After LeBron James criticized a reporter for not asking him about the controversial Jerry Jones photo, Bomani Jones reflected on athletes talking about social and political issues.
The Washington Post shared a 65-year-old photo of teenage Jerry Jones, who was among a group of young white men blocking the integration of black students into Arkansas high schools. Shortly after I questioned him about Kyrie Irving’s recent anti-Semitic controversy, I believed it was a controversy the media should have asked him.
About the latest episode of his ESPN podcast right time, Bomani Jones was joined by Domonik Foxworth to discuss James’ frustrations. I believed there was more to it than there should be. But he thought, “Why didn’t you ask me about Jerry Jones?” “Ridiculous” complaints.
“There was a time like five years ago when people were talking about this network a lot and people were talking about political things outside of sports,” Jones said, noting that ESPN doesn’t always stick to sports. “And I actually have a lot of empathy with my boss about this situation. Here’s why. People evaluate whether they agree with what you say.” How well you speak about these things is determined by how well you can navigate the topic, not necessarily how well you can navigate it.”
Regarding athletes like LeBron addressing social and political issues, Jones said, “The truth is most people are not qualified to talk about these things in front of the world.” It’s very difficult to be able to handle it, and most of the people in front of you aren’t qualified to ask follow-up questions, so you’re just lucky.”
Despite the fact that it’s difficult to talk about social issues in public, more and more people seem to be willing to talk about them, even if they don’t have enough information. Thank Trump (seen above at the Baylor Bears women’s basketball team’s 2019 ceremony) and his ignorance.
“This happened in Trump’s prime,” Jones said. “Trump took away the idea that he had to know what he was talking about before he could talk about something and be respected for whatever it was. When the president of the United States kicked it in a certain way, we really had to open the door to ‘if that’s how you feel’. By the way. So maybe that’s where we get when LeBron throws something of this sort. ”
If the general public responds with a shrug when the president bluntly riffs on polarizing issues, everyone can confidently tackle the same topic without being harsh.
[The Right Time; photo from Geoff Burke/USA Today Sports]
