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Tomorrow is the start of the NBA season. Which is great, bc we all love the NBA. It’s also problematic bc I have to steel myself for the onslaught of think pieces & columns by white writers who know nothing abt black culture.
In football & baseball you can get away with discussing culture without having to understand it (although its becoming tougher in the NFL to do that) all that much. In the NBA? Nah, you need to know.
The NBA is a certain kind of black aesthetic. It doesn’t encapsulate the whole of the black experience, but it enough of it to where it’s noticeable. So when ppl opine abt the NBA, it's almost always about black culture. Well, here’s the issue...
There are tons of NBA media ppl who know zero abt black culture & care even less. Yet are able to make pretty good careers off of it. Of course I know this, because I worked at SLAM Magazine and I saw it up close.
Now just for the record, this isn’t about any of the SLAM ppl I worked with. None of them are culture vultures. In fact, they’re all plugged in to the black experience about as much as one could expect.
Those who follow @thefarmerjones & @russbengtson know how much they’re on here absolutely speaking up. All the core SLAM when I was there are solid. They’re allies. #slamisfam is a real thing. I got love for all of them.
What Im talking right now about is systemic racism. For example, I started working at SLAM in 2002. I was the only black guy on staff. THE ONLY. Art staffers were white. Ad ppl as well. At photo shoots most photographers were white too.
SLAM was the most influential basketball media property on the planet. Precisely because of it’s cultural awareness & ability to swim in those waters. Staff wise we were lucky that everybody “got it” & never violated. That said, there were lots of things my co-workers didn’t
know abt black culture outside of basketball & hip hop and we spent countless days discussing it. Not saying I was in there like John Hope Franklin, but I did my best. BTW, if you cover the NBA & have no idea who John Franklin is, then you’re part of the problem.
When I say systemic I mean, how things can set up in the 1st place where a culturally connected bball mag can have a majority white staff in the 1st place. It concerned me for the future of sports media and the way things are now, well, it's exactly what I feared.
You have NBA writers who know about MLK but never heard of Ralph David Abernathy. Who know about Harlem’s Rucker Park, but never heard of the Harlem Hellfighters.
They know everything about the Fab Five, but ask them if they remember when the University of Michigan was dealing with affirmative action lawsuits in the late ‘90s. They don't know and don't a give a crap.
They know about Slavery, but not Reconstruction. They read Coates, but never read Isabel Wilkerson. They watch Power, but not Blackish or Queen Sugar. Deep down they believe Tamir Rice only has himself to blame.
NBA writers don’t know anything abt our heritage, abt black love, black families, the issues we face. But somehow they're responsible for deciphering black culture to the masses. It's always bothered me & I spoke about it sometimes & sometimes didn’t. But now in 2017..
Considering everything going on, I'm pissed that these ppl are taking jobs away from black writers. More qualified black writers. Beat writers are fine. If you’re just covering the game, X's and O's, box scores, injury reports, trades, etc. I’m ok with it. But the rest? Nah..
This thread is long, I know. But hold up, bc, Im almost home...
Consider how few black women on TV get to talk about the NBA. Not sideline reporters, I mean, studio shows. Now think of how many white women you see in these spots. Think abt the number of editors at sites & how few are black.
I'm talking the decision makers. Not AEs. I mean, SEs, DEs and EICs. Think about the trickle down impact. When stories break the ppl who decided who gets covered and how the story is framed. Think abt all the blk writers and editors not getting shots.
Problem is that there exists a large # of NBA fans who don't care about black people. However, if in order to enjoy NBA games and the accompanying culture attached they'll accept it. But only if comes through the lens of white writers. It’s all the BS
It offends me as a black man and as a journalist that the whole "we gotta work twice as hard" thing exists in 2017 in basketball media. Does it offend you? If not, you're part of the problem
I'm about done here, but keep this thread in mind when the season starts tomorrow. Keep it in mind all season and watch who gets jobs and who doesn't. Watch who crafts narratives. It's a game on the court, but real life to us. #NBABack
