NEW ORLEANS DECLARATION OF CHARACTER

We believe sports can and should demonstrate and build personal character through the honorable pursuit of team and individual achievement. Further, we believe that exceptional athletes have a special opportunity and responsibility to inspire in the children and adults who admire them a desire to develop and demonstrate good character.

--We deplore the frequency in which the conduct of individual athletes, team owners and coaches have served to discredit their sport, their teams, their families and themselves, and we protest the tendency to judge all athletes by the misconduct of a few.

--Therefore, we call upon all those involved in organized sports to help restore the ennobling tradition of athletic competition and uplift the image of sports by exhibiting, encouraging and demanding good character in all aspects of the sport and to supporting the Character Counts All-Stars and other organizations seeking to emphasize issues of character. In particular, we call on:

Players to conduct themselves, on and off the field, only in ways that exemplify good character and sportsmanship and bring honor to themselves, their families, coaches and teams;

Sports leagues, team management, coaches, sports agents and the families of athletes to seek to instill and reinforce in young athletes a commitment to developing and exhibiting good character and to prepare to expect and honorably deal with the challenges, temptations and responsibilities of celebrity;

Sponsors and advertisers to establish and rigorously uphold high standards of conduct with respect to events and teams they sponsor and individuals who endorse their products; to promptly disassociate from teams and individuals who discredit their sport and set bad examples for youth, and to assure that their advertising messages encourage and celebrate the pursuit of victory with honor;

Fans and parents of young fans to support only those sports activities, players and teams that strive to live up to the highest standards of character and sportsmanship;

Sportswriters and commentators to hold athletes, coaches and owners accountable for the example they set and the messages they send by their conduct, but only in a way that assures that all those involved in sports are not unfairly tainted by the misconduct of a few, and to provide a balanced picture of the character of those involved in sports.