Angry Birds… All in a Twitter about Trophy Hunting: Are the Big Five Safe under the Eaves?

Abstract

Trophy hunting has turned into a contentious global debate opposing urban westerners and rural African communities. The former argue for animal rights. The latter argue for human rights, de-colonialism and legitimacy over their resources, relying on the principle that legal rights should be given back to local people to sustainably use their wildlife. While human geography studies have examined both trophy hunting and social media influences on people and places, conservation as a body of knowledge has not yet caught up with the role of cyber-movements in spreading discourses. This paper presents a case study using netnography, content analysis and the Cycle of Aggression theory to capture the perception of Twitter users towards trophy hunting in Africa. Rural African communities are demanding a new deal in which they are shareholders rather than disempowered stakeholders in their own wildlife resource use and management. Thus, externally imposed bans, including import bans, undermine not only the foundations of sustainable wildlife management but also the rights of local peoples.