Building Bridges in Las Vegas: Why This Year's SHOT Show Matters

Light Over Heat in Sin City

This month, I’ll be attending the SHOT Show (Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Trade Show) in Las Vegas — not just to conduct research for my Gun Culture 2.0 book, but to receive an inaugural Ambassador Award from Walk The Talk America (WTTA).

More importantly, I’ll be witnessing what may be a significant moment in how the firearms industry engages with suicide prevention and academic research.

For those unfamiliar, the SHOT Show is the world’s largest trade show for the firearms industry. Run by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), it draws 50,000+ attendees, nearly 3,000 exhibitors, and 2,000 credentialed media to Las Vegas each January. Unlike the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting, which I’ve attended several times, it’s not open to the public. This is an industry event I’ve attended only once before, in 2019.

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Walk the Talk America Ambassador Award

I’m truly honored to receive the WTTA Ambassador Award. According to the notification, these awards “acknowledge those who have distinguished themselves by promoting and otherwise helping to fulfill the mission and work of Walk The Talk America.”

Anyone who follows me closely knows I’m a huge supporter of the work that Mike Sodini, Jake Wiskerchen, and the WTTA team do. The section of Gun Curious discussing Mike and WTTA is one of my favorites (see pp. 124-28).

But what makes this year’s SHOT Show particularly noteworthy is what’s happening beyond my own award.

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The SHOT Show’s First Public Suicide Prevention Town Hall

The NSSF has organized the show’s first-ever general session on suicide prevention - the SHOT Show Suicide Prevention Town Hall. According to NSSF Senior Director of Communications Bill Brassard, while the show has provided educational seminars on suicide prevention for retailers and ranges in the past, this is the first general session open to all attendees.

The panel brings together exactly the kind of diverse voices needed for effective suicide prevention: Mike Sodini of WTTA, Dr. Emmy Betz of the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical School’s Firearm Injury Prevention Initiative (FIPI), gun range owner Jacquelyn Clark who also works with FIPI, and the founding CEO of the American Foundation for Firearm Injury Reduction in Medicine (AFFIRM) Dr. Chris Barsotti.

My colleagues from the Arizona State University Bringing Research and Innovation into the Debate on Guns in Society (BRDGS) Initiative will also be in attendance to record for their outstanding Guns Unpacked podcast.

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Why This Matters

The NSSF controls who gets media credentials to attend the SHOT Show, which means these invitations are deliberate choices. Bringing academic researchers into this space — not just for closed-door meetings but for a public town hall on one of the most challenging issues at the intersection of guns and mental health — represents the kind of bridge-building I’ve been advocating for.

This is what “Light Over Heat” looks like in practice: industry leaders, academic researchers, mental health advocates, and range owners in the same room, focused on reducing harm. Not agreeing on everything, but agreeing that some problems are worth solving together.

I think this inclusion of more scholars at the SHOT Show is a positive development, both for researchers trying to understand gun culture and for an industry that benefits from engaging with academic approaches to suicide prevention.

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Supporting This Work

I appreciate Bill Brassard of the NSSF for facilitating my late registration, a former Wake Forest student who helped with hotel accommodations, and WTTA for a monetary award. Still, attending events like this isn’t cheap - airfare ran $900, even a discounted hotel is $600, and food in Las Vegas is ... well, you know.

Attending the SHOT Show, documenting these conversations, and bringing insights back to you is exactly the kind of work I do through Light Over Heat on Substack and YouTube. If you value this bridge-building, please consider becoming a paid subscriber to this Substack using the button below. You can also make periodic or ongoing contributions through my Buy Me a Coffee patron page or PayPal.

I’ll also note that I still have personally signed copies of Gun Curious available for direct purchase at $25 including shipping, with bulk discounts available for those interested.

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