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WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama says gun-control advocates have to do a little more listening than they do sometimes in the debate over firearms in America.

Obama tells The New Republic that he has a profound respect for the traditions of hunting that date back for generations.

He also says that moving forward on the topic means understanding that the realities of guns in urban areas are very different from the realities of guns in rural areas.

The president says it's understandable that people are protective of their family traditions when it comes to hunting.

Has Obama himself ever fired a gun? Yes, he says, he and others shoot skeet frequently at the president's Maryland retreat, Camp David.

The interview appears in the Feb. 11 issue of The New Republic.