Dead Kentucky Derby Filly the Elephant in the Room

NBC ought to hang its collective head in shame. Its nearly three hours of coverage of yesterday's Kentucky Derby just about completely ignored the news.

Yes, Big Brown, the overwhelming favorite, won the race by nearly five lengths. But meanwhile, there was a horse -- Eight Belles, a filly who made a valiant run and came in second -- that was being killed on the track. In the several minutes after the race, viewers saw brief, faraway shots of horse ambulances and various other vehicles and a miscued interview with the veterinarian on call, who was busy on his walkie-talkie. When they finally got back to the veterinarian, he announced tersely that the horse had broken both front ankles and had had to be "euthanized."

So, okay, I can understand them not showing millions of viewers visuals of a gorgeous thoroughbred writhing in agony. But what I can't understand (and, please, I am not a rabid animal rights advocate -- I actually like horseracing on occasion) is their complete failure to tell the story.

The news here (and Bob Costas used to fancy himself a journalist) was the dead filly. How did this happen? Could the jockey have done anything? Were there any signs in the horse's prior medical history that could have foretold this? How often does something like this happen? How did they euthanize the horse? Is this a no-brainer decision, or is there some specialist somewhere that would have made a stab at saving this horse?

I -- and I'm sure millions of others watching -- was curious. I wanted answers. And I got none.

The purpose of broadcast journalism -- like all journalism -- is to inform. And NBC, its announcers and producers failed miserably. After nearly three hours of vote-for-your-favorite-hat and celebrity interviews, the least they could have done, when an actual news story occurred, was to cover it. Completely, coherently and clearly. I feel sure that had there been a tornado that ripped through the track or a collapse of the stands, NBC would have jumped into action and reported the hell out of the story.

So, what's going on here? Why the blackout?

Well, first, all of Kentucky and NBC is invested in a "fun" Derby Day. Why else do they add a half-hour of "red carpet coverage" to a two-hour telecast of what is only seconds more than a two-minute sporting event? The "fun" part was Big Brown, a possible Triple Crown contender, his braggart owner and his runaway victory. Not the dead horse on the track.

Second, NBC has a huge investment in Derby coverage -- one that it used to promote its own Olympics extravaganza this summer and, more important, one that it's locked into until 2010. It cannot afford to send its viewer home, thinking that horses actually die in the Derby.

So, a major news network basically pretends there is no dead horse on the track, wasting a totally teachable moment, refusing to answer the myriad questions that occurred to at least this viewer.

NBC's performance was abysmal. Chet Huntley, David Brinkley and John Chancellor must be spinning in their graves. Bob Costas should be mortified. And what are we, the viewers, to do to make sure we get the story of the next elephant in the room?

Comments

[WilliePilgrim]

If the story for the viewer was the inured horse, then the only complaint possible could be that we all weren't forced to watch it over and over, because as far as I could tell there was plenty of coverage of it throughout the media but simply not on the primary coverage which, despite the Ms H's morbid obsession with the inured horse, was the winning of the race by another, uninjured horse.
If the news had shifted over to the injured horse we'd hear equally vocal outcry from those who would criticize the media for focusing on tragedy, making a buck off of a poor animal's pain.
In other words, this entire essay is little more than a whine which says in a nutshell is that no animal should ever suffer in service to humans. OK, fair enough...and now, back to reality.

[fishsandwichesr2good]

The amount of blubbering coverage of the dead horsey and posts like Ruth's are further proof of what a country of pansies we've become. Please don't let Hillary get her finger on the button (or at least hide it for a week or so every month).

[yomikey]

Bob Costas, second only to Bryant Gumble in the "I'm the coolest guy in the room" club...a journalist? Hmm...

[MizLiz]

I wish composite tracks were the law. I don't care how much it costs, it would be worth it. I wonder if the networks avoided covering this is because of the national heartbreak over Barbaro. I notice his name was never mentioned ONCE.

[jeannie35]

Do you think this is similar to dog-fighting. An animal dies because for human entertainment... Risk is far higher in dog-fighting, but is that a significant difference?

[sdskelton03]

"The purpose of broadcast journalism -- like all journalism -- is to inform."

I think this is your mistake. The coverage of the Kentucky Derby wasn't "journalism."

Let Dateline or 60 Minutes answer your question.

NBC was correct to not focus on the dead horse. It was correct to focus on the winner.

[JNo]

I agree here. NBC's cov'g of the Derby wasn't "journalism"- it was a broadcast of an event

[sunshinegal]

I agree with "sdskeltono3" that broadcast journalism's purpose is to inform. On two levels, however, NBC did a terrible job of fulfilling that function. First, and foremost, in the final leg of the race, there were NO GRAPHICS posted as to the status of the horses on the back stretch. We were all guessing the positions of the horses--at least on our TV set. Second, in articles noting that the filly "had her ears up" while crossing the finish line, an indication that she was OK, NBC had no closeup footage of Eight Belles," the 2nd place horse. No footage of her ears up!!! Thus, while I agree with you that their focus was on the "winner," what about the place and show horses? Terrible coverage by NBC! Regarding the filly's death on the track, I agree with others that it was newsworthy, and that some kind of commentary was necessary--even if just an emotional expression. In short, NBC did a terrible job. (comments from an Emeritus Professor of Communication)

[lisakaz2]

You misread him. He disagreed with that quote. I agree with you.

[lisakaz2]

Sorry, I disagree. In the past, the purpose WAS to inform. Remember "Wide World of Sports" regarding "the human drama of athletic competition" and "the agony of defeat"? Did the '72 Olympics fail to cover the athletes getting kidnapped and killed in Munich? Nope. When a news story broke, Jim McKay gave you the truth, the whole truth.

What we got now is the equivalent of bubble gum.

[polkadotpoodle]

imagine the spectacle if she had collasped before the race finished. that WILL happen in the not too distant future and after a mass euthanasia on the track ... perhaps the INDUSTRIES will reconsider racing immature poorly bred horses.

[Apphouse50]

Someone really needs to tell that trainer's daughters that chewing gum when TV cameras are right in your face is super-tacky. Didn't anyone ever say, "Close your mouth when you chew"? Not to mention, "Don't chew gum on television." Icky. Just icky.

[strifeknot]

Is it as tacky as being so offended by her gum chewing as to comment on it here?

[Henk]

When the topic is a horse being euthanized this joker is worried about some kid chewing gum. Some day, like Michelle Obama, I will be REALLY proud of my country, but folks like Apphouse keep popping into view and screwing that up.

[Tommygun264]

The YouTube footage of the owner of the winning horse and his gleeful family and friends dancing for joy without pausing for a single moment to inquire as to the fate of the horse which anyone with the slightest knowledge of horses would know was at the very least gravely ill or injured, clearly illustrates the craven depravity and naked greed which lay at the heart of the so-called "sport of kings". You can dismiss me as ignorant of the beauty and nobility of the sport, but spare me the speeches about how a horse with heart is the driving force that propels a champion to victory. Perhaps now we can finally put to rest the mythology that has been built up by the horseback racing and gambling industries. Horseback racing has been and always will be just a manufactured means for rich men to expand their wealth and their egos by draining the pockets of the ignorant masses dazzled by the spectacle of animals forced to perform painful and hazardous acts contrary to their true nature under the guise of "sport". The Kentucky Derby is a shameless exaltation of the worst qualities of mankind.

[mmerose]

I remember sad condolences in the presentation ceremony, by which time the outcome was known.

Believe me, horses can break their legs just playing in the pasture. Its just silly hyperbole to say running really fast is a "painful and hazardous act contrary to their true nature."

[MizLiz]

I have to agree with you, I was sort of nauseated by the spectacle . Have some dignity, people.

[marymansour]

As a retired Humane Officer and a horse back rider, I detest sports that stress these beautiful animals to the 'breaking point'. Steeple chases and races take young horses and pit them against one another in a horrifying few minutes with the jockey's whipping them to a finish. IT IS EGREGIOUS. I think ordinary horse shows, barrel racing and a few other horse events are reasonably okay but those that put pressure on those slender vulnerable legs just won't do. Let's have a ban on this drunken social soiree referred to as the Kentucky Derby. Can't these porky chaps with fancied hatted ladies just get drunk and win a lottery on the grounds? Do horses have to suffer and die to satisfy their greed for power, money and a royal blast?

[lisakaz2]

Is there any way to truly make the sport safer or maybe just safer? Seems the injuries have risen in frequency in the last 30 years or so. Am I wrong? Could the horses have special guards on their ankles to limit the stress? Could the tracks be better?

[MandyW]

This post may have a kernel of validity, but it's full of some arrant nonsense.

Most of the "three hours of coverage" occurred BEFORE the race even started. Thus, it's not startling that it didn't focus on an event that hadn't happened yet. The Derby is an annual spectacle devoted to funny hats, mint juleps, nice spring weather, and feel-good silly-season stories. If that's not your cup of tea, don't watch, but don't carry on as if there was some sort of bait-and-switch when a silly entertainment program delivered exactly what it promised, rather than "hard news".

After the race, the commentators did report the few facts that were actually known about the horse's injury. Since a lot of very young kids watch the Derby, I don't agree that it would have been appropriate to dwell at length on the death of Eight Belles.

Just because you were "curious" and "wanted answers" doesn't mean that there were any solid facts available to report IMMEDIATELY after the race. When some time has passed, and the trainers and vets have investigated the details, the answers you seek will be probably be available -- if you're still interested. But right after the race, the only thing that NBC could have offered was "experts" speculating about what happened, with precious few facts to go on. You're certainly entitled to call that sort of blather "reporting," but others consider it a waste of time.

[rubyjewel]

My comments are based on personal experience as an owner and trainer of horses. Thoroughbreds do not have a mature musculoskeletal system until age 6-7 years. This means their bones are not fully ossified and cannot withstand maximum stress until that age. Racing thoroughbreds are routinely treated with lasix a powerful diuretic which washes out electrolytes and calcium along with urine. Calcium is critical to bone maturation and ossification. Eight Belles was heavily raced as a two and three year old. My guess is she was also frequently exposed to lasix. The combination of maximum stress on an immature musculskeletal system and use of lasix, which reduces the body's calcium stores necessary for bone maturation, ensures that racing thoroughbreds are exposed to catastrophic, preventable injury and death.

The claim of her trainer, Larry Jones, that Eight Belles was "glad" to suffer compound fractures of both forelimbs as a public spectacle of cruelty is nothing short of an obscenity. Her owner's claim that her breakdown on the track was a "glorious death" is sickening evidence of his personal commitment to profit through cruelty. The fact that sportscasters blather on about the race while ignoring the grotesque tragedy right in front of them is business as usual for US mainstream media. The thoroughbred racing industry has no interest in reform unless the public demands it. As long as spectators continue to support and enrich the monsters who abuse these animals for personal wealth nothing will change.

[malfoni]

Amen and Amen! Yours is the only reply that makes perfect sense and tells the whole truth. From horse racing to horse showing these horses are pushed past their physical limits in the name of greed. I have watched the Kentucky Derby every year for as long as I can remember...Saturday's race was my last!

[mmerose]

Horses are accident-prone under the most ideal circumstances. Because this happened under the glare of Kentucky Derby attention, it takes on a sense of being common, and of direct race-stress causality, which is deceptive. There is no other "career" of horses that is more monitored by bone scans and x-rays and blood tests and minute, experienced observation by people familiar with the normal responses and appearance of well-being of the individual horse.

Your own shock at the terrible thing happening to the horse understandably interferes with any compassion for the people. There is no way they were not devastated, with the reality of the thing
barely sinking in. I don't know about the "glad," comment, but "glorious death" is clearly a tribute to a creature loved and respected.

[JNo]

Very insightful post here. I did not know about the musculoskeletal maturation age vis-a-vis the typical age of racing horses. I also did not realize the effect Lasix has on electrolyte content of bones. I also think the author's insights into the comments of trainer Larry Jones were prescient as well.

[CARTERJ]

Bought my high-def 47" and set it up Saturday. Had on the Kentucky Derby for the sights, but had the sound turned off (I am not a sports fan, but the picture was gorgeous when focusing on the whole scene. Ugly people are definitely not meant for hi-def TV. You could see the shaving nits on the neck of the handsome blonde announcer, whoever he was. I was disgusted by the people, however, and the endless parade of vanity. The same shots over and over. I mean, who gives a rat's ass if Hugh Hefner is there with 3 gorgeous sluts? Three hours of vanity coverage for a two-minute race. Then the ambulances. I was disgusted, and my original disdain of this ridiculous event was justified.

[egal]

You have way more faith than I if you honestly believe they would have covered those sample disasters competently, as if they were a news network somewhere under all the sensationalism.

[mervgriffn]

What do you expect if the "rights" to cover that event are parcelled out to the highest bidder? The only thing that matters to these "journalists" is the future popularity of the event that they are "covering". If the event in the future becomes less popular than the investment made for the rights to cover that event was a bad one and Bob Costas' boss gets blamed and doesn't hire Bob Costas again.

More importantly, it would be of interest to know when the press stopped using the word "destroyed" and began using the word "euthanized" to describe the killing of a racehorse.

[LARRYB28]

Probably the same time that they started calling illegal aliens undocumented