Dmmetler Posted October 12, 2014 Share Posted October 12, 2014 DD9 did a reptile expo today with the reptile ed/advocacy group. She was supposed to present a session, but it was the first one of a 2nd day expo, and she didn't have anyone there to talk to who wasn't part of the group she's in. Not what she had in mind at all, so that was disappointing. Then, there was a reporter, who was probably the worst person they could have sent-I'm pretty sure he was scared of snakes, and was definitely unprepared as far as having questions to ask or any idea of what is going on. Not good in a building with hundreds of reptiles present and people for whom this is a serious hobby or part-time job (few people make a living breeding and selling pet reptiles). I also suspect he thought people were playing a joke on him when one of the people he was told he HAD to talk to ended up being a 9 yr old. His questioning basically took the direction of "You're such a pretty little girl, why would you like such a strange animal?", which got DD very flustered. I called it quits at that point, and she burst out in tears back at the table, feeling like she'd failed at advocating for snakes and presenting herself and the group. The good news is that by the time he'd made it around the table, she'd calmed down and was able to talk to him about advocacy and education, as well as about snakes as pets. I'm hoping that the newspaper article comes out decently. Overall, she had a good time, and was able to send about a dozen of her toy snakes to new homes in exchange for collecting donations for the group, as well as getting to talk to a lot of kids at the table about snake husbandry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaConquest Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Aww. I'm sorry it was such a disappointing day. Your DD was such a trooper. Hugs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted October 13, 2014 Author Share Posted October 13, 2014 The article pretty much stinks. Luckily, DD and her group wasn't mentioned. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/local-news/commentary-welcome-to-my-nightmare-creepies-and-crawlies-at-repticon_15174381 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pegs Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 That sounds really rough. How great that she was able to recover and continue the interview. There's some resilience to be proud of! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 What a bummer! I so wish I could have been there and asked her questions (my kids all love snakes so they would have liked it too). I guess she has learned something about setbacks and the ignorant attitudes she is up against. Still, she is doing an amazing job and you must be hugely proud of the way she saw it through despite the less than ideal situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicianmom Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Wow. I could only read the headline and first sentence without being a subscriber, but even that is a really shoddy example of journalism. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted October 13, 2014 Author Share Posted October 13, 2014 Let's just say it doesn't get any better.. OTOH, the photographer did a nice job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewelma Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Oh, poor thing. I remember being called Ruthie at a conference by a pretty condescending older man. Only my grandmother and Father in law have ever called me Ruthie! There is just something about young small females that gives some people the sense that they can talk down to you. I have a friend who told me that she was never taken seriously until she gained 40lbs. She is 4'11". Sigh. Sounds to me like she will meet this attitude again, and needs to have a canned answer to get the ball rolling in a more intelligent direction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Oh, man. The title to that article pretty much says it all, doesn't it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2samlibby Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Let's just say it doesn't get any better.. OTOH, the photographer did a nice job. I would call the paper and complain about that article!! I can't read further than the headline and first sentence, but how awful! The point of sending a reporter to an event like that is for good coverage of it (positive coverage) and that is not it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted October 13, 2014 Author Share Posted October 13, 2014 DD has decided that she's going to write a rebuttal to his article and say what she would have said if he'd been willing to listen. "But I probably won't put it on my blog because it's probably not going to be very nice, and even though HE doesn't know you shouldn't say mean things in public, I do!". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daijobu Posted November 12, 2014 Share Posted November 12, 2014 When I saw the headline, "Welcome to my nightmare..." (as a non-subscriber it was the only part I was allowed to read), I was wondering if it was the author's attempt to relate to her audience. "Reptiles are repulsive, right? But these folks actually like them." (Not my opinion, by the way, just as an example. I think snakes are just swell.) It reminds me of how homeschoolers are often portrayed in the media. As in: "We all know homeschoolers are crazy, but look at these seemingly normal kids who won this academic contest? Who knew?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted November 12, 2014 Author Share Posted November 12, 2014 It didn't come off that way, though. It came off as, basically, that this guy totally hated/loathed snakes and exotic animals and thought we were all idiots (one of the people he interviewed in the article was a 12 yr old boy, and he asked the kid why he'd rather have that "thing" than a bunch of legos or something-that "Thing" being his pet). In general, everyone he talked to got the same feeling-that he really hated being there and was not going to like anything or listen to anything we said. I just wish one of his first victims hadn't been my 9 yr old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 It would be quite tempting to stalk that guy and put a pretend snake into his bed. I didn't say that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted November 15, 2014 Share Posted November 15, 2014 I can't read the article either, only the headline. But the headline seems pretty insulting considering what it is supposed to be covering. Unless, like mentioned up thread it was written that way as just a tweak to draw people in to an article on how snakes really can be cool. I guess that isn't what the article says? I am so sorry that your daughter's experience was so bad. What in the world was the newspaper thinking? I guess they weren't. FWIW, I used to have pet snakes. I would have loved to interview your daughter. Best wishes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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