By: Alana Dale

     Lately there has been a ton of media rage against the Seaworld organization. Some Seaworld locations to note are in Orlando, Florida, San Antonio, Texas, and San Diego, California. The media has been upset about how the media is treating the animals that in the shows. They take whales, especially killer whales, also known as orcas, out of their homelands and keep them in tiny cages where their movements are very restricted. All of the uproar about this subject is not something that just showed up, people have been trying to get Seaworld shut down for quite some time now, but they have finally got the media sparked in this interest as well.

     “There have been dozens of attacks on trainers by orcas in marine parks around the world. These are not bad whales; they just come with all the instincts of predators” (National Geographic). Not only are people concerned about the well-being of the animals in the tanks, they are also worried about the people who have to train and take care of them. Whenever an animal that is usually free ranging, large, and kept in little tiny tanks and cages their whole lives, they eventually will snap. Somebody should not have to risk their life taking care of these animals, just because they are wild animals and want to act out of character, they are just acting like themselves.

     Seaworld attracts more than 11 million people each year to all of its attractions. This high number of visitors can be very beneficial to the economy, which is why there are people who are actually supporting Seaworld. People will always support a system that is wealthy and boosts up the economy, especially because there are so many job options available. Sundance Film Festival on CNN quoted; “To promote its bias that killer whales should not be maintained in a zoological setting, the film paints a distorted picture that withholds from viewers key facts about SeaWorld”. There have been many films portraying Seaworld and its treatment of the animals, but sometimes you never really know the truth unless somebody has spoken of it who works there, and people who have gone to the shows, have never reported evidence of mistreatment of the animals. Although, most animals do not want to be jumping through hoops as entertainment.
     There are many sides that can be taken on the whole idea of Seaworld. People can argue that  it is not right for the animals to be kept up in cages their whole lives, but then again there are no reports of mistreatment other than really small cages and that Seaworld has attracted people from all over and it is really benefitting the economy we live in. So, what side do you take? Anti-Seaworld or Pro-Seaworld?