Jemele Hill leaving ESPN in September, according to multiple reports

Kirkland Crawford | Detroit Free Press

Show Caption Hide Caption Jemele Hill to leave ESPN in September with buyout ESPN personality Jemele Hill will reportedly leave the network at the beginning of September, according to noted author and media reporter James Miller.

Jemele Hill, the Detroit native and former Free Press writer who drew the ire of some, including the president, will reportedly leave ESPN at the beginning of September.

James Miller, the longtime ESPN chronicler posted on Twitter Saturday night that Hill and ESPN have come to "an amicable" buyout of her contract, reportedly a multi-million dollar deal, which goes into effect on this coming Saturday.

Hill requested a meeting with new ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro, according to Miller.

The Athletic media reporter Richard Deitsch reports that Hill and her longtime friend, Kelley L. Carter, another metro Detroit native and former Free Press writer, are starting a production company, aptly named Lodge Freeway Media.

As first reported by @JimMiller, @jemelehill is leaving ESPN. She approached management. Hill and @KelleyLCarter have a production company -- Lodge Freeway Media -- so that will be part of her post-ESPN world. She leaves ESPN in September after wrapping up some stuff. — Richard Deitsch (@richarddeitsch) August 26, 2018

While Hill has not directly addressed the reports, she did provide a funny status update on Sunday morning:

Live look at my mentions pic.twitter.com/yxkE88Nqwr — Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) August 26, 2018

Hill has been with ESPN since 2006, first as a national columnist, then as a panelist and contributor for several shows.

Hill and Michael Smith found their groove with the ESPN2 show, "His and Hers," and in 2017, the pair became the co-anchors of a revamped "SportsCenter."

More: Michelle Beadle leaving ESPN's 'Get Up' program

Far from the traditional hosts of the network's flagship show, Hill and Smith were met with criticism for bringing their brand of sports discussion and pop culture to 6 p.m. weeknights.

The proverbial controversial fire was then stoked last September, when she called President Donald Trump a white supremacist in a tweet. It was the lynchpin of criticism the sports network has received for perceived political leanings.

A few days later, Hill said she regretted making the thoughts public. ESPN publicly reprimanded Hill, and White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Hill's tweet-storm is a "fireable offense."

Then in October, Hill suggested on social media that people should boycott Dallas Cowboys advertisers in reaction to owner Jerry Jones' stance on players protesting during the national anthem. ESPN suspended Hill for two weeks, which Hill later said was justified.

In January, it was announced that, at Hill's request, she would leave her post at "SportsCenter" to write more for The Undefeated, ESPN's ad hoc website focused on sports, culture and African-American issues, and do more guest commentary on other shows. Her last appearance on the network was Friday during the final episode of "SportsNation" in Los Angeles.

Earlier this summer, Detroit Mumford High School renamed its auditorium after Hill, who graduated from there in 1993.

A few weeks ago, Hill was in Detroit as co-chair of the National Association of Black Journalists' annual convention. She was awarded Journalist of the Year by the organization.

A former apprentice dating back to her high school days, Hill returned to the Free Press in 1999 and soon became the Michigan State beat writer. She left the Free Press in 2005 to become a columnist at the Orlando Sentinel before she joined ESPN.