NBC's "Dateline" to explore the perilous world of tower dogs on July 21
July 16, 2008 - NBC's "Dateline Presents" says it will take "a never-before-seen journey into the hazardous world of the tower climbers who work on the frontlines of America's high-tech communications system." The program, "Tower Dogs," will air on Monday, July 21 at 10:00 PM/ET. The hour-long broadcast is expected to give an up close and personal no-holds-barred look at tower dogs' lives - up in the air and on the ground. "We experience their on-the-job tension and watch them work hard, play hard, and mourn when they lose one of their own," NBC said in a press release. In a twist on all the dangerous-job programs that solely feature males, typically narrated with muscular prose, "Tower Dogs" follows an unusual tower crew boss: a woman named Nikki Collins, a single mom, former cheerleader, and the person keeping her tough-guy charges in one piece. Although there has been a noted increase in tower construction company owners and climbers that are women they are in a small minority in a predominately male profession. The "Dateline" team worked for four months documenting this group of tower climbers as they worked their way through 40 towns and cities in 24 states. During this time there were seven fatalities nationwide, including five deaths in a 12-day period in April. National exposure long overdue, say many.
