Pit Bulls in the Media

What do you know about pit bulls? How much of what you know is from personal experience, being a guardian of a pit bull or from the media?

As we go through our daily lives, we are constantly receiving messages from the media, mainly from the news and Facebook. With the news networks wanting high ratings, reporters are always searching for stories containing the attention-grabbing "buzz words", "pit bull" being one of the highest. According to ASPCA's website:

"Animal control officers across the country have told the ASPCA that when they alert the media to a dog attack, news outlets respond that they have no interest in reporting on the incident unless it involved a pit bull. A quantitative study by the National Canine Research Council of dog-bite reportage in a four-day period proves that anti-pit bull bias in the media is more than just a theory—it’s a fact."

While a Maryland court has declared pit bulls to be "inherently dangerous" and news outlets are constantly reporting “pit bull” attacks (mind you, these are not true pit bulls, but are a generality of “pit bull types”) there are an alarming number of dog attacks that are not being reported or are being down-played by the media.

In April of 2012 in South Carolina a Golden Retriever-Lab mix named Lucky brutally killed and dismembered a 2-month-old baby that was in an infant swing while the father was sleeping. Lucky mauled baby Aiden McGrew and then severed both of his legs. This story barely made it into the news, calling the dog a “pooch” while “pit bull” attacks make national headlines regardless of the severity, calling them “vicious,” “dangerous” and “killers.”

Meanwhile, when there are no “pit bull” attacks to report, we see news reporters revisiting past stories and rehashing them, often asking their viewers questions slanted in a way that no matter how you answer, the outcome will always be negative.

ASPCA.ORG. (2013). Pit Bull Bias in the Media. Retrieved from ASPCA.ORG: http://www.aspca.org/fight-animal-cruelty/advocacy-center/animal-laws-about-the-issues/pit-bull-bias-in-the-media.aspx

Edelman, A. (2013, January 10). Family dog attacks child of South Carolina parents whose infant son was killed by another pooch last year. Retrieved from NY Daily News: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/months-infant-mauling-dog-attack-mcgrew-home-article-1.1237732

Viegas, J. (2012, May 15). Are Pit Bulls Inherently Dangerous? Retrieved from Discovery News: http://news.discovery.com/animals/zoo-animals/pit-bulls-dangerous-120515.htm