An article published on Monday in the People’s Daily, the official newspaper of the Communist Party of China, featured the byline of NBA superstar LeBron James – although it featured edited comments offered to the publication and was not an essay written by the athlete.
Multiple headlines in major media outlets in the West described the article as an “op-ed” written by James, who has been extremely complimentary of communist China throughout his career and benefits from lavish financial interests in the country. While he did appear to speak to the People’s Daily during his recently concluded visit to China, among other media outlets, he did not write an op-ed for the publication.
The distinction is notable as Chinese state media arms have not at press time allowed NBA players the formidable access to the Chinese public that an essay in the People’s Daily would represent, instead opting to have their staff writers frame messaging related to foreign entertainment and sports. Multiple Western media outlets referred to James on Monday and Tuesday as the first to be offered such an essay in Chinese state media, which does not appear to be the case.
The article in the Chinese-language edition of the People’s Daily – titled “Basketball Is the Bridge that Connects Us to Each Other” – does indeed carry James’ byline. A clarification at the bottom of the article, however, states that James gave an interview to a reporter for the newspaper, Wang Liang, and did not write his own essay. The clarification refers to James as the “author,” adding to the confusion.
The post in question has not appeared in the English-language edition of the People’s Daily at press time.
“I am deeply moved by the warm kindness of my Chinese friends, and all I can do is give it my all in every game and thank you all,” the article states, apparently in James’ voice.
“This is the fifteenth time in my career that I have taken a trip to China, and every time I come here, my family and I are warmly welcomed,” the article continued. “Basketball is not only a sport, but also a bridge that connects us to each other, and love flows in our hearts.”
The article goes on to have James describing an encounter 13 years ago with a Chinese college basketball player who he reunited with during his current visit, who now works as a teacher.
“The basketball atmosphere in China has always been surprising, with many well-known basketball players and many outstanding young players emerging,” the article continues.
Despite the footnote describing the article as an interview and not a column, multiple English-language establishment media sites reported that James had written an op-ed for the People’s Daily. CNN, sharing an Associated Press article, titled the piece, “LeBron James Writes Op-Ed for Chinese State Media as NBA Aims to Rebuild in China.” The Associated Press withdrew the piece on Tuesday, adding a clarification: “One of James’ representatives says he made the comments attributed to him during media sessions but that he did not write the op-ed.”
Reuters reported that James “has become the first NBA player to author a piece in China’s state-run People’s Daily newspaper,” calling the alleged op-ed “unusual.”
The tide began to turn on Tuesday, however, when the New York Times – itself a publication friendly to Chinese communism – cited unnamed “sources close to James” confirming that the athlete did not write an exclusive essay for the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party. Those sources claimed that James did not even offer his comments exclusively to Wang Liang, but that he “conducted group interviews with reporters in the two cities he visited.”
James has repeatedly visited China and been at the forefront of the NBA’s efforts to popularize basketball in the country. His position became overtly political in 2019 when the athlete condemned the then-general manager of the Houston Rockets, Daryl Morey, for publishing a message on social media supporting the anti-communist protests in Hong Kong at the time. James suggested that Morey was not “educated on the situation at hand” when he published a statement reading “fight for freedom” and claimed that “so many people could have been harmed …. financially,” among other ways, by his statements.
The Chinese Communist Party has since all but eliminated the “One Country, Two Systems” format that allowed Hong Kong to flourish as a capitalist autonomous site, passing a “national security law” that allowed for the mass arrests of peaceful anti-communist protesters and outlawed speech that promotes “secession” or “subversion of state power.” This has allowed Communist-controlled police to silence pro-democracy voices and disappear symbols of freedom of expression, such as a statue honoring the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
As detailed in investigative journalist Peter Schweizer’s 2022 book Red-Handed, James enjoys extensive financial relationships in China.
“James has a sizable contract with the sports apparel company Nike. While based in the United States, it does huge business in China and views itself as a Chinese company,” the book detailed. “Beyond selling his jersey in China, James also has an exclusive arrangement that caters to the Chinese elite. The superstar releases some of his coveted shoes in China first, before fans in the United States can get access to them.”
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