Criticism of ‘First Take’ often becomes about audience

As First Take has grown into the biggest show on sports television, the show and its host, Stephen A. Smith, have become lightning rods for criticism of the entire industry. Many attribute the sensibility of First Take as a root cause for why talk shows on TV went downhill.

Skip Bayless’s return to the show last week provided an opportunity for these sorts of critics to rail against it once again (including us).

In reality, the reunion between Smith and Bayless was far more of a greatest-hits compilation than a return to the abrasive energy that propelled the show to great heights a decade-plus ago. But seeing the pair on screen brought fans and media together to trash debate television and the hosts, just like the good old days.

But in his own reaction to Bayless’ return to First Take, former ESPNer Bomani Jones offered a defense of the show, and more specifically, its audience. Jones underscored the way in which he sees the criticism toward First Take often veers into criticism of the audience, which is to say regular people with their televisions on during the day and, in the case of First Take specifically, a large subset of Black viewers.

“I have always felt about the class of people who critique sports media, when they talk about First Take, that First Take is an easy scapegoat for them,” Jones said on his podcast.

“Daytime programming at ESPN has always had a huge Black audience. I bring that up to say, generally speaking, white people don’t really know what to say when they watch something, and they get a signal that it ain’t for them. Black people typically keep on watching. But a lot of those criticisms of First Take, I have always heard in a way and have felt to a degree like they were also, a wee bit, criticisms of the audience. Whether people intended for it to be that way or not.”

While Jones acknowledged that First Take has “earned” plenty of criticism, he also believes Smith and Bayless earned the popularity that the show had at its peak. Just because First Take may be repulsive to some, Jones argued, is not proof that it is not relevant or influential in the big picture.

“People act like First Take became such a big deal because nobody liked it. Just because your friends didn’t like it, you think that nobody liked it,” he said.

“And that’s not true. There are a lot of people who like that show. There are a lot of people who watched that show.

“There were a lot of topics where when something happened in the news, you were like, ‘Yo, I gotta go see what Skip Bayless has to say about that.’ And a lot of you don’t want to admit that’s how you felt about it. But it’s the truth, and that’s a testament to how good that show could be when those two guys were doing it.”

In the years since Bayless left ESPN, First Take has evolved into more of a vehicle for Smith, which often means it is looser and goofier. At the same time, the rest of the media took a cue from the show. From Fox News and CNN to your favorite local radio show or sports podcast, the blueprint that Smith and Bayless laid is one of the primary blueprints for all of media these days.

Despite the clear issues that fact presents for news consumption and national discourse (or even a given viewer’s patience for yelling), Jones offered a reminder that the show is still successful in spite of what it might represent — especially among contingents of sports fans who do not have platforms to opine about the industry:

“Two guys who really enjoy each other’s company and really respect each other, arguing with each other about sports, wins.”