Media Framing of Zoos and Aquaria: From Conservation to Animal Rights

ABSTRACT

Zoos and aquaria are controversial institutions, vilified by animal rights activists and championed by those who value their entertainment and educational resources. Examining media frames of these institutions can identify public perspectives. A qualitative content analysis was conducted for print and online magazine articles that discussed zoos and aquaria in North America. Sixty-five articles were analysed, and eight different frames were identified. The diverse frames highlight the differing roles of zoos and aquaria. Most of the articles were positive and supportive of zoos; 11% were negative. Animal welfare was the most common frame, from both positive and negative perspectives. Other frames, such as conservation and education, were less prevalent in the sample than expected, since zoos and aquaria portray themselves to be leaders in these fields. The unbalanced media discourse and small publication rate over the four years sampled suggest opportunities for increased media engagement on zoos and aquaria.

KEYWORDS:

• Zoos
• aquaria
• content analysis
• media
• conservation
• animal welfare

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Dr Debbie Treise for her guidance in the development of this research project, Dr Susan Jacobson and Dr Martha Monroe for their role as the panel of experts who reviewed the codebook and suggested edits for the manuscript, and Ms Anne Saville as the secondary researcher who participated in the coding process.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.