LeBron James was the selected first pick of the 2003 NBA Draft by his home team, the Cleveland Cavaliers. Fifteen years later, he is still with the Cavaliers, after a short stint with the Miami Heat, has won three NBA Championships, three Olympic medals, and is the four-time league MVP. To many, he is considered the "face of the NBA" and contributes to other facets of society.
All of that is just on the court. Off the court, the father of three is a public figure who uses his platform to educate the public and support many organizations both in his hometown and across the country.
In 2014, James partnered up with longtime-friend, Maverick Carter, to launch Uninterrupted, "a multimedia venture that offers viewers documentaries, web series, and podcasts about their favorite athletes." Uninterrupted "focuses on the moments, words, and emotions that could often be ignored by traditional media outlets."
In June 2015, James spoke with Re/code about the birth of the new project and said, "I talked to Maverick, I told him, 'I want to give [my fans] the uncut, unedited version right then and there of what my thoughts are.'"
The Uninterrupted brand aims to bring athletes and top-tier sports personalities to the viewers' screens in the most authentic way. The platform has a plethora of shows, starring world-class athletes, entertainers and television personalities such as LeBron James, Draymond Green, Cari Champion, 2 Chainz, and more.
Aside from the numerous original shows on the website, there is also a page to the 'UN Podcast Network.' Similar to their shows, Uninterrupted has a wide variety of hosts on their podcasts such as NFL teammates Joe Thomas and Andrew Hawkins, Jesse Williams, Victor Cruz, Draymond Green, Yvonne Orji, Ros Gold-Onwude Richard Jefferson, and more.
Recently, James was in the news after being told to "shut up and dribble" by Fox News host Laura Ingraham after speaking out about the political climate on an episode of "Rolling with the Champion" on Uninterrupted. James appeared alongside Warriors small forward, Kevin Durant in the episode with journalist Cari Champion.
And although his speaking out for what he believes in caused a squabble with the Fox News host, he used the platform exactly how he intended it. He truly gave the public an "uncut" version of his thoughts.
During an interview at All-Star Weekend, James said that Ingraham's commentary only echoed his message.
"We will definitely not shut up and dribble. ... I mean too much to society, too much to the youth, too much to so many kids who feel like they don't have a way out," James stated.