Strange that they turned on us pt 1.......

by Gunner , St Louis, Tuesday, November 27, 2012, 18:52 (4325 days ago)

A Self-Inflicted Wound?
Publisher's Note: Over the past weeks, we've followed the discussion and controversy surrounding the Wounded Warrior Project following their taking a pass to appear on Tom Gresham's Gun Talk. Today, Tom Gresham brings us his complete take on the WWP controversy. (Originally published in Shooting Wire, Wednesday, November 21, 2012.)

Does the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) have a bias against guns and gun makers? Two weeks ago that would have sounded crazy, but this week many shooters are convinced that it's true. Hundreds of hunts and shoots are held as fundraisers for the WWP, and gun companies donate to WWP for its projects. How could it be that this $185 million (2013 projected revenue) outfit could be anti-gun?

It started with a simple invitation -- I wanted someone from the Wounded Warrior Project to join me for the Veteran's Day episode of my national radio show, Tom Gresham's Gun Talk. I had no idea it would turn into a national dustup which now has the gun rights community in a turmoil -- so much so that people are burning their Wounded Warrior Project shirts.

We were disappointed when the Leslie Coleman, PR director for WWP, said they couldn't come on the show, but that happens. Schedules don't mesh, things happen, but that's not uncommon. No big deal. Except that Ms. Coleman said they were declining because we "are related to firearms."

"While we appreciate the interest in having a WWP representative on your show on Veterans Day we are not able to participate in interviews or activities with media/organizations that are related to firearms," said Ms. Coleman in her email.

That really rocked us because we knew of all the firearms-related activities used to raise money for WWP. I asked for clarification, and Coleman reconfirmed their position. That Sunday I talked about it on the air and sent out a tweet (@guntalk) with the information. Some doubted that I had reported it correctly, so we posted the entire email exchange on our Facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/notes/gun-talk/wounded-warrior-project-email-exchange/101513540...

That lit the fuse, and hundreds (if not thousands) of gun rights supporters contacted WWP for clarification. The response was . . . a bit bland. Mostly it was along the lines of "We support the Second Amendment . . .," but the WWP web site specifically called out the firearms industry as one it would not "co-brand" with. That is, it would not allow the use of its logo on guns (and it turns out, on knives, either.) The other industries it won't co-brand with? Alcohol and sex.

Coleman's explanation that guns are used in suicides, and suicide is a big issue for returning vets, set off a firestorm of response. WWP quietly started making changes to its web site, removing mention of firearms, or changing it to "weapons." Online firearms boards documented the changes, posting the before and after. The pressure mounted on WWP.

By midweek, with the help of the Professional Outdoor Media Association, WWP offered to put its CEO, Steve Nardizzi, on Gun Talk Radio to explain what they now called a big misunderstanding that had been blown out of proportion. I welcomed the chance to clear up this mess, which no one wanted. I hoped that Nardizzi would announce a change in the policy.

He didn't. Once on the air, he said they support the Second Amendment (which really did remind me of when President Obama starts a sentence that way), and that they participate in hunts and shoots as fund raisers. Yes, we knew that. But what of the policy blocking the use of the WWP logo on guns? In fact, the policy prohibits the use of the logo at fundraisers where there is shooting, though that seems to be flexible.

No, he said, they would not "co-brand" with firearms or knives. The return on investment just wasn't there, he explained. I asked why they would turn down the money from such a program when it didn't interfere with their larger projects (ketchup, clothing, etc.), and he explained that co-branding requires much internal coordination with lawyers, PR people, and others to manage it, and that I wouldn't understand it. Hmmm.

What if we offered to cover all their internal expenses, and then co-brand (use their logo on guns and knives) as a way to contribute to WWP, I asked. Would that be okay? I never got a straight answer to that.

There was much back and forth, with it quickly taking on the feeling of dealing with a politician who has to be there, but who doesn't really want to answer the questions. To get the full flavor of the interview, you can download it or listen online. http://tinyurl.com/cugy6ft

continued in pt 2 post.