coverage

Unsuitable coverage

Madam, Your coverage (PIM, October, 1994) of an incident in which a circus elephant escaped from captivity and was ulti mately killed was one of the most dis gusting examples of sensational, cold hearted journalism I have ever had the misfortune to read.

To start with, the manner in which your correspondent wrote this story comparing the incident to the film King Kong - was despicable. King Kong was a movie, that is fiction; this was a real event in which two living creatures were killed. It was nothing more than a

cheap shot by your correspondent to

liken it to a Hollywood make-believe drama.

Secondly, both your correspondent’s and your magazine’s editorial ethics must be questioned considering the

almost humorous tone that this article has been written in. Why describe a hor rific incident like this as a “melee” when this mild word means little more than a “scuffle” ? There are several sentences which I found particularly offensive due to the writer’s pathetic attempts to include humorous prose into the report ing of an event which was anything but funny. The last paragraph is one example of this.

Thirdly, I found it incomprehensible that you could publish an article like this in conjunction with a colour photo of an elephant who is in obvious physi cal and mental distress. Where is your magazine’s sense of compassion towards both the deceased trainer and the dead elephant?

Having travelled in the Pacific for my work as an author with the internation al guide book publisher, Lonely Planet, I am well acquainted with the Pacific, its people and your magazine. It is, there fore, with deep dissatisfaction that I write this letter complaining about your coverage.

Surely, you could have served your

readers better by covering the incident in a different light. Instead of making a joke out of it, why not pass on the mes sage that it is no longer acceptable for animals to be kept in captivity, whether it be in zoos or circuses.

No doubt if you had lived life behind bars doing stupid circus tricks like Tyke, eventually you too would be driven to the extraordinary lengths that this great creature was to free itself.

Leanne Logan

Brisbane, QLD, Australia

Letters to the Editor must include the writer’s full name, address and tele phone number.

All letters may be edited for purposes of clarity and space.

Letters should be addressed to: The Editor, Pacific Islands Monthly, P O Box 1167, Suva, Fiji or to Fax: (679) 303809