Arsenal majority shareholder Stan Kroenke "has come under fire for launching a new bloodsports television channel" that was unveiled in the U.K. over the weekend, according to Jack de Menezes of the London INDEPENDENT. The channel will show regular hunting programs that include "killing elephants, lions and other vulnerable African species." The American billionaire, who owns 67% of Arsenal's shares, oversaw the launch of My Outdoor TV, which was revealed in the U.K. at the Game Fair in Hertfordshire and described by those who back the channel as the "Netflix of the hunting world." The channel will screen shows that "follow hunters across the globe, primarily in Africa where big-money hunting trips are available, and involve various ways of killing wild animals." It is owned by Outdoor Sportsman Group, part of Kroenke Sport Entertainment (INDEPENDENT, 7/31). The BBC's Lucy Hooker reported Kroenke is taking MOTV to an int'l audience "via a new app." The app will "soon be marketed in English-speaking countries around the world" including Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. But Arsenal fans and animal welfare groups are "outraged, with some calling for a boycott of the football club." Big game hunting is a "small, though eye-catching proportion of MOTV's content." In the U.S., where the app launched last year, the "majority of the films are of white tail hunting and other typical North American quarries." Outdoor Sportsman Group spokesperson Simon Barr said that the "aim is to localise content to appeal to national audiences" (BBC, 7/31). The London TELEGRAPH reported the launch has been "condemned" by League Against Cruel Sports COO Philippa King, who has called on the Outdoor Sportsman Group to "tread carefully" with its U.K. platform. In a statement, King said, "This is a massive own goal for Stan Kroenke. We're living in a world now where most people can see how brutal and shameful trophy-hunting is, yet the Arsenal boss is choosing to launch his sick TV channel in the UK" (TELEGRAPH, 7/31). In London, Robert Cottingham reported journalist Piers Morgan expressed his anger responding to a tweet from former cricketer Kevin Pietersen.
Barr defended the channel saying that its programs "provide information on how big game hunting assists conservation" (
DAILY MAIL, 7/31). Also in London, Jerome Starkey reported World Wildlife Foundation ambassador Ben Fogle "urged fans to boycott" Arsenal. ITV political editor Robert Peston said, "As an Arsenal supporter I have to pay money to this person. I feel sick"
(
LONDON TIMES, 7/31).
