Lisa Unleashed: National Pit Bull Awareness Month & Bill O'Reilly
Even before 2005, when 12-year-old Nick Faibish was mauled to death in San Francisco by a “pit bull,” these dogs were maligned, misunderstood, and made into media fodder. After this unfortunate death, Bill O’Reilly featured actress Linda Blair on his Fox News cable show The Factor in search of someone who wanted to stand up for the perilous pit bull. His argument at the time: stay as far away from these dangerous dogs as possible.
After the death, San Francisco politicians called for a “breed” ban based in part on pit bulls’ heritage used in bull-baiting, a cruel sport outlawed in England more than a century ago. They erroneously thought all pit bulls were mean, aggressive and dangerous, just like Bill O’Reilly.
Other cities like Denver followed suit and banned pit bulls, rounding up hundreds of them for euthanasia, even if the dog had no known history of biting or aggression.
During the last decade a lot has happened to pit bulls, both good and bad, which is why October is now National Pit Bull Awareness Month. The aim? To educate the public against targeting a group of dogs based solely on their looks or pedigree.
The truth is, once their purpose was outlawed, the dogs used in the sport were bred toward gentle temperaments over the next century. Today, several bully breeds — Staffordshire bull terrier, American Staffordshire terrier, and the bull terrier — have good natured temperaments.
To me, a pit bull is a generic term for a “type” of dog either purebred or mixed-breed, much like a hound or terrier. Just because they look a certain way doesn’t make them dangerous. Banning a breed is akin to racial profiling.
Fox News Strikes Again
By 2007, NFL football star Michael Vick’s arrest for his Bad Newz Kennels dog fighting operation really lit up the media. Everyone chimed in about the “pit bulls,” especially folks who had no clue about the dogs. Here’s how Geraldo Rivera fanned the flames during an appearance on Bill O’Reilly’s show: “You have to understand that after two centuries of breeding they are genetically predisposed to abnormal violence.”
Really? What? It’s uneducated sensational statements like this that make their way into the media after any “pit bull” makes the news.
Despite much education about the pit bulls surrounding the rehabilitation of some of Michael Vick’s dogs, the dangerous dog myth has stuck. Talk show hosts and political pundits don’t help the poor pit bull either. Just recently, a Fox News radio host said, “The average American, they don’t want one of those metrosexual purse dogs, they want a pit bull in the White House.” He was comparing Donald Trump to a pit bull and Jeb Bush to the purse dog. And who can forget when Sarah Palin used the phrase a “pit bull wearing lipstick”?
During the pit bull hysteria during Michael Vick’s case, I got an e-mail in March 2008 with a request from a producer at Fox News Channel (FNC) to appear on Bill O’Reilly’s show. Through a weird chain of e-mails from an FNC producer to a PR firm to AKC to me, I was told I would be sitting across the desk on set with Bill and another guest via Los Angeles to talk about dogs.
I asked about what? Another producer told me, “We like to think of this segment as a ‘blockbuster’ segment on dogs. It’s going to be very basic and the interview will be about six minutes.” OK, I thought, Bill and I will talk dogs.
During my preappearance interview the day before, yet another producer said, “You’ll talk about how to pick a dog, the best breeds for families and kids and how to train a dog.” Then, as an afterthought she said, “What about pit bulls?” I sent her a fact sheet explaining AKC’s position, brushed up on the positive points of the bully breeds and left it at that.
About halfway through our segment I looked at the TV monitor. Viewers at home were watching fluffy puppies play interspersed with talking heads while we all chatted. Then, while the other guest was talking, I saw some nasty footage of pit bulls snarling and fighting. Uh oh! Bill was going in for the kill. He stared me down.
“So, what about these pit bulls,” he said. He ranted about how mean, nasty, and aggressive they were and people should stay away from them because they are so dangerous. Then he leaned across the desk and said, “So, tell me Lisa, am I wrong?”
Time stood still as the smile spread across my face and the talking points were trying to come out. Then I just blurted, “Absolutely, you’re wrong! There are no bad dogs, just bad owners.” He looked surprised! “No bad dogs?” he shot back. “No bad dogs!” I said. We bantered back and forth and then he tried to get the other guest to side with him.
“I’ll have to agree with Lisa on this one,” came her response. After the interview my e-mail inbox was flooded with people thanking me for standing up for pit bulls.
Years later, how do I celebrate National Pit Bull Awareness Month? I just think back on how I taught Bill O’Reilly how to be “fair and balanced” when it comes to pit bulls.
Lisa Peterson — a lifelong equestrian, owner/breeder/handler of Norwegian Elkhound show dogs, and an award-winning public relations professional — owns Barn Girl Media. She blogs about horses, hounds and history at LisaUnleashed.com from her home in Newtown. Reach her at lisa@lisaunleashed.com.