I enjoyed the game with the kids last night between the San Francisco 49ers that sent the Seattle Seahawks. That amazing game however was marred by a bizarre rave from cornerback Richard Sherman. Sherman immediately followed the win with a screaming and unhinged rant. The question is whether the Seahawks should be able to discipline Sherman for such a disgraceful performance — just after an equally disgraceful taunting of the 49ers. I would be the first to defend the free speech rights of Sherman to act like a street thug and even diss opposing players like San Francisco receiver Michael Crabtree. However, the Seahawks drew well-deserved praise on this blog for moving against thugs in the stadium in the prior game with the 49ers. How about the thugs on the field? This is not an attack on free speech by the government. The question is whether a company can discipline an employee at work for behaving like a thug. UPDATE: Sherman has been fined by the NFL for his taunting shortly before his outburst on television.
Sherman followed the interception against the 49ers by engaging in raw unsportsmanlike conduct, including a choke taunt to rub salt in the wound of the opposing team. He then was called over by a friendly Erin Andrews who cheerfully asked him for his reaction. Andrews was virtually speechless as Sherman started screaming: “Well, I’m the best corner in the game! When you try me with a sorry receiver like Crabtree, that’s the result you’re going to get! Don’t you ever talk about me!” I realize that Sherman and Crabtree were trash talking in the game, but this is still a game watched by millions of families. It is bad enough, as we have previously discussed, that families have to content with drunken, foul-mouthed fans in stadiums. Now, the players are demonstrating the worst type of conduct and values on television. I am a big supporter of unsportsmanshiplike conduct penalties. However, this was after the game. Should the Seahawks be allowed to fine players for this type of rude and uncivil conduct while wearing a Seahawks uniform on the field?
Crabtree strikes me as showing the same idiocy in this game and should be reprimanded for his own lack of sportsmanship. I understand Sherman’s excuse that he was pumped up and mad but I am tired to just shrugging off the notion that sports celebrities should not be required to be role models. Movie celebrities are often immature toddlers. However, they do not represent a team and represents a city. We have a race to the bottom in both stadiums and on the field as we dismiss this type of conduct as irrelevant or expected. It is part of a society that seems to be losing basic notions of control and civility. I think that people paid millions should be expected to show a modicum of maturity and self-control. If this were a Chicago Bear, I would feel the same way. Indeed, I would be even more disgusted. Between the thugs in the stands and the thugs on the field, we are losing this game to the lowest common denominator.
What is interesting is that a fan can be fired and banned for life for acting like an ass at a stadium, but a player (particularly a good one) seem immune from such responsibility (or the most minimal requirements of society) in appearing on television at a football game.
Later, Sherman only slightly toned down his message, which he must have thought brought him within the limits of civilized society. In an interview, he trashed Crabtree again and said “I was making sure everybody knew Crabtree was a mediocre receiver. Mediocre. And when you try the best corner in the game with a mediocre receiver, that’s what happens.” Thanks for that clarification.
By the way, Sherman is a Stanford graduate with a degree in communications.
UPDATE: There is a rather bizarre notion raised that suggesting that Sherman could be disciplined for this conduct is an attack on free speech. Free speech allows you to speak without government censorship or punishment. It does not mean that adults can say anything without any personal repercussions, particularly while at work. This blog is committed to free speech. Indeed, we have often been accused of being too extreme in our defense of free speech. However, this is not a question of free speech. It is a question of civility and professionalism. If an employee screams profanities at customers or co-workers, it is not a free speech issue. It is a question of the code for employees. If an employee shows contempt for customers or co-workers, it is not a free speech issue. Free speech means that no one can force you not to be an idiot. However, in society, being an idiot comes at a cost with people who do not want to appear idiots. The fact that this would not seem “so bad,” only shows how far our society has diverged from basic expectations of conduct from adults. This is precisely why professional sports is being a beacon for those who want to get drunk and act like juveniles. Call it prissy or prudish if you want. However, I do worry about how this type of conduct is being treated as just harmless trash talk. It is not the content but the conduct that it being raised by some of us. If we cannot agree that this type of conduct is improper for a professional athlete in a game, we have surrendered far too much in our expectations for a civil society.
“Reaction to Seattle Seahawks’ Richard Sherman’s rant gets discolored”
“Instant media and, yes, racism stoke ire fire”
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/cardinals/articles/20140121reaction-to-seattle-seahawks-richard-shermans-rant-gets-discolored.html
By Paola Boivin, columnist azcentral sports Tue Jan 21, 2014 10:57 PM
I can’t think of Richard Sherman’s obnoxious diatribe without thinking of Arizona State’s Tau Kappa Epsilon “MLK Black Party.”
Think about it. If 19-, 20- and 21-year-olds believe it is OK to honor Martin Luther King Jr. with gang clothing and watermelon cups, then how many 30-, 40- and 50-year-olds still see the world through a prism of blatant racism?
Bigotry is one of several narratives we shouldn’t ignore in discussion about this super-sized fiasco.
Sherman’s rant on Sunday after the Seattle Seahawks won the NFC title that included criticism of San Francisco 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree was self-serving and brash. Humility, not bravado, is the lesson those of us parenting young athletes prefer to see.
But the decibel level to which the outcry reached, and the angry, offensive language attached to it by many, suggests we are a society that still operates on an uneven playing field when it comes to sports and race.
Don’t believe it? Search “Richard Sherman” and the n-word on Twitter, and see how many times it pops up.
Much of the racism is more subtle than that. It is code words like “thug” that are applied disproportionately to Black athletes. Rae Carruth? A thug. Richard Sherman? A Stanford graduate and salutatorian of his high school class?
A smart man with a smart mouth.
The crazy part about this story line is that it appears to have started in the Valley.
Last April, at an after-party event at the W Scottsdale hotel following Larry Fitzgerald’s charity softball game at Salt River Fields, Sherman went to shake Crabtree’s hand near the pool. Instead, Crabtree tried to start a fight, Sherman’s older brother, Branton, told the Seattle Times.
“I’m going to make a play and embarrass him,” Branton said his brother vowed that day.
The seed was planted.
After Sunday’s uproar, Sherman wrote for SI.com that “a lot of what I said to (interviewer Erin) Andrews was adrenaline talking, and some of that was Crabtree. I just don’t like him.
“It was loud, it was in the moment and it was just a small part of the person I am.”
And it was tasteless. Sherman could take a cue from Fitzgerald about how to react after success. With humility. Gratitude. Decorum.
He didn’t and deserves to be scolded.
But not with such vitriol.
The overreaction was tinged with racism. But it also had to do with the media world we live in.
A story breaks and spreads through the dry brush of traditional media and social media. Trigger spots are everywhere: on television and radio, in newspaper commentary and on Twitter and Facebook.
The sheer volume of discussion catapults the story into a stratosphere that suggests greater importance.
In many cases, that’s a good thing. Social media, for example, is a great place to trade ideas, share news and start discussion. But abbreviated messages tend to lack context. Information transforms into misinformation.
It is a fact those in the spotlight need to remember.
Sherman appears to have come to appreciate the magnitude of his words. On Monday, he issued an apology via a text to ESPN’s Ed Werder, saying, “I apologize for attacking an individual and taking the attention away from the fantastic game by my teammates. … That was not my intent.”
That’s what Sherman surely regrets most. He made himself the story, when the accomplishments of his team should have been.
We enter dicey territory when it comes to interviewing athletes immediately after games. For three hours, NFL players surf a wave of intensity that is hard for the rest of us to appreciate.
Andrews stuck a microphone in his face when his emotions were still very raw.
Without context, it sounded awful.
Many athletes figure out how to flip that switch. Sherman, not appreciating how powerful his words were, clearly hasn’t.
The backlash was inevitable, former Cardinals linebacker Seth Joyner told Brad Cesmat on Sports360az.
Said Joyner: “This was an opportunity for someone with a bigoted attitude or racist attitude to take advantage of this because Richard Sherman is Black, and, ‘Hey, he’s just acting the way that Black people act.’
“You can’t do anything to change the ideas of how people think. You just roll with it like anything else. … But it’s ignorant to assume because he’s Black, he acts that way.”
It is ignorant but unfortunately a real reaction by some.
We’re not as civilized as we like to believe.
Just ask the fraternity brothers at Tau Kappa Epsilon.
End of excerpt
http://youtu.be/QpUQoVFfiiw
“It would behoove all of us to consider whether opposing views are expressed in good faith and not some racist or apologist agenda.”
I think it would also behoove some of us to consider whether we are so imbued with our own cultural construct that we are unable to recognize one’s inadvertent promotion of a racist agenda.
Boorish is a good word. Makes one seem erudite. Talking street cred when one is an ivory tower type is no cred.
Jonathan,
I’ll have to continue to disagee with you on this issue. What Sherman did pales in comparison to what a public school teacher said about her students on a public blog. Yet, you defended her behavior. I know that Natalie Munroe worked for the government–a public school system. Still, I found the comments she made about some of her students to be not only unprofessional…but also vile, profane, and vulgar. Should a professional football player be held to a higher standard of behavior than a public school teacher?
Teacher Suspended For Writing Critical Comments on Her Personal Blog
http://jonathanturley.org/2011/02/15/teacher-suspended-for-writing-critical-comments-on-her-personal-blog/
Excerpt:
On the blog, Munroe complained that her students were “rude, lazy, disengaged whiners” and admitted that she dreamed of giving parents an honest appraisal of their children. Some of the alternative “canned comments” were pretty funny and were clearly not meant for the students to read. They included “rat-like,” “dresses like a streetwalker,” “frightfully dim,” and “whiny, simpering grade-grubber with an unrealistically high perception of own ability level.”
Superintendent N. Robert Laws said last week that the blogged complaints were “very egregious” and “certainly could result in termination.” I certainly agree that this matter raised very egregious conduct, but of the school not the teacher. Teachers have free speech and have a right to vent about their profession.
*****
Some of the other comments Munroe posted about her students:
• “I hear the trash company is hiring.”
• “Rude, beligerent [sic], argumentative f**k.”
• “Am concerned that your kid is going to come in one day and open fire on the school. (Wish I was kidding.)”
• A complete and utter jerk in all ways. Although academically ok, your child has no other redeeming qualities.
• Lazy asshole.
• Two words come to mind: brown AND nose.
Debra, don’t take scolding by certain persons to heart. You have a right to express your opinion, unless the rules have changed again.
White privilege, sorry.
I think everyone could benefit from a close look at this breakdown of what whiter liege really means:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/aaronc13/this-comic-perfectly-explains-what-white-privilege-is
I would like someone to cite me to a specific team or NFL rule that Sherman might have violated. Absent that, people are just substituting their own ideas of what is acceptable behavior and it is not up to them.
BTW Hank Aaron apparently had no problem with Sherman’s comments.
Spencer Neal
http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2013/story/_/id/10334062/super-bowl-xlviii-richard-sherman-seattle-seahawks-says-not-villain
“Richard has tremendous character,” Wilson said. “He got fired up and I guess you would call it a mistake. But I know that’s not how he is. He is one of the most intelligent people you will ever meet. He’s one of my good friends, and I love him to death.
I didn’t ascribe a racist motive to Prof. Turley, but that’s also my reaction when I hear (read) about a white person calling black people thugs. Apparently, some black people share that opinion.
http://www.salon.com/2014/01/22/richard_sherman_thug_is_simply_the_accepted_way_of_calling_somebody_the_n_word/
No need for folks to defend me on the Sherman issue. I appreciate the effort but I more appreciate the exchange on this issue. I remain unchanged in my view of Sherman’s conduct as boorish and unprofessional. It has nothing to do with race, but I appreciate those who view criticism of such a black athlete as racially sensitive, particularly in calling conduct “thuggish.” I disagree. I found his yelling at the camera and interviewer to be thuggish. I would find the same conduct thuggish in a white player and we have had plenty of occasions to criticize poor conduct by people of all races on this blog. I have long objected to how our society makes excuses for conduct that is uncivil and unprofessional. We have particularly discussed how football stadiums are becoming magnets for drunks and thugs. I clearly have a different view of such conduct. I have objected to excessive celebration of players and taunting for years. I view Sherman as an example of a race to the bottom in personal responsibility and demeanor. Many disagree and some have even said that they love this type of trash talk from athletes. So be it. However, once again, let’s argue the issue and not make this personal. I have found the points on both sides of this debate to be provocative and interesting. Race is a sensitive subject. It would behoove all of us to consider whether opposing views are expressed in good faith and not some racist or apologist agenda. I love the fact that this blog has people on different sides of such questions. I assume that everyone is coming to the debate in good faith and not some inherently hateful or flawed bias. I have deleted a couple comments that are continuing to personalize the debate in the hopes that we can continue without clouding the issue. If not, move on to a new subject.
nick,
Still trying to goad me even after Jonathan felt the need to post a comment on this thread?
Debra, That’s WAY over the line and an insult to our host. Have you no shame? Do you know anything about Mr. Turley? Did you read his comment from earlier today?
Must have been responding to that 10 foot straw man?
When Prof. Turley called Richard Sherman a thug, this was exactly my reaction — thug is an acceptable substitute for the N word: http://thinkprogress.org/sports/2014/01/22/3194121/richard-sherman-thug-acceptable-version-word/
nick,
I wasn’t responding to you.
Sherman dissed his Seattle teammates w/ his selfish rant and it was those teammates of which I was speaking. He has apologized to his Seattle teammates as I commented earlier. Please let me know if you find anything from them. Thanks.
Richard Sherman’s former Compton coaches, teammates respond to controversial NFC Championship postgame interview
http://www.presstelegram.com/sports/20140121/richard-shermans-former-compton-coaches-teammates-respond-to-controversial-nfc-championship-postgame-interview
Excerpt:
To those who know Sherman from his days as a standout student-athlete at Dominguez High School, the interview was nothing out of the ordinary. Especially since it was mere moments after making one of the biggest plays of his career.
“He was still in his game mode and was challenged by an opponent,” said Dominguez athletic director Darryl Smith, who was also Sherman’s former track coach. “He was excited about what he had accomplished. Richard has always accepted challenges.”
“I said, ‘Whoa, this man is hyped.’ He’s definitely in the moment.” said Marvin Johnson, Sherman’s former quarterback and teammate at Dominguez. “I know he made some strong comments, but I’m on his side.”
But Sherman’s interview did have a negative impact after sending the sports world and social media into a frenzy, causing a flood of criticism as sports pundits and articles called out his humility and professionalism. Social media postings and comment threads could be found lashing out with racist remarks and referring to him as a thug. On Monday, Sherman penned an article for Sports Illustrated’s MMQB, defending his comments and speaking out towards those judging him based off those 20 seconds in front of the camera.
“To those who would call me a thug or worse because I show passion on a football field — don’t judge a person’s character by what they do between the lines,” wrote Sherman. “Judge a man by what he does off the field, what he does for his community, what he does for his family.”
The controversial interview comes on the heels of the release of a new Beats by Dre headphone commercial that depicts Sherman being questioned by dozens of reporters, specifically addressing questions about Compton and his “reputation as a thug.”
But the idea of the word thug being used to describe Sherman makes those back in Compton laugh.
“Richard was like a nerd with his glasses and his books in his hand,” said Smith. “But he became a gladiator on that field.”
His former head football coach, Willie Donerson, who still works with the program, remembers Sherman sitting quietly on the team bus, bringing books to the pre-game meal and back from games. But the negative association with Compton fuels a not-so-positive image of Sherman.
“We have that stigma (in Compton) and it’s going to be with us for a long time,” said Donerson. “But we have some great, great kids here.”
By all accounts, Sherman was one of the best to come out of the city and the school, not just as an athlete but as a student and a person before going on to Stanford. And even in his teenage days Sherman was known for his mouth, even if it was directed at teammates.
Donerson remembers Sherman trash-talking three players, not for poor performances on the field, but in the classroom, saying if they kept slacking off in academics they could never accept their scholarship offers. The players eventually brought up their grades and went on to college.
Consiglieri, I agree.
AP, Thanks. But, if his teammates do “absolutely love him” they’re not showing it. Reporters talked incessantly about what a great guy Kirby Puckett was. Turned out he was a wife beating, sexual harassing, lush.
Sherman’s coach Pete Carroll gave a tepid, “That’s Richard being Richard.” Maybe they’ll say something during the Super Bowl interviews. But, I know they don’t want a distraction from preparation either. We’ll see.
consiglieri39
I think the point is that simply talking smack doesn’t make one a thug. Neither does simply being big, black and loud.
*****
Exactly!