you call up, they can’t see who you are, you’re not giving your last name, you have no fear, therefore you’re allowed to express yourself. And it’s important we take advantage of that opportunity. For me, that’s the best part of being on radio.
"You’ve got to be fearless. Somebody’s got to put themselves on Front Street. In order to create dialogue, someone has to be a catalyst. The callers might be able to hide but the catalyst can’t hide. He has to willing to be front and center and stand in the eye of the storm and say, I’m promoting this dialogue. I pride myself in that. I told my bosses once I’d go interview the KKK if they let me -- if they promosed not to do me harm. Tell me when to show up. I’ll show up. I’m not scared. It’s important to be able to talk about anything and be willing to understand other people. Even if you disagree, if you understand them, what that will likely eliminate is the volitile approach to that. All right, I disagree, but you can make the hatred (be) gone if you’re willing to listen and understand where they’re coming from."