Tweets by celebrities that abuse trophy hunters do more harm than good for conservation, study shows

By James Gamble via SWNS

Toxic Tweets by celebrities such as Ricky Gervais that abuse trophy hunters do more harm than good for conservation causes, according to a new study.

Ecologists found that seven percent of tweets about trophy hunting were abusive - a similar proportion to abusive posts on far-right social sites - and were often compounded by extremist views from celebrities and graphic images of animals shot by hunters.

The University of Reading researchers suggest it may influence policymakers debating new laws on trophy hunting; making them less aware of conservationist arguments that claim hunting is a 'necessary evil' which can help other animals to thrive.

The conservation scientists said some experts espousing views deemed as being pro-hunting even receive 'death threats,' which can sometimes be 'traced back' to anti-hunting celebrities with large online followings, such as comedian Ricky Gervais.

The study, published in the journal Conservation Biology, comes as a new British law banning trophy hunting imports is set to be voted on later this month.

But the researchers fear that the debate could be 'skewed' by Twitter toxicity and take the conversation away from scientific evidence.

They analyzed 500 Tweets to identify the different themes and tones surrounding the online trophy-hunting debate.

The team found 350 tweets opposed the practice and often conveyed 'sadness, anger or disgust' at the suffering caused to the hunted animals.

Graphic images of dead tigers, crocodiles, giraffes and elephants shot by hunters even led one Twitter user to say trophy hunters 'deserved to die,' whilst another suggested they should 'shoot yourselves.'

The study found that seven percent of these anti-hunting Tweets contained abusive content, such as insults or threats of violence - a similar rate to the proportion of abusive posts found on extreme messaging sites such as 4Chan and Gab, which is renowned for its mainly far-right userbase.

Less than five percent of the Tweets the researchers studied expressed views in favor of trophy hunting, which were often expressed in a 'reluctant' tone or acknowledged the practice as a 'necessary evil.'

Some disliked the shooting of animals but suggested trophy hunting provided funding and aided wider conservation efforts, helping other animal species to thrive in habitats maintained as hunting grounds.

The study also suggested that celebrity tweets about trophy hunting were also liable to create 'pile-ons' of abuse and hyperbole in online debates.

In one tweet cited by the scientists, comedian Ricky Gervais, 61, who has previously supported proposed laws banning the import of trophy-hunted animals - calls a trophy hunter holding a dead leopard a ‘c***.’

In another post, Downton Abbey actor and avid animal activist Peter Egan, 76, labeled trophy hunters as ‘serial killers.’

Study lead author Dr. Luke Evans, says the abusive tweets may sway debate on the new proposed law banning trophy hunting imports, which is set to be voted on by UK lawmakers later this month.

Dr. Evans, from the University of Reading’s School of Biological Sciences, explained: "Controversial cases involving trophy hunting, such as the killing of Cecil the Lion in Zimbabwe in 2015, have caused an explosion in angry tweets.

"These comments become more hostile and angry as celebrities, activists and some politicians risk creating ‘pile-ons’ in opposition to any mention of trophy hunting, or those who suggest pro-hunting viewpoints.

"For example, one prominent ecologist who regularly advocates for the conservation benefits of trophy hunting on Twitter has been called a murderer and a psychopath.

"This strong anti-trophy hunting sentiment is now moving into UK law, with the UK government proposing a ban on trophy hunting imports.

"Such a law needs to be properly discussed and debated by experts and the public, but it is almost impossible to have this discussion online without seeing extreme anti-hunting viewpoints, often combined with abuse.

"A new British law banning hunting trophy imports could have a big impact on conservation worldwide, with both negative and positive influences in different locations.

"This needs to be scrutinized, but it’s possible that Twitter’s toxicity could skew the debate away from the evidence."

Dr. Evans' co-author, Dr. Vicky Boult, added the 'shocking' extent of toxicity in online debates on trophy hunting even led to some receiving 'death threats' for sharing views deemed to be pro-trophy-hunting.

"As scientists, we wanted to investigate the tone of this online debate in a neutral fashion," she said.

"What we found was quite shocking…some people who expressed views deemed to be pro-hunting faced death threats and extreme abuse.

"We saw that such abuse could sometimes be traced back to the activities of celebrities with large online followings.

"While some people may dislike the activities of hunters, it’s important that we don’t create laws that actually damage conservation efforts by shutting down genuine debate and replacing it with abuse."

A new bill on the prohibition of imports of hunting trophies - brought by the UK Conservative MP for Crawley, Henry Smith - will be debated and voted on in the House of Commons on March 17.