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Media & Entertainment Law

: Sports Law Blog

Lynching Tiger Redux

By Rick Karcher, Michael McCann, Geoffrey Rapp, Greg Skidmore, and Howard Wasserman

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As the story has enlarged nationally, the Golf Channel announced yesterday that it would suspend Kelly Tilghman for two weeks in connection with her casual statement that the only hope for young up and coming professional golfers to compete with the great Tiger Woods would be to "lynch [him] in a back alley."

The Golf Channel's official statement reads:

"While we believe that Kelly's choice of words was inadvertent and that she did not intend them in an offensive manner, the words were hurtful and grossly inappropriate,'' Golf Channel said in its statement. "Consequently, we have decided to suspend Kelly for two weeks, effective immediately.''

The national debate on this subject of "hurtful" and "grossly inappropriate" words (i.e. "lynch") has become vitriolic. Some argue that political correctness has run amok and if the individual saying the words meant no ill will, then let it go. Others contend that if the target (i.e. Tiger Woods) is not offended, then no harm done. Still others argue that the ignorant use of the word "lynch" in connection with an African American in the United States is deeply offensive and a punishable, if not fireable, offense.

The Golf Channel has chosen for now that Tilghman's choice of words in this context is a punishable offense.

Full post as published by Sports Law Blog on January 10, 2008 (boomark / email).