'Insensitive' SABC gets warned
2005-06-17 12:30
Johannesburg - The SABC was "irresponsible and insensitive" in broadcasting the slaughter of a live chicken on a children's television programme, the Broadcasting Complaints Commission (BCCSA) said on Friday.
The SABC was not sanctioned but was warned to be more sensitive in future, the BCCSA said.
This follows a complaint by the National Council of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NCSPCA) and other individuals about the Run for Adventure programme aired on May 27.
Participants in the programme were provided with a chicken, told how to slaughter it and later ordered to commit the deed, said Christine Kuch, NCSPCA spokesperson.
The NCSPCA had complained that the chickens were killed in a brutal way.
"The complainant is of the opinion that it is not only objectionable in the extreme, but also psychologically damaging to those who took part as well as those who watched," Kuch said.
The SABC submitted that the details shown in the programme were justified and in line with current educational trends - children "should be exposed to much deeper levels of understanding about the realities of life".
The adjudicator in the matter, however, said the "gory details" should have been edited out as it was not a live show, and while it occurred regularly on farms the programme could be seen as a promotion of cruelty to animals.
- SAPA