That's exactly right - it's all marketing. It basically takes the same premence from political talk shows and applies it to sports. But Stephen A plays the role very well. And he makes First Take a ton of money. A ton.
Stephen A Smith is great at marketing ESPN stuff, but would you take his advice about Hong Kong or International matters? probably not.
I would take his advice only when it comes to using antagonism to build an audience/brand. That's it.
