A little anti-gun bias on CNN. This week, CNN interviewed 11-year-old Jamison Stone who claimed he killed a “Monster Pig,” which was often compared to the other giant pig Hogzilla, but not everyone in the media was very receptive to the story of an 11-year-old boy using a handgun to kill a giant boar. CNN Newsroom correspondent T.J. Holmes was uncomfortable with the boy’s use of a handgun, asking, “Is it just me, or an 11-year-old with a pistol, is that OK?” (emphasis mine throughout):
T.J. HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Eleven-year-old Jamison Stone brought down this more than 9-foot-long, 1,000 pound wild hog with a pistol.
(LAUGHTER)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMISON STONE, KILLED GIANT HOG: I was scared, a little bit excited. It was pretty nerve-racking at first, when I was about to go after that big old hog.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Jamison was hunting with his dad in east Alabama when they came upon the monster hog. The hog is bigger than Hogzilla, the famed wild hog...
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: ... that was killed in south Georgia in 2004.
Is it just me, or an 11-year-old with a pistol, is that OK?
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Baby, that's -- that -- that's how they ring...
HOLMES: OK.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: ... it in 'Bama, OK?
HOLMES: All right.
PHILLIPS: That's how they ring it in 'Bama.
HOLMES: A movie now being made about Hogzilla, and they want to talk to Jamison about role in that movie.
(end segment)
Whether Holmes was disturbed at an 11-year-old using a gun in general or a handgun specifically, he is uncomfortable with the boy using a gun. Many people under 18 safely use guns, but invariably, whenever a story like this is in the media, there are comments about the appropriateness of children using guns. The anti-gun lobby has been successful, at least in the media, of rebranding legally owned and operated guns, and handguns in particular, as a significant threat to society that must be controlled or eliminated.
Although it is impossible to be sure, Holmes’ dismay seemed to be caused by an 11-year-old using a pistol. Since hunting rifles and hunting handguns basically have the same ultimate end result, the dismay appeared to be focused on the style of gun. Would Holmes have been just as uncomfortable with Stone using a rifle instead, or was the issue that the gun involved was the demonized handgun?
Tip to Kyra—don’t try to be hip with the kids’ lingo. It never works. Unless you’re being ironic, don’t force out, “That’s how they ring it in ‘Bama.” It just smacks too much of the kind of teacher that everyone knew in high school who bragged about listening to the same music as his students and peppered his speech with their slang. Those guys aren’t cool. Don’t be that guy.
Contact Lynn at tvisgoodforyou2 AT yahoo DOT com
