Over the past few months, ESPN has had major turnover with some of the network’s most notable personalities seeing their jobs cut in layoffs and contracts not renewed.
It turns out that the exodus of on-air talent isn’t quite over yet, but the latest departure was under far different circumstances.
On Tuesday, longtime SportsCenter anchor Sage Steele — who had filed a lawsuit against Disney and ESPN last year — announced that she was leaving the network after 16 years. While Steele had framed the exit as her own decision, ESPN issued a statement that the two parties agreed mutually to part ways.
Life update.
Having successfully settled my case with ESPN/Disney, I have decided to leave so I can exercise my first amendment rights more freely. I am grateful for so many wonderful experiences over the past 16 years and am excited for my next chapter!#SteeleStrong— Sage Steele (@sagesteele) August 15, 2023
Steele had said her departure was motivated by her desire exercise her First Amendment rights freely, which was also the focus of her lawsuit that she had initially refused to settle.
Steele alleged that her rights were violated when ESPN disciplined her for anti-vaccine comments on Jay Cutler’s podcast. Of course, First Amendment protection applies to government entities and not private corporations that are allowed to uphold rules on acceptable speech — particularly for public-facing employees. But the lawsuit was settled nonetheless.
Basically, it was a strange tweet as Steele admitted she was giving up her job to pursue a career in saying things without consequences. As of late, that has entailed her and ESPN personality Sam Ponder spreading transphobic talking points about women’s sports.
Steele’s last appearance on ESPN was in July.