NBA

The single story for this group is that black athletes are more athletic than white athletes. In the New York Times article, Breaking the Taboo on Race and Sports, the author expresses how black athletes can trace their lineage back to Africa and they are far more athletically superior to the competition. When it comes to sports, blacks dominate the industry while whites are mainly in the business management industry. This single story limits people from learning that blacks are capable of learning and they are not just talented athletes due to their race. Like many athletic individuals, blacks also have to train and have a consistent workout routine. The media portrays black athletes as people who are genetically talented and do not need to put in any effort with their sport.

One group that I would like to focus on is black NBA basketball players. The majority of people believe that blacks dominate the basketball sport. Larry Bird, former professional basketball player, coins the phrase that “basketball is a black man’s game.” The media sends out the same message that black men are athletically superior to any other race in the basketball industry. What many people fail to understand is that blacks are capable of pursuing other work industries and are not limited to basketball careers. In media outlets like tv and movies, blacks are primarily displayed as talented athletes—whether its running, basketball or football.

From my research of this particular single story, I have learned that black athletes are not genetically designed to dominate in their chosen sport. However, they is so much more that these individuals are capable of doing like pursuing careers in business and education fields. We shouldn’t assume that just because a person is black that automatically means that they are talented athletes. This single story limits people from thinking that black people are able to have multiple interests and that their world does not revolve around sports.

NY Times

ESPN