Unbothered is not only the name of Jemele Hill's award-winning podcast; it also encapsulates the spirit of her personality.
Hill appeared to be living the life of a sports journalist's dream in 2018, at least from the outside looking in. She was young, successful, and Black, and she was a woman who was able to hold her own in a male-dominated field as the host of SportsCenter, ESPN's most watched show.
Before joining ESPN, I had a great journalism career, which most people are unaware of. "It was not a location where I had envisioned myself working," she recalls. As a writer at heart, working as a journalist for Sports Illustrated was the peak of my professional accomplishments. "The whole television stuff just sort of occurred."
With her laid-back approach and "don't try me" attitude, she quickly established herself as a trusted voice within the guys' club. The news that Hill was leaving the network, and that she was not going somewhere in particular, came as a shock to her viewers. Some others play tic tac toe expressed their displeasure by saying What exactly did they do? It's likely that people familiar with her journalistic style were more interested in what she said than in what she said. Hill made the decision on her own, and neither of her parents were involved in it. Why?
"There is never a single moment," she explains. There is always a collection of moments in my life. I'd served my sentence. There was nothing else I wanted to do at ESPN, and it was time to call a halt to that chapter of my life. Starting out on your own might be intimidating; after all, why wouldn't it be? I looked at it this way: I'm not going to put in any more effort for ESPN than I would put in for myself. "I'll always put my money on you."
The importance of being true to oneself is something Hill discovered early in life while growing up as a young Black girl in the forgotten city of Detroit. She was born with a strong sense of self that she brings with her everywhere she goes. Her ability to maintain a strong connection to her roots connects with her audience, and her sincerity is the secret to her success. She maintains a straightforward and grounded demeanor, no matter how well-known she becomes. Hill, to put it another way, "keeps it 100."
In every situation, whether she's working on SportsCenter, receiving viral tweets from President Barack Obama, host of her own award-winning podcast, Unbothered; CEO of her own production company, Lodge Freeway Media; or preparing to host her own show on CNN+, Hill never comes across as someone who is more important than the people she's trying to reach. She strives to make her voice heard in the same way that their voice is heard.
The actual hood, not the rap hood, is where I'm from, I like to claim. "Detroit is woven into the very fabric of who I am," Hill says of his hometown. "It's almost as if we came up with the concept of building a way out of no way on our own. That I grew up in such a unique environment, with parents who were recovering drug users, has special significance for me. We can all identify with some degree of difficulty. Journalism has always piqued my interest. Another saying we like to use is: "Your goal is to harm the comfortable while simultaneously comforting the distressed." The basic idea of journalism is that it serves as a watchdog for society, holding those in power accountable for their actions. Because there are many individuals, particularly Black people, who do not have the chance to be heard, it was crucial to be heard."
Being Black, a woman, and a journalist is a treacherous terrain strewn with potholes of judgment, labeling, and other forms of discrimination. It necessitates mastering a delicate balance between who one is and who one is thought to represent each and every time one speaks. Hill, a Black female journalist, views herself as a voice (not a spokesman) for no one else except herself as a Black female journalist. Even if similar experiences serve as the connecting thread amongst Black people, she argues that Black people do not exist as a monolith. That's why she believes it's critical for her to use her platform with focus and a specific goal in mind.
"I never want to put myself in a position where I think I'm better than anyone else. "We're standing shoulder to shoulder," she explains. It is for this reason that I have been able to provide another layer of context to the topics that I have chosen to support with my voice. " I'll never see it as a burden, but rather as a vital and important job. Never say anything solely to elicit a reaction; nevertheless, if you want to be a good journalist, you must have a disruptive attitude. That describes my frame of mind."
Even while Hill is well aware of her position, she wants it to be crystal apparent that it is hers alone; that it is about discovering her own steps, following her own route, and never dimming her light in order to reach a point of personal independence. Her professional life has been as disruptive and varied as Hill herself, but she appears to be able to take it all in stride, now confident in the space she has created in which she can thrive.
In this phase of Hill's career, "the one thing that I truly love is that I am working in a profession that I desire, rather than a job that I need," she adds. The right to express myself has been earned, and that will not be taken away from me. I will not engage into a relationship with someone if I believe that my capacity to communicate will be jeopardized in any way."
In terms of Hill's future, she will continue to shine her light brilliantly as she navigates the ever-changing road of life, discovering and conquering new milestones along the way. What can be said with certainty is that, no matter who or what she is up against, she will always be the favorite because she is the hardknock girl from Detroit who refuses to be phased.
