Smith joined '' The New Republic '' in January 2015 , part of a wave of new hires following the 2014 removal of editor-in-chief Franklin Foer , which prompted the departure of 55 staff members and contributors . Foer 's replacement , Gabriel Snyder , hired Smith as a senior editor covering race , politics and gender . With the magazine facing criticism both from those upset by changes at the long-standing institution and also from those critical of the magazine 's history , particularly its treatment of race-related topics , Smith described his role , with colleagues , as aiming " to help usher this magazine into a different era . " While at '' The New Republic '' , Smith also launched and hosted the magazine 's first podcast , '' Intersection . '' In 2016 , Smith became a senior national correspondent for MTV News , hired alongside writers and editors including Ana Marie Cox , Jessica Hopper , Charles Aaron , Meredith Graves , Doreen St. Félix and Ira Madison III as part of a significant expansion of MTV News programming . Among other on-air appearances for MTV , Smith served as a co-host , with Charlamagne Tha God , Marc Lamont Hill and Franchesca Ramsey , of the joint MTV-BET townhall " What Now " , following the police shooting deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile and the shooting of police officers in Dallas that all took place in the first week of July 2016 . At MTV , Smith also hosted '' The Racket , '' a YouTube series on politics , especially the US Presidential campaign . He also appeared on the MTV News podcast '' The Stakes , '' including hosting an episode commemorating the 25th anniversary of the 1992 Los Angeles uprising
shooting of police officers in Dallas
2016 shooting of Dallas police officers
Jamil Smith (journalist)