The legendary Charles Barkley still feels the pressure of being a Black public figure. That includes his work on television as host of Inside the NBA, plus what he does as a frequent guest across the media landscape.
Barkley is not afraid of sharing his honest opinion, whether it gets him in trouble with one side of the political isle or jeopardizes his friendship with the great Michael Jordan. However, Barkley still understands the way in which his words will be taken out of context or his opinions will be knocked down a peg by the audience or other public figures.
He opened up on how he handles that burden in an interview with Shannon Sharpe on the latest episode of Club Shay Shay released Wednesday.
“One thing I hate about these guys, and you know I have hate toward Skip Bayless,” Barkley told Sharpe, referencing Sharpe’s former Undisputed cohost. “Especially being Black, I think I’m representing something bigger. I think every Black person on television (is).”
Barkley feels he has to walk a fine line when dishing out his thoughts, balancing pre-existing perceptions of Black men while trying to carve a space for more to join him in the industry.
“I’m really conscious of everything I say. You’ve got to be, because there is a double standard,” Barkley explained. “Because one thing that drives me crazy is when people use code words describing me, you, Stephen A., guys like that.”
Barkley believes white talking heads get free reign to say what they think without fear of being taken out of context or attacked over their ideas.
“You use words when you talk about Shannon, Stephen A. and Chuck. But when Colin Cowherd, Jim Rome, Mike Greenberg, who are great guys I might add, you don’t use the code words with them,” Barkley added. “So I’m really careful of some of the stuff I say. But I’m not afraid of anything, because my opinion matters just like theirs do.”
As one example, Barkley described the feeling that others always want to restate his points for him.
“This is my favorite, when I see shows that are like, ‘This is what he said, but this is what he meant,'” Barkley said. “No, I said exactly what I meant to f***ing say. It drives me crazy.”
Throughout his life, Barkley said he received warnings this was coming. When he was early in his NBA career, Julius Erving warned him it’s impossible to be liked by everyone. As he embarked on a media career, Barkley said Michael Wilbon warned him of the power and recognition that comes with being on live television.
The man who famously said “I’m not a role model” when asked about his off-court antics as an athlete took that advice to heart.
“That does not mean I’m right all the time,” Barkley told Sharpe. “But I’m gonna try to be fair and give my honest opinion, and I can live with the repercussions.”
Over the years, Barkley has often discussed the ways in which he feels Black people in America are seen and treated as lesser. He worries that Black people are put in a box and disregarded, so it’s understandable that as a very visible and successful Black man in the media, he would want to make sure his perspective is not misconstrued or devalued.
Barkley’s entire public life has generated controversy, so his views on how to handle that spotlight and those biases are particularly valuable.
