What team? LeBron!

In recent years, LeBron James has become synonymous with the word basketball, the NBA, and ESPN. If you do not follow basketball you probably have a general sense of what his most recent public relations scheme has been. Earlier this week I got an update from Sports Center about an interview he had and it simply read “LeBron was talking about himself.” Now I cannot take away from his athletic abilities because he is a talented athlete, but media bias is present within this situation. Particularly ESPN has created this media bias situation. There are special segments dedicated to him on a regular basis when he has not done anything special. While he has significant accomplishments it is not fair to dedicate a large amount of time to solely him and take away from other talented athletes. Targeting one athlete, particularly as ESPN targets LeBron, also takes away from reporting about basketball.

            Basketball can be bigger than the sport itself. It is kind of odd that I am a basketball fan myself considering I grew up dancing competitively and have never played a game of basketball in my life. I did however grow up in Oklahoma City. A place where it was not a possibility to have an NBA team until Hurricane Katrina and nevertheless a title contending team. The city of Oklahoma City has transformed from a larger than average farm town to a promenade city. The economy has grown, the population has increased, and for once it is cool to be from Oklahoma because of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. All of this was possible because of the game of basketball. It does not have much to do with the teams record or and one player, but the moral boost the NBA presence brought to the city.

            Something as simple as the sport of basketball can have a greater impact than targeting one person. I have seen this happen firsthand in OKC. The NBA has programs in place targeting giving back and individual teams have their own programs targeting needs in their specific city. These programs and the positive impact brought by the NBA and other professional athletic organizations are important. Basketball is important. It makes a difference and that may be difficult to measure in numbers at times. It might be difficult to understand how a team with a losing record is turning a profit. When it is examined in further detail, you can see that there is a kid who begs for tickets to a game because he wants to be an NBA player. Or the girl who wants to be a cheerleader for the team. Or the little boy who plays in neighborhood pickup games in his favorite NBA jersey. These kids are who are truly impacted by the game of basketball and who it makes a difference for.

            Basketball is bigger than one person and bigger than LeBron. Highlighting one person for their accomplishments is great and I have great confidence LeBron appreciates the attention. The media bias ESPN has created is taking away from the potential difference ESPN could make. Spreading the coverage to a broader scope of events within the NBA could be more beneficial and more relevant to viewers. As with twenty-four hour news coverage, a problem with having so many outlets for ESPN to reach viewers and users is that the coverage becomes mundane and unfocused. Choosing to pick and choose stories that could have a greater overall impact on viewer’s verses highlighting one person or just LeBron. LeBron James, you are a talented athlete, but let’s see some other athletes once in a while.   

Just a small blurb about basketball from yours truly.


Your Favorite Redhead