Media Bias

[crackjack]

I'm a man that gets by solely on charm and good looks. Well, sometimes, great looks. It depends on the day.

I've never been a smart man. Math was just never my thing.

So, someone please help me figure out how it is mathematically possible for the media to be biased AGAINST EVERY TEAM IN THE LEAGUE!!!

Every team message board in the world has fans complaining about how the media treats their teams bad.

How is that possible? Do people really believe that? Is blind loyalty really that strong? What gives?

[BullSoxChicago'sFinest]

That's what sells dude!

But really, for most fans, love fest = good writer/analyst, brutally honest = bad, biased against my team, etc

[crackjack]

I was the opposite when I was living in LA.

There's a guy there writing about the Lakers at the time that I hated. He disgusted me because he was too much of a kiss ass to the team.

I've never been one to shy away from bashing my own team if they deserve it. He basically wrote stories to ensure that he stays employed.

[KB24VC15]

Chuck Swirsky is the ultimate homer in the whole nba, if my team plays bad, i wll question and bash them for it, i'm not one to be a kiss ass just because its my fav team or my fav player, u play like crap, i will criticize it

[James_Dolan]

Knicks fans used to think that until they realized we really do suck.

[Optimism Prime]

John Hollinger's numbers are innately biased against your team. He even says so.


My team is ranked only (X) even though we've done (Y). Why do you hate my team so much?

The rankings are the result of a formula, plain and simple.

I have no subjective input into it whatsoever, and in fact the updated rankings are on ESPN.com before I'm awake. Although I am, in fact, horribly biased against your favorite team, their position in the rankings has nothing to do with this.

[Sedale Threatt]

I'm a man that gets by solely on charm and good looks. Well, sometimes, great looks. It depends on the day.

I've never been a smart man. Math was just never my thing.

So, someone please help me figure out how it is mathematically possible for the media to be biased AGAINST EVERY TEAM IN THE LEAGUE!!!

Every team message board in the world has fans complaining about how the media treats their teams bad.

How is that possible? Do people really believe that? Is blind loyalty really that strong? What gives?

Is blind loyalty really that strong? In one simple word, yes.

Most fans have an inflated view of their team and will defend it to the death, logic be damned. Just wait for the uproar that will take place amongst our own Laker fans if LeBron James or Chris Paul wins the MVP award instead of Kobe. Never mind the fact that both players are having fabulous seasons and would be completely deserving (as would Kobe).

It will be because The Media has a vendetta against Kobe.

I've had some pretty lengthy debates about this on our board. The average Laker fan honestly believes The Media is out to get Kobe. Instead of recognizing that he's made his mistakes and has his flaws, it's much easier to blame the evil, heartless reporters whose only goals in life are to rob Kobe of his just rewards. It's complete crap, in my opinion.

The Hollinger rankings that were just mentioned are another classic example about how unreasonable fans can be. It's a frigging mathematical formula that was implemented for the sole reason of removing any sort of subjective thinking from the process. That doesn't stop them from screaming bloody murder when their team isn't listed as high as they want.

A lot of people honestly believe you're not a good fan if you criticize or question your team. I'm with you, CJ -- I try call it like I see it. And I expect the writers to do the same.

[LALakers4ever]

So, someone please help me figure out how it is mathematically possible for the media to be biased AGAINST EVERY TEAM IN THE LEAGUE!!!

Actually, the media IS biased against most teams. Alot of these "journalists" don't relate with today's players, or the urban influence into NBA culture. This is largely why the NBA has dropped off to the #3 sport in America. It's hard for a league to thrive when the media is constantly attacking it.

[CupcakeNoFillin]

Man, I just know for a fact that the media is protecting LeBron James. I remember LeBron James got dunked on hella bad by Al Harrington on a fastbreak, yet the footage of it was found NO WHERE on ESPN, NBATV, all the websites etc. etc. etc.

The dunk on LeBron didn't make the top 10 countdown of the night, yet the countdown showed the 2 blocks that LeBron had during that game.

[snaquille oatmeal]

I'm a man that gets by solely on charm and good looks. Well, sometimes, great looks. It depends on the day.

I've never been a smart man. Math was just never my thing.

So, someone please help me figure out how it is mathematically possible for the media to be biased AGAINST EVERY TEAM IN THE LEAGUE!!!

Every team message board in the world has fans complaining about how the media treats their teams bad.

How is that possible? Do people really believe that? Is blind loyalty really that strong? What gives?

the republicans elected Bush, TWICE!!!!!!!

[Sedale Threatt]

Man, I just know for a fact that the media is protecting LeBron James. I remember LeBron James got dunked on hella bad by Al Harrington on a fastbreak, yet the footage of it was found NO WHERE on ESPN, NBATV, all the websites etc. etc. etc.

The dunk on LeBron didn't make the top 10 countdown of the night, yet the countdown showed the 2 blocks that LeBron had during that game.

Al Harrington - Warrior
Cupcake - Warrior fan
Assertion - A player from my favorite team was screwed out of his rightful attention as a result of a media conspiracy to protect LeBron James.

This is exactly what CJ was talking about.

[CupcakeNoFillin]

-= original quote snipped =-



Al Harrington - Warrior
Cupcake - Warrior fan
Assertion - A player from my favorite team was screwed out of his rightful attention as a result of a media conspiracy to protect LeBron James.

This is exactly what CJ was talking about.

OK did I even say that my Warriors were screwed over? No, i'm talking about the NBA in general protecting LeBron James from getting embarrassed. Have you even seen that play where he got dunked on by Al Harrington? No, I don't think so. And that's my point, no one outside of Warriors and Cavs fans saw that play and there's no footage of it anywhere.

Am I supposed to be quiet just because a player from my team dunked on LeBron and didn't that highlight anywhere on TV and the internet? You're saying that I shouldn't even be talking about it because my favorite team was involved in the play.

[CupcakeNoFillin]

I was basically saying that the media is biased towards LeBron James, and that what happened to the Warriors could have happened to any other team where a player from that team embarrassed LeBron.

[conleyorbust]

-= original quote snipped =-

the republicans elected Bush, TWICE!!!!!!!

and they claim that the media is against them too, interestingly enough

[theGreatRC]

It's not that they are biased against every team, some media members just don't care about the lower ranking teams or teams that aren't contenders. So when fans of the teams aren't getting national attention, people feel like the media is against them, but in fact it is just they aren't talking about the teams a "Casual Fan" wouldn't know about.

Casual fans know about:

Lakers
Celtics
Spurs
Pistons
Suns
Mavs

As playoff teams

BUT, I doubt the "Casual fan" would know that the Hornets are a top team this year, Orlando has the best road record in the league, Raptors have the best 3PT shooting team in the league, so the media doesn't talk about it; they only talk about teams that Everyone knows about.

[Sedale Threatt]

-= original quote snipped =-
OK did I even say that my Warriors were screwed over? No, i'm talking about the NBA in general protecting LeBron James from getting embarrassed. Have you even seen that play where he got dunked on by Al Harrington? No, I don't think so. And that's my point, no one outside of Warriors and Cavs fans saw that play and there's no footage of it anywhere.

Am I supposed to be quiet just because a player from my team dunked on LeBron and didn't that highlight anywhere on TV and the internet? You're saying that I shouldn't even be talking about it because my favorite team was involved in the play.

Frankly I don't care what you talk about. If the absence of some five-second highlight that most people will have forgotten about the minute after they saw it gets your panties in that much of a bunch, feel free to cry as much as you want.

No, what caught my eye was your ridiculous assertion that there's some sort of conspiracy, instituted by the NBA and carried out by the various independent media organizations throughout the country, to protect LeBron James' image.

If so, why did NBA TV broadcast this in their highlights:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ylfj6Ll ... re=related

I'm sure you could find more just like it.

But why bother? Instead of having some perspective, it's much easier to cry about how unfair The Media is.

BTW, I did see Harrington's dunk, thanks to a clip some fan recorded from the stands. Melo's was much, much better.

[conleyorbust]

RC, thats a good point. It also doesn't help (hurt?) that the NBA has really built itself on the cult of personality... people identify more with the athletes on the teams than they do with the teams themselves. The Lakers with Kobe, the Cavs with Bron, the Nugs with Melo, the Heat with Wade. The Heat suck but they get play because of DWade. Similarly the Jazz, Hornets, and Spurs probably won't get the attention they deserve because Duncan, Paul, and Booz aren't as prominent in the national conscioussness even though they are as good/better players on as good/better teams. The exception being the Knicks, but the franchise is so valuable and they play in the capital of the world.

[BooRadley]

Because if you're posting on message boards about your team you're most likely a maniacal crazy homer or a pessimistic buffoon when it comes to your team. I think the Warriors get plenty of national TV love, we haven't done enough to get more. So ... i think we're ok.

[TheOUTLAW]

People crack me up saying that the press is protecting LeBron. They blew the entire LeBron is not clutch thing so far out of proportion that it didn't even make sense.

[crackjack]

The media praises James quite a bit (deservedly so).

I think people misconstrue that for being biased towards him.

There's been articles calling out James. It's not a completely biased thing.

Of course, any article praising James gets fans in LA, Denver, Miami, and Houston upset because they take that as taking a shot at their favorite wing player.