Sunday, April 15, 2012
An Unlikely Role Model
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdtejCR413c
The following link presents an advertisement displaying Lebron James. The film essentially talks of what he has gone through and “What should he do.” James’s commercial dictates him as being the labeled villain of the NBA, and he deems to be okay with such a name. The article ends with him just playing basketball and ignoring all the hype and critics that have plagued him for so long.
Such a commercial can be understood in multiple ways by adolescence. The advertisement was made roughly a few months after his infamous “Decision”, where he decided to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers on national television. The commercial and his choice were the topic of much controversy, causing many to ask whether he should be the role model for the NBA. He still remains the most talked about player of all time. Despite his poor label and cocky demeanor, his commercial characterizes ignoring all the insults and comments about oneself and focusing on what matters. A theme like that is admirable within a commercial, but should it be about one of the most disliked athletes in sports? Many would argue he should not be the role model for adolescents, or is he the perfect example?
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I am responding with prompt #2 Agree to Disagree. Basically the comments on the video take 1 of 2 sides. These sides being the people who hate LeBron or the people who like LeBron. However, it seems that even some of the people who hate him can agree that he is a great player despite the way he went about leaving Cleveland, which is where most of his hate is generated. Another thing that seems to come up is the fact that LeBron doesn't have a ring. Most of the people are saying that they just want to see LeBron become the superstar that he was hyped up to be, and winning a ring or rings for that matter would solidify the dominance LeBron has in the league. Some of the comments do happen to be completely irrelevant to the argument going on and pretty rude. One person said that he was from Cleveland and then used expletives to explain how much he hated LeBron. Overall the commenting is back and forth referencing of other users points and trying to come back with a rebuttal for whatever side of LeBron they defend.
ReplyDeleteAgree to Disagree
ReplyDeletePeople tend to agree that Lebron James is one of the best all around players currently in the NBA. A common disagreement includes the way in which he left Cleveland - with an hour long special. Despite the fact that Lebron may have POSSIBLY made a mistake in the way he left Cleveland the fact of the matter is that he is probably one of the best role models in sports. Unlike, for example, Tiger Woods he hasn't cheated on his partner with multiple women. He hasn't been charged with DUIs or drug possession, and he hasn't gone to jail. Some comments say that he can be cocky at times but if you were a grown man living out a dream you may be too (cut him some slack).
Most of the comments of people who do not like Lebron use the comparison of him to many all time greats and the fact that he has yet to win a ring. They also talk about his sometimes lack of production in fourth quarters. Additionally, there's some cursing which shows to prove how hostile some commentors are towards one another.
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ReplyDeleteI do not believe this particular post has any effect on how the individuals that commented on it feel about LeBron James. I am pretty sure everyone who watched this commercial already had a predetermined opinion about LeBron James and the “ultimate choice” he made. The evidence that supports this is many commenters posted about LeBron in negative ways saying he is cocky and mentioning he has been playing for almost a decade and has not received a ring. This shows that the commenters are familiar with LeBron’s career and have their own opinions about him already. Some of the commenters however appreciated the commercial. Many of them made comments supporting LeBron and saying he made the choice for HIM and comparing him to Michael Jordan. I think this commercial could maybe give someone who didn’t really care for his decision more insight on why he made the choice he did based on what kind of person he really is, but I do not think it would change the mind of a viewer if they already had a predetermined opinion about him.
I wouldn’t say he is the perfect remodel because no one really is, but I completely agree with Kingsley, people need to cut him some slack. He has not done anything to be labeled as a “bad remodel”. He made a decision that he ultimately wanted to make. As far as being cocky, I think he is far from that. He is a star NBA basketball player! He is going to have a certain level of confidence in himself and his abilities. I think his decision showed many of his fan’s true colors. It just really showed how many of them were true LeBron fans and how many were Cavalier fans. I truly think many of the commenters with negative views are upset because LeBron left Cleveland and they were Cavaliers fans. The fact of the matter is if you are a fan of the TEAM it will not matter who comes or goes. With that being said, LeBron James in my opinion is a good remodel. He did what he had to do, and many people are just mad because it caused the team that they supported to have to put in a little extra work and not have one star to depend on as their “go-to” player.
I am responding to prompt number three, which is speak for yourself. In this Nike advertisement, LeBron James is featured throughout the commercial stating, “What should I do?” He ignores all the negative comments and insults directed towards him. This is a respectable theme that LeBron James is representing. However, many people completely dislike Lebron James for turning his back on his hometown team of the Cleveland Cavaliers. This creates a conflict of deciding upon whether or not LeBron James should be considered a role model. I have mixed feelings on the subject of LeBron James, since I was a huge cavaliers fan. I was upset when he left, but I still know that he is a good person with the right intentions. This leads me to an argument about this comment in the YouTube video. The comment was, “Cleveland dislikes this video.” People need to get over the fact that Lebron James left the Cleveland Cavaliers. He was doing what was best for himself and others around him. He had no intentions of hurting the Cleveland Cavaliers fans. The National Basketball Association is a business. Everybody is looking for the best opportunity for themselves. The absence of Lebron James should not be a reason to hate the man. LeBron James is a great contributor to the community, especially in his hometown area of Akron, Ohio. This comment of, “Cleveland dislikes this video” is a sign of immaturity. Lebron James is still a good role model to the community. Adolescents should look upon him as a role model because overall LeBron James is a great contributor to increasing the well being of society.
ReplyDeleteI am responding to prompt #6: Stake your Claim. In one part of the video Lebron James asks: "should I tell you I am not a role model" and then it flips to a scene of him taking a big bite out of a doughnut covered in icing and sprinkles. This part of the ad makes it seem that the author is trying to say that Lebron James is not a good role model. This is evident when his tone of voice changes from questioning, when he says "or should i say", to stating, when he says "I am not a role model". Standing alone the tone that he uses to say "I am not a role model" sounds like he is stating that as a fact, not that he is asking if he is or is not a role model. This point is strengthened when he bites into that doughnut. As a famous athlete he should not be eating such unhealthy food. A good role model in America would not indulge in sweet foods like that and would be eating much healthier foods. This seems to enforce the claim that Lebron James is not a role model, there is no question to it. However the entire ad seems to have a sarcastic mood, so the author is probably using sarcasm here when it is stated that Lebron is a bad role model, and in fact the author may believe that he really is a good role model and may be trying to get the viewers to believe the same thing. But the author seems to be very careful and does not outwardly show such support for Lebron James as many of the viewers believe otherwise. In the comments on the video it is obvious that many people feel very negatively about Lebron, and a few people support him. The author probably realizes this and that is why they would state this claim that Lebron is a good role model so ambiguously: so that they will neither offend opposers nor supporters of Lebron.
ReplyDeleteI beleive that using one of the most controversial and disliked athletes gives the ad a stronger argument and more appeal. It really fires people up , especially the ones that hate Lebron, as is evident in the comments. More people will pay attention to the ad and it stirs more emotions than if they used an athlete that less people paid attention to. On the issue of whether or not he is a good role model: I can't really say. I don't really follow Lebron James, but just based on this commercial I don't see him as a bad role model just because of the "Decision" he made. He is a good athlete that is pursuing a great career; that sounds like a good role model to me.