Petition Asks That TV Hunter’s Show Be Dropped After Lion Kill Controversy

TV big game hunter Melissa Bachman continues to face blowback after posting a photo of herself with the body of an African lion she’d killed.  

Bachman, star of the Pursuit Channel show Winchester Deadly Passion, is the subject of a new Care2 petition demanding that Pursuit, DirecTV and Dish Network drop the show.

“Trophy hunting is despicable and counters any efforts of conservation,” reads the petition, created by a South African man. “These photos represent Bachman’s complete disrespect for nature and we do NOT want her influencing our children and being promoted by TV networks.”

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More than 82,000 people have signed so far. A separate petition at Change.org attracted more than 486,000 signatures, asking the South African government to deny her entry into the country. That petition is now closed.

Bachman came under fire after posting a photo Nov. 4 of herself posing with the dead body of an adult African lion on Facebook, where she also has posted photos of other animals she has hunted, including a zebra and an Alaskan brown bear. 

She faced a huge backlash online, including a response from Ricky Gervais, who tweeted Monday: “There’s a big difference between the natural need for a species to kill and eat prey & just shooting an animal simply as a ghastly trophy.” In addition, a Facebook page titled Stop Melissa Bachman has attracted 306,000 likes. But a number of people left Bachman congratulatory comments on her Facebook page, praising her hunting prowess.

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Dish Network, DirecTV and Pursuit did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In September, NBC Sports axed NRA-backed hunting show Under Wild Skies after host Tony Makris compared his critics to Hitler.