The White Racial Frame in Sport Media: Framing of Donald Trump and LaVar Ball’s Public Feud Following the UCLA Basketball Player Arrests in China

Abstract

This article utilizes the “white racial frame” to analyze the sport media coverage of the public feud between U.S. President Donald Trump and basketball celebrity entrepreneur, LaVar Ball. The feud originated in November 2017, when LaVar’s son—University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) player LiAngelo Ball—was detained in Hangzhou, China, for shoplifting along with two of his UCLA teammates. After some tense moments, the three players were released and flown back to the United States. The U.S. President Donald Trump took credit, leading to a prolonged, prickly exchange with LaVar Ball. This article analyzes six major U.S. newspapers and six sports-specific outlets that covered the Trump–Ball feud. First, we identify the predominant frames that appeared in coverage. Second, we track whose views were included in the news and how sourcing inflected the appearance of particular frames. The incident highlights how racialized language—if coded and dog whistled—enters public discussion through the lens of sport. It also highlights the role of social media, especially Twitter, in influencing news production.