League comdemns TV scenes of animal abuse
Last night Channel 4 broadcast scenes of wildlife criminality in a programme called Gypsy Blood. The programme showed a cockfight in graphic detail and also featured hare and deer coursing; both of which are cruel and illegal activities.
Today the League Against Cruel Sports has been inundated with responses from concerned members of the public who were upset and angry at this broadcast.
We have been in contact with Channel 4 to ask whether they have reported these wildlife crimes to the relevant police force, but are unfortunately still awaiting a final response.
Joe Duckworth, Chief Executive of the League Against Cruel Sports condemned the perpetrators of these crimes, “Cruelty in all its guises should not be tolerated. Where there is evidence of illegal activities the media has a responsibility to inform the authorities and not engage in voyeurism.
“Tradition is no more an excuse for cockfighting than it is for foxhunting. We abhor animal abuse in the name of sport and will shortly begin recruiting a further ten investigations officers to ensure more people who abuse wildlife find themselves before the criminal justice system.”
We would encourage all of those that saw the programme to complain both to Channel 4 and OfCom – it is not acceptable to capture video evidence of wildlife crime and remain silent on the matter.
Furthermore, the film makers have not just captured an act of cruelty in the course of their documentary they appear to have actively sought one out. Is it really ethical to mount a camera onto a dog with the express intention of capturing the footage of a crime being committed? These are questions that Channel 4 and OfCom need to address
Complain to OfCom: https://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/tell-us/specific-programme-epg
Complain to Channel 4: http://www.channel4.com/4viewers/contact-us