In the time since Harambe the gorilla was killed at the Cincinnati Zoo, 69 people have been shot in Chicago – but you wouldn’t know it from watching the news.
The death of the gorilla has received 54-times more coverage than the violence in Chicago, according to an analysisfrom the Media Research Center.
The three major broadcast networks – ABC, CBS and NBC – have dedicated 55 minutes and 7 seconds of coverage to the death of Harambe, but only 1 minute and 1 second to the Chicago shooting spree.
“The broadcast networks routinely prioritize animal life over human life,” Katie Yoder wrote at NewsBusters. “This Memorial Day weekend was no exception.”
Pro-life activists have also pointed to the outrage over the death of Harambe as a sign that human life is valued less than animal life in today’s culture.
“The loss of the gorilla’s life is tragic – but in this upside-down world, we seem to be placing a higher value on the life of an animal than we do on our own children,” wrote pro-life activist Heide St. John at her The Busy Mom blog.
Harambe was shot and killed on May 28 after a toddler fell into the gorilla enclosure. Zoo officials said the boy was in “imminent danger,” leaving them no choice but to shoot the gorilla.
• Bradford Richardson can be reached at brichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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