CFP: IAPS 2015 Conference

The International Association for the Philosophy of Sport (IAPS) has posted the call for abstracts for the 43^rd annual 2015 IAPS meeting. The conference will be held September 2-5, 2015 in Cardiff, Wales and is sponsored by Cardiff Metropolitan University.

 Call For Abstracts

Call for Abstracts: Sports Studies Symposium

“Sports Studies: The State of the Art”
4th Annual Rockford University Sports Studies Symposium
Date: April 24, 2015
Rockford University
5050 E. State. St. Rockford, IL 61108

Along with its general popularity, sport as an object of academic study has been steadily growing for decades across disciplinary boundaries. As such, this year’s Sports Studies Symposium seeks to explore the state of the study of sport.

We invite papers that examine the current state of the study of sport; for example:

• High-level descriptions of the current methodologies in a specific discipline as it relates to sport;
• Analyses of the main active questions on which a specific discipline focuses when looking at sport;
• Discussions of cross-disciplinary research or approaches to the study of sport.
• Of course, this is by no means an exhaustive list; a myriad of approaches are welcome and encouraged.

We invite and encourage contributors from any discipline.

 Each presenter should plan on 20 minutes for his or her presentation. There will also be time for Q&A.

 Abstract Submission:
Abstract should be 300-500 words. Send via email (as PDF) to sklein_at_rockford_dot_edu.

 Deadline: 1/23/2015
Notification of Acceptance: No earlier than 2/13/2015

 If you have any questions, please contact Shawn Klein: sklein_at_rockford_dot_edu or Michael Perry: mperry_at_rockford_dot_edu.

2014 Conference Info
2013 Conference Info

Sports Ethics Show: Are Video Games Sport?

In this episode of The Sports Ethics Show, Joey Gawrysiack (Shenandoah University) and I discuss whether video games can be sport.

Can video games be considered Sport? A controversial question because it raises questions about the nature of sport and the nature of video games as well as the value of each. Dr. Joey Gawrysiak of Shenandoah University joins the show to discuss the ways in which we can understand video games as sport. 

 You can subscribe to The Sports Ethics Show in iTunes or get the RSS Feed. More information at The Sports Ethicist Blog

Call for Papers: Sport and Values

41st Conference on Value Inquiry

Sport and Values

16 - 18 April 2015

Neumann University

Aston, Pennsylvania

**Call for Papers**

The Neumann University Institute for Sport, Spirituality and Character Development (http://isscd.org), in conjunction with the Neumann University Philosophy Department will host the 41st Conference on Value Inquiry: Sport and Values at Neumann University in Aston, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, 16-18 April 2015. 

Broad participation is sought.  We welcome papers that address various aspects of sport and values.  Most accepted papers will be primarily directed to a scholarly audience, yet the conference will have presentations that fall into the following three categories:

   (a) Papers primarily directed to a scholarly audience.

   (b) Interactive presentations primarily directed to an undergraduate student audience.

   (c) Graduate and undergraduate student presentations (e.g., paper, poster, or TED-style talk of no more than 15 minutes).

Please indicate the category (a, b, or c) for which the submission should be considered.  Papers and interactive presentations should be between 20-25 minutes long.  Submissions of papers (a), or detailed outline of presentation including learning outcomes for students (b), or abstracts of student presentations (c), must be received by January 15, 2015 for first consideration.  

Presentations may be practically or theoretically oriented.  Topics may be disciplinary, or interdisciplinary, ranging over issues between two or more fields of value inquiry.  Drew Hyland, Trinity College, author of Philosophy of Sport, and Fr. Patrick Kelly, SJ, Seattle University, author of Catholic Perspectives on Sports: From Medieval to Modern Times, will be among the keynote speakers.                                                                       

Please submit to:      

Professor John Mizzoni

Neumann University

One Neumann Drive

Aston, PA 19014-1298

(610) 361-5496 and (215) 407-4259

mizzonij@neumann.edu

The Sports Ethics Show: Animal Sports

Fellow Philosophy of Sport contributor Joan Forry and I talk about Animal Sports in the new episode of The Sports Ethics Podcast.

Are competitions involving non-human animals, like horse racing, dog agility, and so on, sports? If so, under what conditions are animal sports morally justifiable? We also discuss activities like bull-fighting, dog fighting, and cockfighting.

You can subscribe to The Sports Ethics Podcast in iTunes or get the RSS Feed. More information at The Sports Ethicist Blog

The Sports Ethics Podcast: The Value of Playoffs and Championships

A new episode of The Sports Ethics Podcast may interest many readers and contributors to this blog.

Baseball playoffs are in full swing with both American and National League Championship Series opening this weekend. For baseball fans, this is one of the most exciting parts of the baseball season. But are we getting something wrong? Is there something wrong with having playoffs decide champions? Are there better ways of determining champions and organizing sport competitions? Dr. Aaron Harper of West Liberty University discusses these questions and related issues with Shawn E. Klein.

You can subscribe to The Sports Ethics Podcast in iTunes or get the RSS Feed. More information at The Sports Ethicist Blog

Review: The Fantasy Sport Industry

I recently reviewed The Fantasy Sport Industry: Games within Games (Routledge Research in Sport, Culture and Society) by Andrew C. Billings and Brody J. Ruihley for the Nordic Sport Science Forum.

The central idea of Andrew Billings and Brody Ruihley’s book, The Fantasy Sport Industry¸ is that fantasy is a game-changer. It is a game-changer in the way sport is covered by and represented in the media. It is a game-changer for the fans and how they consume sport. Indeed, it is potentially a game-changer for the very sports on which these games are based.

Fantasy Sports have been around for several decades. They started small, the domain of, so the stereotype goes, geeky guys in their basements. But these games have expanded exponentially in the last twenty years. Something like thirty five million North Americans play fantasy sport in some manner: that’s more than the numbers of people who play golf, watch the American Idol finale, or own iPhones (Berry, 2; Billings and Ruihley, 5). Fantasy is now a regular and frequent feature of the broadcasts and news reports of sporting events. Networks such as ESPN have dedicated programs for fantasy. There is even a TV sit-com centered on the members of fantasy football league called, appropriately enough, The League (of which this reviewer confesses he is a big fan). Much of all this revolves around Fantasy Football, but there are fantasy leagues for all the major professional sports (indeed there are fantasy leagues for non-sporting activities as well: Fantasy Congress and Celebrity Fantasy to name two).

Given all this interest, it is no surprise that fantasy has become big business with billions of dollars in revenue. Billings and Ruihley set out to provide a much needed look at this growing industry. The first chapter provides the overall context. The authors discuss the philosophical question of just what makes something a fantasy sport and breaks down the basics of how fantasy games are played. They demonstrate the popularity and growth of fantasy and through this ask the main question of the book. Why do people play fantasy? This raises the important follow-up question: what effect does fantasy have on all the ways we normally consume and understand sport?

You can read the rest of the review: http://idrottsforum.org/klesha_billings-ruihley141003/