I just got back from my speaking tour against ag-gag laws in Australia, and continues to create quite the debate in the press. Sydney’s New Matilda has a new article about the legislation:
But opponents to ‘ag-gag’ laws see things differently. US journalist and author Will Potter specialises in animal rights and environmental movements, and presented a lecture series around Australia throughout May to raise awareness of the danger of ‘ag-gag’ laws, using the experience of the US as a dire warning.
“By eliminating that release to the media, it prevents the public and consumers from knowing what’s happening, which is the point of these ‘ag-gag’ laws,†Potter explained.
“But also turning over that footage so quickly is an attempt by the industry to say an incident is just an isolated case, rather than allowing an investigation to be built over a period of weeks or months. This way, they can pretend that it’s just a few bad apples, a few bad workers, rather than taking proper responsibility.â€
You can read the full article at the New Matilda.