Where do people turn for their entertainment? Being entertained is a task that humans do every day and it has become a basic need. This is shown in a multitude of methods from Instagram, Facebook, and even Tik Tok, the new app taking the world by storm. These platforms are fueled by people who show their personality and love engaging with other people. As users, we fall in love and become engaged in someone else’s life. We invest our time and effort into seeing this person succeed because they have dedicated their lives to entertaining users. However, it is a very dangerous game to entertain, always having your image lie in the hands of other people’s opinions. The popularity often gets into peoples’ heads and forces them to act a certain way to keep the obtained popularity.

Often the creators that entertain do not understand the power they hold. People or followers love what they do, so they take their opinions very seriously. Where this influence could become problematic is when these public personas get involved in political issues. It is very powerful when athletes or entertainers have taken a political stance to use their voices to advocate for what they believe. Often this stance can sway people to a certain opinion and influence people to support a certain side of the argument. The true question is this:  Should athletes or entertainers defend a stance, or just stick to their craft? A perfect example of this is the recent incident with Lebron James. Lebron James had been asked by multiple fans about a politically hot issue of Hong Kong’s separation from China. According to The Washington Post article, “Hong Kong protesters burn LeBron James jersey, chant profanity toward Lakers star,” by Des Bieler, Lebron James criticized the pro-Hong Kong protest, saying that it could harm people in many ways physically,  emotionally, and spiritually. The fans who differed from Lebron’s statements were forced to either continue supporting Lebron and his career, or start to shy away from supporting him. Although, some fans chose not to let the political stance of Lebron James affect their opinion on him as a phenomenal basketball player.

  As readers we have to remember that people are voicing their opinion as one person and not allowing their belief to influence a group as a whole. As an audience, we often fail to remember that this is just one opinion and that this popular figure is still an ordinary person. When one gets absorbed in the fantasy of each person, we cannot see that their opinion truly does not matter. As part of the audience, viewers need to separate the entertainers into two different people: first and foremost see the entertainer as a person who has the task or job of entertaining on a daily basis; but also see them as a normal person that has the ability and right to express their opinion. Furthermore, after separating the creator into two different people, viewers should not allow the opinion that the creator shares to affect how they are viewed from a strictly entertainment standpoint. This way we can appreciate the true craft of entertainers and what they have to offer.