To my colleagues covering the LeBron James debacle: Just say no!
It’s a heady thing chasing the biggest local story — perhaps the biggest sports story in the country. Almost intoxicating. That’s because there is more than ample evidence that interest in this young athlete has reached unheard-of levels.
When the New York Times and the Washington Post want front seats to this drama and ESPN Sportscenter calls it today’s highlight, it’s understandable to get caught up in the commotion.
My plea: Let it go. Move on. This story, too, shall pass.
As I type these words, I know I am adding more noise to all the shouting. And I realize I am placing myself down in the quagmire amid the other pundits proselytizing against the exploitation of LeBron. OK, consider me guilty as charged.
But, enough is enough. It’s time for the media to say no to high-hanging, over-the-rim coverage of this kid. Feeding this frenzy has to end.
In a column last August, I wrote, “The glare of the media spotlight has robbed LeBron James of his privacy. Let’s leave him his good name.”
We’re way past that now. Let’s just leave him alone. If we can’t do that, let’s at least put him in proper perspective.
Sports are meant to be a diversion from life’s hardships, entertainment to ease the weary soul.
Instead, this serial saga is giving readers nothing but headaches.
Force-feeding readers a daily diet of LeBron is making many of them sick, and they’re letting me know. I’ve had so many bricks thrown at me in the last two weeks, I could build a new house.
That’s OK. My job is to listen to readers and I do so gratefully. But my job also is to give voice to readers. So here it is: Stop pandering to an audience that has turned its back to this story.
Listen to what people are saying:
From teacher Connie Drennon: “I’m extremely angry. This is an example of how our priorities are way out of whack.”
From 50-year subscriber Karen Sizemore: “You people have no idea what the people want. I’m tired of hearing about it.”
From longtime reader Bill Brown of Tallmadge: “I am one of a growing number of readers who have had it `up-to-here’ with LeBron stories and pictures. The newspaper… keeps going on and on about a story and won’t let it die.”
From Eddie Vidmar of Akron: “How sad is it that it took seven people dying in the space shuttle tragedy to get LeBron James off the front page?”
From Kellie Metzger, who works at Akron General Medical Center: “I am absolutely revolted about this LeBron James obsession! I can’t stand listening to it anymore!”
Neither can I. Neither can dozens of other readers who have complained.
Perhaps surprisingly, neither can many of the newsroom staffers, journalists who now cringe and groan at the mention of another LeBron story.
Columnist David Giffels refuses to write about him. Sports columnist Terry Pluto calls it “the most difficult story that I’ve dealt with in my 25 years as a full-time sports journalist.”
Why? Because the “LeBron situation,” as he calls it, is unusual to the point of being unique and has so many controversial aspects to it. But also because readers are outraged no matter what he writes. And because his efforts to cover other area athletes are getting ignored in the fury and folly surrounding King James.
A lot of good journalism goes unnoticed these days. The bright light of the LeBron story is so blinding readers that they aren’t seeing much else.
Yes, it did take a shuttle tragedy to knock LeBron from the front page. For the moment. Now what’s it going to take to restore sanity to a story that has warped into wackiness?
We’re losing perspective here. We’re about to embark on a huge war. We have Koreans tossing around nuke threats. Our state may tax our very last breath to stay solvent. Our schools are struggling. Our babies continue to be shaken.
These things matter.
LeBron’s latest stumble doesn’t.
