11 Feb Because in our everyday life we have to critically evaluate symbols, ?images, and graphics. Infographics are used to ?communicate complex ideas in a visually pleasing, yet simple to ?understand m

Source Evaluation Worksheet

Part I: Topic

Describe the topic, concept, idea, or approach that will be the central idea of the Week 7 Infographic. There is no minimum word count, but please use several thoroughly thought-out sentences to make your point.

Much debate has risen concerning the pit-bull dog breed. Some people argue that they are dangerous dogs from their previous history of dog fighting. Other people say the dog breed is excellent and friendly around children and other people. Pit bulls are like any other dog unless provoked or abused by any individual. Pit bulls do not have any aggressiveness; instead, they can act differently depending on how it is treated. If a dog is treated in a friendly way, it will also work well around people. If the dog is treated in an abusive and mistreated way, it can lead to biting or growling as a way of defending themselves. Pit bulls have a terrible reputation among individuals and are misunderstood. This leads to many needing to be noticed at shelters. The following infographic can help explain and convince people that pit bulls are good dogs that are misunderstood despite their negative reputation.

Part II: Source Evaluation

Article Title: Beloved companion or problem animal: The shifting meaning of pit bull 

Database or Web URL: https://doi.org/10.1163/15685306-12341529

Source’s Publication Date: 2019

Publishing Information: Society & Animals, Vol.27 Iss.3, p. 327-346

Source Summary: Pitbull is a widely used name that is involved inclusive or even contradictory meanings. In the 1900s, pit bulls were recognized for their love for children. The media sensation has contributed to the pit bulls' perceptions of being favorite companions to a different perception of problem nonhuman animals. This leads to constructing the examination of "problem animals." A qualitative study was conducted to help explore the representation of the word pit bull. A personal meaning Map was used as a data collection tool, and the respondents had conflicting definitions of a pit bull. Some said they were gentle and friendly and represented one breed, while others said they were gang-related status symbols and represented many breeds. Finally, the breed was concluded that they were both cruelty and predator victims.

Article Title: Pit bulls and dog fighting as symbols of masculinity in hip hop culture 

Article Author: Alonso-Recarte, C.

Database or Web URL: https://doi.org/10.1177/1097184X20965455

Source’s Publication Date: November 17 , 2020

Publishing Information: Men and Masculinities, Vol 23 Iss 5, p. 852-871.

Source Summary: The article explores cultural and aesthetic connections in hyper-masculinization inherent to hip-hop culture, dog fighting, and the pit bull. Recent scholarship has recognized racist assumptions about the pit bull controversy. The article provides much evidence and different arguments on how the genderized and racialized culture of hip hop inoculates the pit bull's body and imbues it with several meanings similar to the traumatic encounter of America and otherness. As an article that affirms both the countercultural and mainstream exploration of racialized masculinities, the body of a pit bull is created to perform the role of both an agent and victim within the nation’s compelling demand to monitor and control the other.

Article Title: Advocating for the pit bull ‘type ‘dog

Article Author: Shepherd, K.

Database or Web URL: https://doi.org/10.1136/vr.k4141

Source’s Publication Date: October 6, 2018

Publishing Information: The Veterinary Record, Vol183, Iss13, p.418.

Source Summary: The content in the ‘Dangerous dogs legislation is failing dogs’ was regarding abhorrent dog fighting practices. This involved the emotional fallout with those investigating it and the inherent abuse of the involved dogs. The abuse may be physical and mental because species adapted to avoid conflicts with conspecifics are reared in conditions of such social deprivation and frustration as to make their kind an 'enemy' to be fought, and potentially killed, at every opportunity. The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 (DDA) Sections 1 and 3 intention was not to protect the dogs but to protect people by preventing incidents of dog bites. This meant that breed dogs responsible for biting would be banned and punishing owners of the dogs inflicted or injury fear. The DDA has failed in protecting dogs as it developed a new dog abuse field and pit bull misuse dogs. Dog pets similar to pit bulls with no history of aggression are known as pit bulls and are kept away from families to be destroyed. A lot of money by the public can be reallocated to investigate, punish and prevent dog fighting.

Article Title: Is that dog a pit bull? A cross-country comparison of perceptions of shelter workers regarding breed identification 

Article Author: Hoffman, C. L., Harrison, N., Wolff, L., & Westgarth, C

Database or Web URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/10888705.2014.895904

Source’s Publication Date: March 27, 2014

Publishing Information: Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, Vol 17 Iss 4, p.322-339.

Source Summary: Bull breeds are mostly kept as companion animals, but the pit bull terrier is restricted by breed-specific legislation (BSL) in some parts of the US and throughout the UK. Employees in the shelter should decide the type of breed a dog belongs to. The dog's fate can be influenced by this decision, mostly in places with the BSL. In this study, employees in the shelter in the US and UK were shown images of 20 dogs and asked their breed, how they determined the breed, if the dog was a pit bull, and the expectation of the dog's fate. The responses had variations in both countries, where the participants in the UK labeled dogs commonly known by participants in the US to be pit bulls as Staffordshire bull terriers. The participants in the UK would likely say that the shelters would euthanize dogs deemed pit bulls. Many recognized dogs' physical features to determine the breed and were affected by the BSL noted that they would mislabel the dog of a breed that has a restriction to increase its adoption chances.

Abstract