The New Media is Nothing New

Aug 28

Athletes of this generation have long despised the media for molding narratives that tend to follow players throughout their careers. After seeing a spikew in the number of analysts and talking heads on television, athletes have decided those best qualified to educate others about the game should be those who have played on the professional level themselves.

With this comes the rise of new media, as players such as Draymond Green, Matt Barnes, and J.J. Redick host weekly podcasts. The players provide their audience with a unique perspective that often delivers amazing content. Unfortunately, although these players have the ability to supply educational insights like no other, their platforms often lack the necessary structure to eliminate bias and variance.

The Boardroom serves as a prime example, with the media company founded by Kevin Durant lacking any substantive coverage of the current status of his career. As the NBA superstar sent the league into chaos with his trade request from the Brooklyn Nets just last week, his so-called media company had no reporting on the issue whatsoever. Rather than taking the opportunity to provide exclusive insight into the situation, Durant chose to exclude the topic of conversation from his media coverage altogether.

LeBron James has been known to do the same with Uninterrupted and SpringHill. While appearing on episodes of The Shop to discuss current events and issues, both on and off the court, James has consistently avoided addressing ongoing conversations related to his career. Most notably of late, James has kept silent on the status of a potential contract extension with the Lakers, along with the organization's deep-rooted desire to trade Russell Westbrook.

That said, there remains a great deal of value in the content players can provide through their independent platforms.

Such unfiltered perspectives from some of the best players have proven to be quite educational for those looking to expand their sports knowledge. Nevertheless, as long as these athletes continue to pick and choose what they deem acceptable for news-related content, the new media will never be the new thing.