Stephen A. Smith sympathized with Skip Bayless, his former “First Take” co-host, whereas discussing a lawsuit filed by Noushin Faraji, a former Fox Sports activities hairstylist, which accuses Bayless and others of inappropriate habits.
Throughout Monday’s installment of “The Stephen A. Smith Show” on YouTube, Smith mentioned he spoke to unnamed individuals about Faraji and that he’s “heartbroken” for his ex-colleague.
Within the 42-page lawsuit, which was first reported Sunday by Entrance Workplace Sports activities, Faraji alleges Bayless supplied her $1.5 million to have intercourse in July 2021 — and that she endured unwelcome bodily contact and sexual advances by Bayless for years.
“The Skip Bayless I know has a hard time giving away $15,” Smith mentioned, including that he “can’t imagine” Bayless doing that. “He’s one of the cheapest people I know … But that doesn’t mean that I have any inside knowledge of this — I don’t. And I’m not going to get involved.”
“… Imagining him on this place is surprising to say the least, and all I might inform you is that it’s not the Skip Bayless I do know. However clearly it is a authorized matter he’s going to must cope with as a result of this case doesn’t look like going away … This one that is a hair stylist, the people who I’ve spoken to within the final 24 hours which have some information about her says that she’s meticulous together with her particulars and he or she’s going to chronicle issues and that’s how she operates.
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“I don’t know her. I know Skip and I’m very, very heartbroken that he finds himself in this situation being accused of these allegations. But I can’t be all over the airwaves being irresponsible and attaching truth or guilt to anything.”
Smith added he didn’t know any data regarding the lawsuit.
“I haven’t been in that building in for over 20 years,” he mentioned. “I don’t know any details or anything like that. I don’t know what happened.”
Smith additionally defined that Bayless “doesn’t socialize with people” and he’s very regimented.
“I also feel it’s important that if you know people, or you think you know people, and you’ve had a longstanding relationship with those people, that it’s not a crime for you to say the person I know … the person I’ve worked with — in his case for four straight years from 2012 to 2016 doing ‘First Take’ … the person that I’ve seen really, really trusts almost no one and doesn’t expose himself to anybody,” Smith mentioned.
Bayless has but to publicly handle the lawsuit.
Faraji alleges that when she and others got here ahead to report the wrongdoing, Fox retaliated towards them, whereas the accused had been protected and inexplicably promoted.
The lawsuit additionally lists Fox Sports activities hosts Pleasure Taylor and Charlie Dixon, an Government Vice President of Content material, for FS1 as defendants.
“We take these allegations seriously and have no further comment at this time given this pending litigation,” Fox mentioned in a press release Monday.
