A leaked audio clip has ignited a controversy surrounding ESPN, revealing a staff member’s comments about sports personality Stephen A. Smith. The clip, posted by James O’Keefe, founder of the far-right activist group Project Veritas, allegedly captures a conversation between a person identified as LA-based assignment editor and producer Ryan Bertrand and another individual.

ESPN Staffer Calls Stephen A. Smith An “Angry Black Man” As Racist Comments Ignite Massive Controversy

In the audio, the person believed to be Bertrand is heard commenting on the perceived racial undertones of Smith’s on-air persona. “We have this one guy, his name is Stephen A. Smith, he plays the angry Black man on TV,” the voice says. “The angry Black man stereotype is basically, you’re loud, you talk over people, what you say is not necessarily important, it’s more how loud you are and how, I guess, you deliver your speech.