COMMUNICATIONS PLAYBOOK Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association 101 Pro Rodeo Drive, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80919 719-593-8840 www.prorodeo.com TABLE OF CONTENTS Purpose ...................................................................................................................................... 2 Why Rodeo ................................................................................................................................ 3 Timeline ..................................................................................................................................... 4 The Cowboy ............................................................................................................................... 6 Livestock .................................................................................................................................... 7 Animal Welfare Program ........................................................................................................ 10 Working With the Media & the Public .................................................................................... 12 Animal Rights vs. Animal Welfare .......................................................................................... 16 Talking Points .......................................................................................................................... 19 PRCA Animal Welfare Rules.................................................................................................... 26 Communication With Stakeholders ....................................................................................... 37 Legislation ............................................................................................................................... 38 Elected Official Contact Tree .................................................................................................. 40 Crisis Management .................................................................................................................. 41 Animal Care Unit ..................................................................................................................... 45 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................... 48 Shareable Resources ............................................................................................................... 49 1 PRCA COMMUNICATIONS PLAYBOOK PURPOSE This playbook has been compiled for the benefit of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Committees and other Members to plan, prepare for, and respond to, if necessary, incidences that may arise in connection with the rodeo in these Committees’ communities. With the continued use of misinformation and heavily edited video, animal rights activists have enjoyed free rein to target committee members, rodeo veterinarians, rodeo producers, stock contractors, rodeo executives, sponsors, as well as cowboys for threats of lawsuits and boycotts among other actions. This document will serve as a guideline for year long advocacy, advertising, legislative issues, and crises management. Along with these benefits, this Communications Playbook also serves each rodeo committee as a foundation for new committee members to build upon. The overall goal is to provide a clearing house of information and contacts, as well as proven strategies to help PRCA Rodeo Committees have a successful rodeo. 2 WHY RODEO? HISTORY The history of rodeo begins in the pioneer days of the West. As Americans came into contact with Spanish and Mexican Vaqueros, much of the Vaquero’s clothing, equipment, and traditions were adopted and adapted. Daily ranch chores such as tie-down roping, team roping, steer roping, and saddle bronc riding evolved into the modern events that we see today. Events like bareback riding, bull riding, and steer wrestling expanded on the ideas of those early events. During the 1800’s cattle drives were organized to move free range cattle from the Western Plains to the markets in the East. At the end of these long drives, it was not uncommon for different ranch outfits to hold informal contests to see which outfit had the best bronc riders, ropers, and all around “hands”. Many towns and cities claim to be the first to hold a rodeo including Deer Trail, Colorado and Cheyenne Wyoming. Prescott, Arizona claims the title of the World’s Oldest Rodeo as it has held an annual rodeo that began on July 4, 1888. Wild West Shows also began promoting these events as sporting performances with paying spectators. Around the dawn of the 20th Century, many more annual organized events began to occur such as Cheyenne Frontier Days, Pendleton Round-Up, and the Calgary Stampede. With the growing number of venues holding annual events, rodeo became a legitimate sport. Many early cowboys such as Will Rogers, Bill Pickett, and Yakima Canutt won national acclaim as the sport of rodeo grew in popularity. As promoters and managers organized to regulate the sport of rodeo, so too did a group of cowboys in 1936 at the Boston Garden. These cowboys went on strike to compete for the entirety of their entry fees and standardization of judging and judges. This group became the Cowboy Turtles Association. This was the name they chose for themselves as they were slow to act but finally stuck their necks out for their cause. In 1945, the Turtles became the Rodeo Cowboys Association. Soon after, the RCA began implementing animal welfare rules. In 1975, the RCA became the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. The PRCA has seen tremendous growth since the early days which have been realized in terms of membership, national exposure, media coverage, and sanctioned rodeos. Today, the PRCA has more than 6000 members, sanctions more that 700 events, as well as year-round television and streaming coverage. In 2019, more than $52 million in prize money was paid out at PRCA rodeos, a figure that would have astounded the first rodeo cowboys that were looking to supplement their incomes. $10 million of that prize money was awarded at the National Finals Rodeo – a far cry from the $50,000 awarded at the first NFR in 1959. 3 4 Annually, PRCA rodeos have an estimated attendance of 6.3 million loyal fans with a total of 43 million identifying as fans. Rodeo ranks seventh in overall attendance for major sporting events, according to the Sports Business Daily. The PRCA’s 6.3 million loyal rodeo attendees across the U.S. are about 47 percent male and 53 percent female; 51 percent have household income of $50,000 or more and 77 percent own their own homes. Pro Rodeo fans come from all walks of life, but as a group, they are demographically similar to NASCAR fans, and are likely to also enjoy hunting, fishing and camping. The attendance at the first NFR is an estimated 54,000 people and has grown to an annual attendance of over 168,000 in 2019, including the estimated 285,000 people in the city of Las Vegas during the NFR. 5 THE COWBOY The American Cowboy was rooted in the Spanish and Mexican Vaqueros. The daily ranch work dictated a life of getting the job done. Much of the life was spent horseback and many, Vaqueros and Cowboys alike, came to disdain work that couldn’t be done from there. These were and are independent men and women that value liberty above all else. They live by a code that includes respect, charity, duty, and patriotism. The independence and individuality of the free spirit continues through the modern-day rodeo cowboy. These cowboys not only are horseman and cattlemen, they have also become highly trained and well-conditioned athletes. Modern advances in strength training, conditioning, diet, and sports medicine, for animals and athletes alike, are all taken advantage of and applied in the present-day world of the rodeo cowboy. Many of the cowboys today, just as in the days of old, come from working farms and ranches. Most have competed from the time they were young, developing through the many youth organizations to become the professionals and world champions that perform in the PRCA contests. The cowboy is the direct link to our pioneering spirit and never-say-die attitude. Rodeo is the only major sport that has no guaranteed income to cover entry fees and expenses. The rodeo cowboy enters a rodeo, pays his entry fee, and takes his chance that the animal he has drawn in competition is good enough to win or place on. If not, he enters the next rodeo and tries to place at it. A life of optimism, hope, and faith drive these individuals to compete at the highest levels. 6 LIVESTOCK Rodeo Livestock Quick Facts The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) has strict standards in place to protect the livestock. PRCA rules require a veterinarian on-site during all sanctioned competitions. Flanks straps used on bucking horses and bulls are used to encourage the bucking stock to buck with proper form, kicking their legs behind them. Horse flank straps are lined with soft sheepskin or Neoprene for the animals' comfort. Veterinarian’s report the livestock is well cared for and the injury rate is extremely low - averaging five-hundredths of one percent (0.05%). PRCA rules restricts the use of livestock prods to occasions when they are necessary to protect the safety of the animal or contestant. 7 ProRodeo Livestock n the sport of professional rodeo, cowboys share the limelight with horses, bulls, calves and steers. For cowboys to compete at the highest level, the “The AVMA rodeo livestock must