NYP2003042260 - NEW YORK, Apr. 22 (UPI) -- Bryant Gumbel poses for pictures at the "Audrey Hepburn: The Beauty of Compassion" Exhibition and Auction Event at Sotheby's in New York. UPI | License Photo

Bryant Gumbel and wife pose for pictures at the Grand Opening Celebration of the new Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle. (UPI Photo/Laura Cavanaugh) | License Photo

Bryant Gumbe waits for the start of a pre-game show during his tenure at the NFL Network. (UPI Photo/Bill Greenblatt) | License Photo

Bryant Gumbel arrives on the red carpet at the Ninth Annual UNICEF Snowflake Ball at Cipriani in New York City. UPI/John Angelillo | License Photo

NEW YORK, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Bryant Gumbel, former host of The Today Show and current host of HBO's Real Sports, offered harsh words for the National Rifle Association in a recent interview, calling the group "pigs" and "a curse on the American landscape."

When asked by Rolling Stone about a Real Sports piece Gumbel spearheaded about the "Eat What You Kill" movement, Gumbel took the opportunity to clarify that the piece was his only exposure to "killing and guns and hunting," and was not meant as an endorsement of the NRA or gun use.


"There are a few things I hate more than the NRA," Gumbel told the magazine.

"I mean truly. I think they're pigs. I think they don't care about human life. I think they are a curse upon the American landscape. So we got that on the record."

Speaking to Glenn Beck-founded blog The Blaze, NRA News radio host Cam Edwards countered, saying, "The NRA members I know value human life enough to want to protect themselves and their families from those who would do them harm."

"They're not pigs," Edwards offered, adding "They're good people."

The NRA has not offered an official response.