Media, not LeBron James, fueled NBA free agency hysteria
Over the past few days we couldn't go anywhere without hearing the next big scoop of where prized free agent, and arguably best player in the NBA, LeBron James was going to play ball next year.
James of course opted out of his contract with the Miami Heat after being drubbed by the San Antonio Spurs in this years' NBA finals. Teammates Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh of the "Big 3" also opted out.
This of course set off a media frenzy of nearly every talking head, NBA insider, well, pretty much anyone with an opinion saying the possibly destinations where James would play.
But mark it down...July 11, James said he was going back to Cleveland, where his career began and unceremonious left four years ago. Does that make Cleveland a title contender? Too early to say, but getting James back certainly improves their chances. But if the Miami experiment proved anything, it showed you can have the best player in the world, but teams, like the Spurs, are what wins championships.
But unlike four years ago, there was no big hour-long TV special on ESPN titled "The Decision II." No, this time James was quiet, met with some owners, probably fielded some phone calls and then made a decision...virtually the same thing most free agents do.
James conducted himself as a mature professional this go around, and that should be commended.
Sadly, the media failed on virtually every level on this one, especially ESPN. All the hysteria was caused by radio talking heads, prognosticators, insiders and "journalists." Every day, every hour was inundated with maybes, guesses and "insiders with insider info that had the inside scoop" on where King James would end up.
I understand the broadcast stations such as ESPN are in the business of entertainment, and they have to have something to fill 24 hours in a day. But this running news cycle, mixed with social media, I believe has taken the journalistic process of investigating, getting leads, tracking down sources, running with ideas for a story and finally reporting the story, out from the minds of journalist and into the blogosphere.
It appears it is now okay for journalists to take off their filters and spew every thought, theory and lead that comes to them into cyberspace for all to see, regardless of if it is correct or not. This is partially due to them not wanting to get scooped, but the fear of "being scooped" shouldn't make you post drivel and unconfirmed, unsourced info out to the masses.
Yet sadly, this is what has become of the national journalism profession.
I may be old fashioned, but the job of a journalist is to first and foremost do no harm, and that means acting as a gatekeeper and filtering out bad information, finding the good, confirming it with credible sources and then, presenting it to the public in a clear, concise story.
But this whole LeBron free agency hysteria was completely counter intuitive to that.
This goes back to the reason I quit watching ESPN outside of it s actual sports broadcasts...what was once a bastion of credible sports journalism has become nothing more than a 24-hour speculative, entertainment channel.
I'll say it again, I give credit to James for not making a big deal about this free agency thing. I also give full credit to the national media of completely creating the news instead of simply reporting it.
James of course opted out of his contract with the Miami Heat after being drubbed by the San Antonio Spurs in this years' NBA finals. Teammates Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh of the "Big 3" also opted out.
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| Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving, left, will be joined by LeBron James, as James returns to Cleveland afterfour years with the Miami Heat. James' decision ends a media created hysteria. |
But mark it down...July 11, James said he was going back to Cleveland, where his career began and unceremonious left four years ago. Does that make Cleveland a title contender? Too early to say, but getting James back certainly improves their chances. But if the Miami experiment proved anything, it showed you can have the best player in the world, but teams, like the Spurs, are what wins championships.
But unlike four years ago, there was no big hour-long TV special on ESPN titled "The Decision II." No, this time James was quiet, met with some owners, probably fielded some phone calls and then made a decision...virtually the same thing most free agents do.
James conducted himself as a mature professional this go around, and that should be commended.
Sadly, the media failed on virtually every level on this one, especially ESPN. All the hysteria was caused by radio talking heads, prognosticators, insiders and "journalists." Every day, every hour was inundated with maybes, guesses and "insiders with insider info that had the inside scoop" on where King James would end up.
I understand the broadcast stations such as ESPN are in the business of entertainment, and they have to have something to fill 24 hours in a day. But this running news cycle, mixed with social media, I believe has taken the journalistic process of investigating, getting leads, tracking down sources, running with ideas for a story and finally reporting the story, out from the minds of journalist and into the blogosphere.
It appears it is now okay for journalists to take off their filters and spew every thought, theory and lead that comes to them into cyberspace for all to see, regardless of if it is correct or not. This is partially due to them not wanting to get scooped, but the fear of "being scooped" shouldn't make you post drivel and unconfirmed, unsourced info out to the masses.
Yet sadly, this is what has become of the national journalism profession.
I may be old fashioned, but the job of a journalist is to first and foremost do no harm, and that means acting as a gatekeeper and filtering out bad information, finding the good, confirming it with credible sources and then, presenting it to the public in a clear, concise story.
But this whole LeBron free agency hysteria was completely counter intuitive to that.
This goes back to the reason I quit watching ESPN outside of it s actual sports broadcasts...what was once a bastion of credible sports journalism has become nothing more than a 24-hour speculative, entertainment channel.
I'll say it again, I give credit to James for not making a big deal about this free agency thing. I also give full credit to the national media of completely creating the news instead of simply reporting it.
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