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| Franco, Malloy (Star-Ledger photo) |
WKXW NJ 101.5 radio hosts Dennis Malloy, Judi Franco and Ray
Rossi are under fire after controversial conversations they had on air last
week about animal abuse.
During a mid-day and overnight radio show on May 21, hosts
brought up the topic of animal abuse and Sammy, the Cocker Spaniel that was
abused and brought to the Associated Humane Society in Tinton Falls
According to a posting on the station website, social media posts
said Malloy and Franco said animal rights activists need to get their
priorities straight, while a statement from 101.5 said “there were spirited
discussions of the relative importance of human rights and animal rights, as
well as the passions of animal rights proponents, which involved calls from
audience members.”
A tweet was also sent by @JLNunyabusiness to Franco stating
"R U not aware that animals feel pain, fear, emotion just like us? Would U
like 2B concreted in your own urine & feces? Starved?" Franco, using
the Twitter handle @judifranco, replied stating, “actually they don't. But
thanks for listening!!"
The tweet and Franco’s account have since been deleted.
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| Sammy |
Sammy supporters and loyal listeners who were outraged took
to social media to express their disgust with the comments made on the show.
The Associated Humane Society also discussed the talk show
on their Facebook page.
“Wow.....very disappointed in our New Jersey radio station, NJ 101.5. Their
talk show hosts, Dennis and Judy, have poked fun several times over the years
at ‘animal rights activists’.....which are merely people that care about
animals and take an interest in their well-being,” the post said. “We would
like to invite those at this radio station to come and visit our facility, or
any of our three facilities, and see for themselves that animals DO in fact
feel pain and have emotions. And that the people that work with them and care
for them do NOT have their priorities mixed up.”
According to the Sammy the Cocker Spaniel Facebook page,
Rossi also allegedly said 'untrue, hurtful' statements on air about Martin
Mondoker, one of the pages administrators. Rossi posted an apology on the
Facebook page.
“I would like to take this time to apologize for some things
that were said about Martin that had nothing to do with his position on seeking
justice for Sammy the cocker spaniel,” Rossi posted without elaborating on what
was said.
People also called on the station on social media to release
full transcripts or recordings of the show. The 101.5 statement released
Tuesday included a partial transcript of the show with the hosts stating they
do not support animal cruelty.
Facebook user Dawn Witzel Lowery wrote on the 101.5 page,
"If you have nothing to hide, release the FULL Sammy transcript. People
who think animal abuse is funny are no better than the actual abusers
themselves. These 3 people should not work in public media. Get them out of
there!!!”
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| Franco, Malloy |
A petition on change.org calling for Rossi, Franco and
Malloy to be fired has also reached more than 6,000 signatures, and several
Facebook pages were created on Sunday asking people to boycott the station and
fire the hosts.
The 101.5 statement also talked about the show and social
media conversation surrounding animal abuse.
“Unfortunately, some of the online commentary regarding the
discussions which transpired on these programs has become dislocated from the
facts,” the statement said. “New
Jersey 101.5 and its employees do not condone or make
light of animal abuse. Animal abuse is a vile phenomenon and perpetrators
should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. There is no place for
animal abuse in civilized society.”
Click here to read the full statement released by 101.5
“Judi and I were simply attempting to have a discussion
about changing opinions on animal cruelty in the last few years,” Malloy said
in the statement. “We referenced a recent criminal case related to animal
cruelty in New Jersey
Tweets about "#nj1015"
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