{"id":2326365,"date":"2024-08-18T17:10:51","date_gmt":"2024-08-18T21:10:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sage-steele-offers-faith-fueled-words-after-espn-fires-host-who-defended-sanctity-of-womens-sports\/"},"modified":"2024-08-18T17:13:03","modified_gmt":"2024-08-18T21:13:03","slug":"sage-steele-offers-faith-fueled-words-after-espn-fires-host-who-defended-sanctity-of-womens-sports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sage-steele-offers-faith-fueled-words-after-espn-fires-host-who-defended-sanctity-of-womens-sports\/","title":{"rendered":"Sage Steele Offers Faith-Fueled Words After ESPN Fires Host Who Defended Sanctity of Women&#8217;s Sports"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsage-steele-offers-faith-fueled-words-after-espn-fires-host-who-defended-sanctity-of-womens-sports%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2326365&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Samantha Steele Ponder, a renowned female sports \u200bjournalist, has been laid off\u200d from ESPN, a decision\u200c met with strong support from \u200bher friend\u200d Sage \u200cSteele, a\u200d former ESPN personality. Sage Steele\u200d praised Ponder&#8217;s contributions \u2062to \u200bthe \u2063industry and\u200d her defense of women\u2019s sports in light\u200b of\u2064 controversies surrounding transgender athletes competing in women&#8217;s categories. Steele expressed that while ESPN views \u2062the \u2062layoffs as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/lawsuit-alec-baldwin-had-no-reason-to-fire-gun-during-scene-being-rehearsed\/\" title=\"Lawsuit: Alec Baldwin Had No Reason to Fire Gun During Scene Being Rehearsed\">cost-cutting measure<\/a>, it represents a loss \u2063for\u2062 the network and\u200d a gain for Ponder, who has the potential \u2062for greater impact outside of ESPN.\u200b Steele \u200chighlighted Ponder&#8217;s \u200bcharacter and \u2064values, celebrating her role \u2063as\u2064 a mother and activist, and conveyed\u200b optimism about Ponder&#8217;s future endeavors.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section>\n<p>One of the country&rsquo;s most prominent women in sports journalism has weighed in on ESPN getting rid of one of its most prominent female faces.<\/p>\n<p>And Sage Steele, a former ESPN personality who has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/megyn-kelly-sage-steele-team-bury-us-open-ditching-star-spangled-banner-black-national-anthem\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">become a national voice<\/a> for the conservative conservative cause, held nothing back in praising Samantha Steele Ponder.<\/p>\n<p>The move represented ESPN&rsquo;s loss, Steele said, but the rest of the world&rsquo;s gain.<\/p>\n<p>ESPN on Thursday <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/espn-axes-two-prominent-air-personalities-unexpected-shakeup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">announced<\/a> that Ponder had been laid off along with analyst and former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III.<\/p>\n<p>Ponder was a sideline reporter for the network as well as host of ESPN&rsquo;s &ldquo;Sunday NFL Countdown.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>  <script> \t\t\t\tif( ! getCookie( 'ff_subbed' ) ) if( typeof FFADS.replace_ict !='undefined' ) if( FFADS.replace_ict ) eval( FFADS.replace_ict ); \t\t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>She also defended the sanctity of women&rsquo;s sports, in an era where the madness of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/report-male-swimmer-competing-female-considers-jackie-robinson-trans-sports\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">men competing against women<\/a> in physical strength is justified under the pretense of men being &ldquo;trans.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In May 2023, she passed along an endorsement of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-this-average-american-is-voting-for-donald-trump\/\" title=\"Why This Average American Is Voting for Donald Trump\">social media post<\/a> by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/riley-gaines-enrages-dem-congresswoman-rebuttal-bigotry-allegation-sending-hearing-chaos\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Riley Gaines,<\/a> the prominent former collegiate swimmer who has become an activist for keeping women&rsquo;s sports safe for women.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It is not hateful to demand fairness in sports for girls,&rdquo; Ponder wrote wrote.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">I barely said anything publicly abt this issue &amp; I&rsquo;ve had so many ppl msg me, stop me in the street to say thank you+ tell me stories abt girls who are afraid to speak up for fear of lost employment\/being called hateful. It is not hateful to demand fairness in sports for girls <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/teNoMDWNW4\">https:\/\/t.co\/teNoMDWNW4<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Samantha Steele Ponder (@samponder) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/samponder\/status\/1661771033320337417?\">May 25, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>It was that kind of firmness of spirit that Steele saluted in a social media post published Thursday.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">I love you, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/samponder?\">@samponder<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/2IMwURVfMN\">pic.twitter.com\/2IMwURVfMN<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Sage Steele (@sagesteele) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/sagesteele\/status\/1824202292654227900?\">August 15, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>She said she and Ponder had been friends for years, &ldquo;mainly because of our similar values and our faith.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Samantha has taught me so much about God, about scripture, about the Bible, about not giving up and standing tall.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;She&rsquo;s done that for the last several years at ESPN.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Steele praised Ponder&rsquo;s life outside of ESPN, too.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This is a brilliant woman. An incredible mother who helped make me a better mother &hellip; And I&rsquo;m so excited for her future.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Steele also sees the job loss as an opportunity for Ponder.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Sam already knows that this is such a blessing that God is bestowing upon her, because there&rsquo;s so much more for her to do.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>And finally, she made it clear that what ESPN is billing as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nbc-may-end-10pm-primetime-programming\/\" title=\"NBC May End  10PM Primetime Programming\">cost-cutting move<\/a> is actually a loss for the network.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This is another loss for ESPN, but it is a gain for literally the rest of the world because now you&rsquo;re going to see the true Sam Ponder,&rdquo; she said.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\">  <\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> <label>* Name<\/label> <br \/> <input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> <\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> <label>* <\/label> <br \/> <input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> <\/div>\n<p> <label>* Message<\/label> <br \/> <textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea>  <\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> <input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\">  <\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script>  <\/div>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\">  <\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\">   <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> <\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\">   <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One of the leading women in sports journalism has commented on ESPN&#8217;s decision to let go of one of its most recognized female figures. Sage Steele, a former ESPN host who has emerged as a national advocate for conservative viewpoints, openly expressed her admiration for Samantha Steele Ponder. According to Steele, this decision marks a loss for ESPN but an opportunity for others. On Thursday, ESPN announced that Ponder was among those laid off, alongside analyst and ex-NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III. Ponder served as a sideline reporter and hosted &#8220;Sunday NFL Countdown&#8221; on the network.<\/p>\n<p>Ponder also defended the integrity of women&#8217;s sports during a time when men competing against women under the guise of being &#8220;trans&#8221; is often accepted. In May 2023, she supported a social media post by Riley Gaines, a well-known former collegiate swimmer advocating for the protection of women&#8217;s sports. Ponder stated that demanding fairness in sports is not hateful and shared her experiences with people expressing gratitude for her stance on this issue.<\/p>\n<p>Steele praised Ponder&#8217;s strong character in a social media post on Thursday, highlighting their long-standing friendship based on shared values and faith. She noted how much she has learned from Ponder about God and perseverance throughout their years at ESPN together.<\/p>\n<p>Steele also commended Ponder\u2019s life beyond her career at ESPN, calling her an exceptional mother who has positively influenced others. She views this job loss as an opportunity rather than just misfortune: \u201cSam already knows that this is such a blessing that God is bestowing upon her because there\u2019s so much more for her to do.\u201d Ultimately, Steele emphasized that while ESPN may see it as cost-cutting measure, it represents another setback for them but opens doors elsewhere: \u201cThis is another loss for ESPN; however, it\u2019s truly beneficial for everyone else because now you\u2019ll witness the real Sam Ponder.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2326366,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Picture-2024-08-17T121653.691.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[5851,5250,38471,37014,35638],"class_list":["post-2326365","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-espn","tag-faith","tag-sage-steele","tag-sports-commentary","tag-womens-sports"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Picture-2024-08-17T121653.691.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2326365","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2326365"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2326365\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2326366"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2326365"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2326365"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2326365"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}