In an earlier paper, Stephen Kershnar argued for the following thesis: An instance of trash-talking is permissible if and only if the relevant sports organization’s system of rules permits the expression. One person trash-talks a second if and only if the first intentionally insults the second during competition. The above theory sounds implausible. Surely, the conditions under which a player may insult another do not depend on what the owners arbitrarily decide. Such an approach doesn’t appear to be true in (...) the workplace, bar, or sandlot, so it is hard to see why it should be true in sport. With this general skepticism in mind, this paper evaluates Nicholas Dixon’s objections. Dixon rejects Kershnar’s argument because trash-talking conflicts with the internal value of a sport, violates a right, and degrades the person toward whom the trash-talking is directed. (shrink)

This work seeks to honor Michael Novak’s contribution to sport ethics by returning to his seminal work, The Joy of Sports. Novak runs an alternate route in developing his ethic, drawing largely on the school of political realism, particularly the work of Reinhold Niebuhr. In so doing, he offers a distinctive lens through which to approach to the myriad ethical issues in sport, including those related to competition, violence, and engagement in foul play. The essay outlines four core dimensions of (...) realism within Novak’s larger corpus in order to elucidate their unfolding within The Joy of Sports. It also contributes to an understanding of how political realism might be appropriated for sport ethics. (shrink)

In this paper, I argue for a nuanced, context-sensitive approach to the question of trash talk, based on the Kantian principle of respect for persons and an emphasis on first-person action-guidance. I also suggest that we understand trash talk to have several varieties. On my proposed approach, there is no simple answer to the question of whether trash talk is morally permissible; rather, context-sensitive judgment can help us to determine what we ought to do when the possibility of various forms (...) of trash talk arises. (shrink)