Question

Consider the following passage:

The Boston Bruins hockey team recently signed a new contract with forward Charlie Coyle. Our friend, Ed, suggests that the Bruins made the right call to sign Coyle, since he is a player with a diverse set of skills and has led the Bruins to victory multiple times. But I argue that we should ignore anything Ed has to say on this matter. After all, Ed’s from New Jersey and is an avid fan of the opposing team, the New Jersey Devils.

The argument contained in this passage commits the fallacy of:

Answer 1

The argument commits the fallacy of ad hominem, attacking Ed's credibility instead of addressing the argument.

Step-by-step explanation:

The argument contained in this passage commits the fallacy of ad hominem. Ad hominem is a logical fallacy where someone attacks the person making an argument instead of addressing the argument itself. In this passage, the speaker dismisses Ed's argument simply because he is from New Jersey and supports a different team, without actually addressing the validity of Ed's points about Charlie Coyle.