Planet in Peril--and Denial?

Last week, I received an e-mail from someone promoting the CNN special Planet in Peril: Battle Lines, which will air this Thursday night, December 11. I'll admit--the "Behind the Scenes" preview on the front page didn't quite draw me in. Though interesting, It was focused more on showing us how the reporters lived on assignment than on the actual issues facing the planet and its inhabitants. (And as might be expected, I also wasn't too impressed with the "yum-yum, whale blubber" comments by one pizza-eating journalist in particular.)

The actual trailer (embedded at the end of this post), however, though substantially shorter, focuses more on the issues the program aims to tackle--the ensuing fast-paced snippets, for example, deal with pandemic-potential viruses, lead poisoning, longline shark fishing, infections, and the dangers faced by mountain gorillas. Anderson Cooper's voice at the start of the trailer tells us that this is a special about "conflicts over our natural resources." See the Web site for a look at what more is going to be covered.

It's difficult for me to make a judgment about the program itself in advance, so you tune in (or record it), and I'll tune in, and we'll discuss it afterward. I was an environmentalist and conservationist even before becoming an animal rights advocate, so I'll be watching it with broad interest. But the AR advocate in me is going to be looking out for some attitudes and statements and hoping (probably futilely) for others. Among other concerns, I'm interested to see if the program places the wild animals it focuses on into the category of humans' "natural resources." Already, the trailer talks about placing "the needs of tourists . . . in balance with the needs of preserving the mountain gorillas," and that itself is an interesting commentary. We talk not about the desires of tourists, but about their supposed "needs." I understand that appealing to tourism interest can be an effective way to gain support for saving species and habitats. But anytime humans use language that implies their desires, described inaccurately as needs, are as important as animals' and nature's needs, I'm bothered.

I am going to make some judgments in advance about some featured articles on Planet in Peril's homepage. There's an Oprah list of "11 things you can do now to save the planet" and another CNN list titled "Save the planet: Go green with these tips for home, work and travel," and sadly but perhaps not unexpectedly, there's no mention of adopting a plant-based diet, even though that's one of the most significant changes we can make. Despite attention to the issue of climate change, there is no mention of animal agriculture's responsibility for nearly one-fifth of all greenhouse gases (more than what results from all the world's cars, planes, and other transportation combined), including 65 percent of nitrous oxide emissions (a gas with a global warming potential [GWP] 296 times that of CO₂) and 37 percent of methane (GWP 23 times that of CO₂). No mention of the massive clearing of vital forests for cattle ranching or the extermination of American wildlife at the request of cattle ranchers. No mention of the astounding use, and pollution, of water by animal ag. No mention of how many more of the humans starving on this planet could be fed if we would stop diverting so many resources to feed the animals we breed and raise just to kill and eat. These aren't problems of factory farming alone. These are problems of animal agriculture, period. But mainstream, meat- and cheese-loving programs and journalists refuse to reiterate these undisputed facts. Disappointing.

Anyway, watch the actual Planet in Peril program Thursday night, and we'll talk about it later.

Trailer: