(Robert Jonathan, Headline USA) ESPN anchor Sage Steele announced Tuesday that she is making a career change after reaching a settlement in her lawsuit against the sports network and its parent company, Disney.
In what she labeled as a life update, Steele, 50, explained the following on X (formerly known as Twitter).
“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!”
In a statement, ESPN confirmed that “ESPN and Sage Steele have mutually agreed to part ways. We thank her for her many contributions over the years.”
Steele continued to co-host SportsCenter while her lawsuit against ESPN was pending. Steele sued ESPN in April 2022 for allegedly violating her free-speech rights after she publicly spoke against Disney’s COVID-19 employee vaccine mandate.
The broadcaster—one of the very few ESPN personalities who seldom went along with the far-left, social justice narrative that has politicized the channel—had previously turned down a $500,000 settlement offer.
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
Out-of-court settlements of this nature are usually kept confidential, unless the details leak out or are otherwise revealed. The terms often include a non-disparagement binder, so it remains to been seen as to the degree to which Steele can indeed talk openly about the ESPN drama.
Steele, who reluctantly complied with the corporate jab edict, allegedly was suspended from her job after telling former NFL QB Jay Cutler on his podcast that the policy, rather than allowing people to make their own individual healthcare decisions, was “scary” and “sick.”
During the same interview, Steele—who is biracial—made some controversial remarks about how Barack Obama identifies himself, which apparently also displeased corporate execs.
The case, in which she accused ESPN other transgressions including breach of contract, was scheduled for trial in March 2024.
Steele may have had the upper hand in the litigation because a law on the books in Connecticut, the home of ESPN headquarters and where the case was filed, protects employees from any workplace disciplinary action for exercising their free-speech rights under the U.S. or state constitution.
ESPN’s internal political spats have been simmering within the company for years.
Back in 2016, ESPN’s public editor (a position later abolished) diplomatically wrote: “Internally, there’s a feeling among many staffers—both liberal and conservative—that the company’s perceived move leftward has had a stifling effect on discourse inside the company and has affected its public-facing products. Consumers have sensed that same leftward movement, alienating some.”
The-then editor, Jim Brady, quoted an unnamed conservative employee who said, “If you’re a Republican or conservative, you feel the need to talk in whispers.”
Parenthetically, even despite her liberal bona fides, NBA specialist Rachel Nichols—another 16-year employee—found herself sidelined, which ultimately culminated in a January 2022 exit agreement, after getting caught on a hot mic complaining about the company’s diversity protocols.
