Blog #7 Focusing on the Present

For any basketball fans out there, the one story that everyone watched, but did not want to, was Lebron James' decision on what team he was going to play for on ESPN. After the Cleveland Cavaliers lost in the 2009-2010 playoffs, almost everyone knew that Lebron James was going to be a free agent, which means he can go to any team he wants. There was so much buzz about Lebron James leaving Cleveland to play somewhere else. The people in Cleveland were so scared that they made a video and song just like the song for "We are the World" in hopes that Lebron stays. With this story, I believe many journalists were ready to talk about teams that Lebron James should go to. This was newsworthiness, because Lebron James is a 2-time MVP and one of the most popular players to this day. It was on July 1st that the hype of Lebron James made an impact on people everywhere. What team is he going to go to? Is he going to stay? Which team wants him the most? So many questions that Lebron James would make his decision on a Live one-hour special on ESPN. Many announcers and reporters of different shows talked about Lebron James and his decision. There was no balance on what people thought about Lebron James, because they are all one-sided on what teams he should play for. There were six teams that wanted him the most. New York Knicks, Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls, New Jersey Nets, Los Angeles Clippers, and his own team, Cleveland Cavaliers were the top choices that many people assumed that he would play for. When I saw that many people on the news were talking about this, I had to watch what was going on about him and other players, because I'm into basketball. I was thinking why was there so much hype for this one player? So he's good at basketball, but that doesn't mean he should have his own special airtime to make one simple decision. I find out that the people who talked to him about joining their team such as the New Jersey Nets would bring A-List people like Jay-Z in order to lure him into signing with their team. It was all over the media that many news coverage were talking about Lebron James and who he met with. The experts that talked about him were retired players that put their input on what team he should play for. On television, Charles Barkley, who was a popular NBA star, told the viewers his input on what team Lebron should be on. I believe this was a good strategy, but many of the retired players all said the same thing. They all said they have sources that told them that Lebron was going for this team or that. There were no actual facts just their opinions. It seems that the news coverage were talking about Lebron James going to the Miami Heat, because Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, both who are also top free agents, signed with the Miami Heat. With this speculation, many assume he would go there. On the night of his special, which was called "The Decision", the host took 20 minutes to find the answer. His answer was the Miami Heat and many people who were sources sprang out to get the attention that they were the first ones to answer. With just one answer, Lebron James' decision "generated a 7.3 rating" which is really good (tvbythenumbers.com). It seems that problems today are yesterdays news and people want to watch and know about is one person.

The Decision: http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/watch?v=mpnd-XyAG2g&feature=related

7.3 Rating: http://tvbythenumbers.com/2010/07/09/lebron-james’-announcement-generates-7-3-overnight-rating/56618