Most NBA players talk to the media. How many players OWN their media like LeBron James?
Do the NBA fans out there remember the quote “heard around the world” by Kevin Durant about the media and LeBron James to Ric Bucher of the Bleacher Report?
"“So much hype comes from being around LeBron from other people,” Durant said. “He has so many fanboys in the media. Even the beat writers just fawn over him. I’m like, we’re playing basketball here, and it’s not even about basketball at certain points. So I get why anyone wouldn’t want to be in that environment because it’s toxic. Especially when the attention is bullshit attention, fluff. It’s not LeBron’s fault at all; it’s just the fact you have so many groupies in the media that love to hang on every word. Just get out-of-the-way and let us play basketball.”"
Then he followed it up this week in an interview with the Wall Street Journal about hating the circus that goes with being a star in the NBA.
Well, you see, LeBron James does not have these problems because he founded a media company of his own to make sure the media does not frustrate him to the level of Durant.
LeBron talked to ESPN’s The Undefeated, Jerry Bembry about how he uses his media company, “Uninterrupted” to provide a platform for all athletes to tell their truths without worrying about being taken out of context.
"“I wanted athletes to feel like they had power, they had the platform to speak about whatever they wanted to speak about,” James said of the platform to The Undefeated’s Jerry Bembry, “and not have it cut, diced and split into soundbites where people could use it to how they wanted to use it.”"
Uninterrupted has many documentaries on Showtime and HBO. But none have been as successful as “The Shop”. It has been a smash hit with athletes and entertainers talking about social issues. LeBron James has been very candid about what he believes is going on in the world.
Lake Show Life covered numerous shows throughout last season. He was definitely vocal about the aforementioned NFL. He discussed fatherhood and his greatest NBA failure with Drake and indirectly started a rap beef in episode two.
But his documentary, Student Athlete, may have been the seed that started the potential bill in California. It showed the dark side of what college players have to deal with financially trying to get by without any compensation from the NCAA.
Think LeBron didn’t notice?
https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1169632194010071040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1169632194010071040&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.businessinsider.com%2Fhow-lebron-james-advocates-for-labor-rights-player-empowerment-2019-9