When I grew up, it was relatively "normal" for parents or authority figures to inflict pain whenever there was any hint of disobedience or disrespect. I don't think it was right, but that's the way it was.
It was culturally accepted. I was routinely beaten by most of the babysitters I had while growing up. I was paddled by my principal in multiple different schools.
For the most part, culture in my area has changed dramatically in just a couple of decades and it's no longer acceptable to most people (at least not to that degree). However, some people here do still beat their kids over practically nothing...even in public. Casual observation in my region shows that it's far more prevalent and accepted in black communities than elsewhere...having NOTHING to do with Christianity or Dr. James Dobson.
Your anecdote makes me think even more that he was a devote of James Dobson.
Let me explain. You were spanked and spanking was a regular feature in the community you grew up in.
Great.
How many kids died? How many parents inflicted such severe wounds on their children that the police were called?
If your answer is that this never happened, that indicates that the spanking was done in a way that was guided by a certain tradition.
On the other hand, this guy managed to kill a young child with his spanking. That's actually indicating IMO that he doesn't know what he's doing. Which indicates an absence of tradition. Which could mean that he picked it up from a book. By a certain someone.