LeBron James damages his brand by going political

The Hill:
Fox News host Laura Ingraham reignited a feud this week over whether athletes should get political.

Ingraham on her show suggested NBA stars shouldn't talk politics, telling Kevin Durant and LeBron James to "shut up and dribble." Durant and LeBron in a video had criticized President Trump.

Multiple players rallied against Ingraham, and Durant called her comments "racist."

The feud follows the recent debate, centered around the NFL football season, over whether players should use their platform for political statements.

Last year, Trump sparked a national controversy over players who protest police brutality and racism by kneeling during the national anthem before games. He called for NFL team owners to fire players who don't stand.
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The reality is that the NFL players hurt the league and their future earnings by getting political and buying into the "hands up, don't shoot" lie that came out of events in Ferguson.

NB players are making the same mistake by alienating a large portion of their audience and fan base by pursuing a ruinous victimization narrative.   Multi-millionaires make poor spokesmen for victimization.  They can expect to see their sneaker and jersey business also fade as well as their appeal to advertisers.

It is a mistake to call Ingraham's statement racists since she actually wrote a book telling entertainers in Hollywood to do the same thing.  It was called Shutup and Sing.

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