On Wednesday evening, PBS NewsHour anchor Geoff Bennett returned to the energetic use of mass shootings in California to push for more gun control: "Beyond the mourning and reflection, many say it's a moment yet again to focus on gun access."
With PBS, there's a need to focus on access for conservative voices. Instead of hosting a discussion with two sides, they put on gun-banning leftists and facilitate their talking points. In this case, reporter John Yang spoke with gun control activist Gloria Pan of the group Moms Rising.
Yang teed her up to complain that "gun culture" in the U.S. makes it difficult to pass more gun laws as she called for nationalizing California's already strict regulations....as if that stopped the California shootings.
Yang began by asking her if there were "any changes that you think could be done quickly that could make a difference?" Pan complained about America's pro-gun "culture" as she began:
We need comprehensive gun policy reform, but that's not going to happen because we have a culture problem. There is big resistance to any kind of reform. The fact that high-capacity magazines and assault weapons are in civilian circulation is a symptom of that problem, so I would have to see a ban on that. If we could accomplish that quickly, that would indicate that we were moving in the right direction to get the comprehensive reform that we need.
Yang followed up by prodding her to elaborate: "But how do you address the bigger issue of the gun culture. You mentioned that we're in a gun culture is part of the problem?"
The two then fretted over Asian Americans buying more guns to protect themselves from the recent surge in crime:
YANG: And since the pandemic began, we've seen reports that more Asian Americans are buying guns in response to the threats and the actual incidents against Asian Americans. Does that give you concern?
PAN: I'm very concerned about that. Historically, Asian Americans have had the lowest rates of gun ownership. And because of that, we actually had the lowest rates of gun violence in our communities. We have the lowest rates of gun injuries and gun deaths, and we'd like to keep it that way. The more guns there are within our community, the more likelihood that there will be this kind of harm against our community within our community.
After the two discussed the possibility that more Asian Americans will be harmed if they buy more guns, including from suicides, Yang concluded by bringing up the issue of California's gun laws already being strict, and did not challenge his guest's logic as she blamed the state's gun violence on other states:
YANG: You talked earlier about the need for stricter gun safety laws, but California has some of the most aggressive gun safety laws in the nation. Yet in the last two weeks, we've seen three mass shootings there. How do you reconcile the two things?
PAN: Well, in California, the gun laws actually work. California is the largest state in the country, and yet they have the eighth lowest rate of harm from guns. So it works. The problem is that guns flow from state to state. It's very, very easy to get a gun. We need national reform in order to decrease gun violence everywhere, including in states where there are already gun laws. We can lower -- California would have even lower gun violence if we did not have a national problem.
This one-sided episode of the PBS NewsHour was funded by Consumer Cellular as well as viewers like you.
Transcript follows:
PBS NewsHour
January 25, 2023
7:25 p.m. Eastern
GEOFF BENNETT: As Vice President Kamala Harris meets with the families of those killed in the Monterey Park, California, shooting, many are grappling with the toll it's taking on their community, Personal memorials in that city and in Half Moon Bay, the site of a second mass shooting this week, are growing. Beyond the mourning and reflection, many say it's a moment yet again to focus on gun access. John Yang has that part of the story tonight.
JOHN YANG: Geoff, it's a number that bears repeating. This year is only 25 days old, and already there have been at least 40 mass shootings in the United States. In fact, there have been more this January than any other January in nearly a decade. For Asian Americans, this past week has been especially painful. All 11 victims in the Monterey Park shooting were of Asian descent.
Gloria Pan is the senior vice president of Moms Rising, a group which works on gun safety. She's also a key member of the AAPI Against Gun Violence Coalition. Gloria, I know you had a news conference earlier today. You acknowledged in that -- your group acknowledged in that that there is no single solution for these mass shootings, but are there any changes that you think could be made quickly that could make a difference?
GLORIA PAN, MOMS RISING: We need comprehensive gun policy reform, but that's not going to happen because we have a culture problem. There is big resistance to any kind of reform. The fact that high-capacity magazines and assault weapons are in civilian circulation is a symptom of that problem, so I would have to see a ban on that. If we could accomplish that quickly, that would indicate that we were moving in the right direction to get the comprehensive reform that we need.
YANG: But how do you address the bigger issue of the gun culture. You mentioned that we're in a gun culture is part of the problem?
PAN: There is a culture that very much believes that everyone should have a gun -- everyone should have a gun -- and it doesn't matter if you are trained -- it doesn't matter if you don't store it right. And that culture is a problem, and that culture is part of the opposition to any kind of gun policy reform in Washington, D.C., so we need to start softening that culture so we can get a comprehensive reform that we need because, until we can change that culture, we're not going to get it.
YANG: And since the pandemic began, we've seen reports that more Asian Americans are buying guns in response to the threats and the actual incidents against Asian Americans. Does that give you concern?
PAN: I'm very concerned about that. Historically, Asian Americans have had the lowest rates of gun ownership. And because of that, we actually had the lowest rates of gun violence in our communities. We have the lowest rates of gun injuries and gun deaths, and we'd like to keep it that way. The more guns there are within our community, the more likelihood that there will be this kind of harm against our community within our community.
YANG: But then how do address their fears -- their concerns of violence against the community?
PAN: That's a very tough time. Of course, every person experiences this kind of trauma differently. If a gun makes you feel safer, I mean, I don't push very hard against that because I understand that, but the actual defensive use of guns is really not that high, and the fact that there is a gun as part of your life increases the risk of harm. I think that, to feel safer, you know, we need to be (inaudible) hold each other closer and just try to do the best we can, you know, to be safe and to feel safe.
YANG: You say that if -- when guns are around, there is greater chance of harm. We focus so much on mass shootings, but, as you've pointed out now -- and others have pointed out -- access to guns also leads to higher incidents of suicide. And you've pointed out that the rate of suicide -- that suicide is the leading cause of death among Asian Americans aged 15 and 24. How do we address that?
PAN: We do know that, when a gun is involved, the likelihood of successful suicide rises dramatically, so, in our low-gun-owning community, we should try to make sure that the guns are not accessible. we do not want to see the accessibility to guns lead to higher rates of successful suicide.
YANG: You talked earlier about the need for stricter gun safety laws, but California has some of the most aggressive gun safety laws in the nation. Yet in the last two weeks, we've seen three mass shootings there. How do you reconcile the two things?
PAN: Well, in California, the gun laws actually work. California is the largest state in the country, and yet they have the eighth lowest rate of harm from guns. So it works. The problem is that guns flow from state to state. It's very, very easy to get a gun. We need national reform in order to decrease gun violence everywhere, including in states where there are already gun laws. We can lower -- California would have even lower gun violence if we did not have a national problem.
YANG: Gloria Pan of Moms Rising and AAPI Against Gun Violence Coalition, thank you very much.
