Stephen A. Smith Reacts To Shannon Sharpe's NSFW Livestream Incident

Stephen A. Smith is standing behind his ESPN “First Take” co-host, NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe, who sparked a media frenzy this week after he said he inadvertently livestreamed audio of himself engaging in a sex act.

Smith addressed the incident on his YouTube show on Friday, declaring that Sharpe told the truth when he said the intimate moment was accidentally broadcast on Instagram Live.

The ESPN personality said that Sharpe is “incredibly private” — and “clueless” when it comes to operating social media technology.

“Shannon Sharpe committed no crime. It wasn’t some sex tape he meant for everybody to hear. That’s not how he rolls,” Smith said.

“Trust me and believe, it was a mistake,” he later added.

Sharpe could not be seen in the live video, but two people could be heard moaning and breathing.

The former NFL tight end initially claimed that his Instagram account had been hacked, but he later admitted that wasn’t true.

“I threw my phone on the bed, engaged in an activity. I did not know IG Live. I’ve never turned IG Live on so I don’t know how it works, and all of sudden my other phone started going off,” he said on his “Nightcap” podcast on Wednesday. “My phone wasn’t hacked. It wasn’t a prank, it was me being a healthy, active male.”

Elsewhere on his podcast, Sharpe said that as someone who is “extremely, extremely private,” he was mortified about the whole ordeal.

“To have one of your most intimate details — the audio — heard, for the entire world to hear, I’m embarrassed for a number of reasons,” he said.

Support Free Journalism

Consider supporting HuffPost starting at $2 to help us provide free, quality journalism that puts people first.

Can't afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free