Sage Steele, the former ESPN anchor who faced backlash for her comments on vaccine mandates, female sports reporters, and Barack Obama’s racial identity, has left the network after settling a lawsuit.
Steele had been with ESPN since 2007 but was taken off the air in 2021 following her remarks on a podcast hosted by Jay Cutler.
During the podcast, she voiced her concerns about the company’s vaccine mandate, stating that while she respected individual choices, mandating it was “sick” and “scary” to her.
In addition, she questioned Obama’s decision to identify as Black on the census and commented on the responsibility of female sports reporters in sexual harassment situations, suggesting that they should be accountable too.
Steele later apologized for these comments, but she filed a lawsuit against ESPN, accusing them of retaliation and violating her freedom of speech. Recently, Steele appeared on “The Megyn Kelly Show” and spoke about her punishment, admitting that she was scared to return to work after her suspension.
“I was mad, but more than anything, I was devastated because I had been such a good soldier, such a good employee for 17 years and proud of it,” Steele told Kelly, via Awful Announcing. “I was scared to go back to work when I got off of my suspension. I was so scared. Because I had been made to believe that everybody hated me. And you don’t just walk back in and work, you walk back in and you have to perform on live national television in front of millions of people.”
She expressed her devastation over feeling like everyone hated her and the pressure of performing on live television.
Despite the ongoing lawsuit against her employer, she returned to work and maintained her professionalism. Steele’s departure from ESPN was announced on July 27, and the network said in a statement that they had mutually agreed to part ways, thanking her for her contributions over the years. While Steele hasn’t revealed her next career move, many speculate that she may end up as a contributor on Fox News in the future.
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