Monday, August 4, 2008

Going to the Dogs


Okay, I'm going to get on my soapbox. It's because of this story on KTBS: "An 11-year-old Shreveport boy was injured today when he intervened in a fight between the family Boxer and their new puppy."


It seems like every other day these people are telling us about some poor dog that has to be put to sleep because it is now dangerous. This is certainly a tragic story. Don't get me wrong, I'm deeply sorry that the child was hurt, that the puppy died, and that the Boxer was euthanized. My gripe with this is with the news station.
If you feel like this is REAL news that you must bring to your viewers (and I would question that), please do not show me the film of the animals. I have a real soft spot for dogs and it breaks my heart to see the boxer being led to his death (NOT pictured on this post). Can't you just report the story without the picture of the dog? Show me your interviews, if you must, but don't show me this family pet about to be killed. It smacks of yellow journalism to me. Yes, I know I can quit watching your station, I don't HAVE to look at it.


I really do hope this child recovers from his horrible physical and emotional ordeal. I also hope KTBS reviews their ethics standards.

(Photo credit: Puppydogweb.com)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I hit the change button on the remote, when the story about the dog came on. I too have a soft spot in my heart for animals (dogs, cats, goats, horses....) and can't stand to see or hear bad stories about animals.
However, I was a little too quick with the change button and caught not only the tail end of today's story, but the repeat of story of having to put a dog down last week. And yes, the caring, soft-hearted people at KTBS had to show the bleeding pitbull being led to his death in that report. SICKENING!