Bob Barker, the multi-Emmy award winning television personality, has been chosen by the Oxford Centre of Animal Ethics to be its sixth Honorary Fellow. The award is given to “outstanding individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the protection of animals.” Amongst Barker's achievements has been his pioneering work related to the teaching of animal law in the United States by donating large money sums to America's top law schools including Harvard, Stanford, UCLA, Northwestern, Duke, Georgetown, Virginia and Columbia. He endowed a chair in animal rights at Drury University (his own alma mater) in 2008. These endowments have enabled ground-breaking academic work in animal law and ethics. “This award acknowledges Mr. Barker's ground-breaking contribution to the establishment of animal studies within academia” said Professor Andrew Linzey, Director of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics. “His pioneering work in putting animals on the intellectual agenda will be of lasting historical importance to the cause.” Barker became a household name in America for hosting CBS's The Price is Right from 1972 to 2007. He used his success as a platform to help mitigate the pet homelessness problem by ending each program with the phrase “Help control the pet population. Have your pets spayed or neutered.” Barker retired from The Price is Right in June 2007, after 35 years as the game show's host. The series was one of the highest rated daytime shows in the US during this entire period and the longest running game show in television history. His retirement marked the 51st anniversary of his debut on national television. “We cannot change the world for animals without also changing people's ideas about animals. Almost single-handedly Bob's sagacity and generosity have – in little more than a decade – propelled animals from being a marginal issue into the academic mainstream. This is a colossal achievement”, added Professor Linzey. Amongst past Honorary Fellows are Nobel Laureate for Literature, Professor J. M. Coetzee, the international philanthropist, Dr Irene W. Crowe, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Winchester, Professor Joy Carter, Madame Jeanne Marchig, founder of the Marching Trust for Animal Welfare, and Professor Justus George Lawler, theologian and scholar. BM
