Trampoline Bear Abuse or Cool Critter Celebration? As Shepard Smith‘s beloved Ole Miss progresses forward with its mascot pick of the Rebel Black Bear to replace Colonel Reb, the Studio B and Fox Report anchor continues to be conflicted about moving forward from his signature segment “Bear Alert” to a more animal-friendly “Cool Critters.” As a case in point, last Thursday, Shep reported the very same story (about a newborn Atlanta panda cub) under the respective rubrics differently on his two daily FNC programs: To wit, on Studio B, Shep narrated the tale as the “Bear Alert,” accompanying it as usual with the cruel Trampoline Bear video (showing a tranquilized bear falling from a tree onto a trampoline, being hurled high into the air, and then crashing headfirst into the unyielding ground) whereas on the Fox Report, Shep retold it as a “Cool Critters” story without the repugnant Trampoline Bear clip.
Unfortunately, Shep’s recent setback occurred just a mere week to the day that he showed significant promise on Studio B during his “Bear Report.” On that show, he aired the Trampoline Bear clip but he elided the offensive frames of the black bear crashing into the concrete-like earth albeit jesting about “bear trampoline safety.” Optimistic that Shep may have turned a proverbial corner, the author penned, Carpe Diem‘s “Hope Springs Eternal” that he would not “return to his vomit.”
Unfortunately, Shep did just that as he returned to his folly Thursday on Studio B‘s “Bear Alert.” But, did he repent a mere three hours later on Fox Report‘s “Cool Critters”? Hope may spring eternal, but its flame is dimmed with each passing day.
Colonel Shep, walk into the light!
Update: Eight days later (last Friday), Fox Report producers took a different tack. Instead of choosing between the rubric “Bear Alert” or “Cool Critters,” they did both basically. As guest host Jon Scott previewed the FR‘s final segment entitled “Bear Buddies” (about an older female polar bear at Highland Wildlife Park in Kingussie, Scotland, being introduced to a twenty-three-month-old male as a companion), Jon commented, “Now, Bear Alert and Cute [sic?] Critter Alert, Britain’s only polar bear getting a new friend but don’t expect cubbies anytime soon.” The odious Trampoline Bear video did not run after this conflated alert. More progress?
*Fox Report with Shepard Smith – 11/12/10 (@ 7:54 a.m. ET)
Tags: Carpe Diem, Cool Critters, FNC, Fox News, Fox Report, Highland Wildlife Park, Jon Scott, Kingussie, Ole Miss, Rebel Black Bear, Scotland, Shepard Smith, Studio B, Trampoline Bear
Carpe Diem 
November 7, 2010 at 1:39 pm
Did you only recently start watching Shep Smth’s programmes? A wide variety of animal videos have been used on his shows for years, so basing any hope that he’ll stop using the trampoline bear on his using something else is faulty deductive reasoning.
I love the trampoline bear video. To be honest, though, it’s even funnier now that you try make a big deal of it.
November 7, 2010 at 2:09 pm
Al, after your copious defenses of Shep pertaining to my many criticisms of the Trampoline Bear, your question seems disingenuous. You know full well that Shep’s signature animal segment is the “Bear Alert.” In fact, when Shep introduced the “Cool Critter” segment after much heat from Carpe Diem, you were first in line to comment.
November 7, 2010 at 11:54 pm
I was first in line to raz you, but sincere in acknowledging your perseverance. For a while Shep did that thing with the moose jumping in a swimming pool, then there was a bird that did something silly, and every-so-often intermixing the trampoline bear or some other “bear Alert” thing.
My point being that Shep has been mixing it up for years now. This doesn’t mean that he hasn’t halted the trampoline bear forever, but your only clue whenever this does happen will either be him directly saying so or six months without seeing it.
November 8, 2010 at 1:22 pm
Issues??? Apparently order of priorities and importance elude the author. In totality, Shep Smith’s reputation is very safe….bears or not…and I vote keep the bear alerts and grow, not groan.
November 8, 2010 at 10:27 pm
The bear is a gag line, a comic signature. Did the erudite animal obsessive author also object to Conan’s masturbating bear????? Self abuse not objectionable? Lighten up.
November 10, 2010 at 3:30 pm
Billie Taylor, maybe, Andy needs to have a word with you and Opie.
May 3, 2012 at 9:46 pm
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