Blackfish Analysis

LAZY ARGUING Sea World’s attempt to refute the documentary “Blackfish” was so disappointing. It did not just fail; it crashed and burned. “Blackfish” is a documentary that shows the psychological and physical harm Sea World is doing to their Killer whales by keeping them in a confined space. The Documentary also demonstrates the danger Sea World is putting their trainers in by having them work with their killer whales. In response Sea World published, on their website, an article titled "Truth about Blackfish". The beginning of their article starts out strong making valid arguments that successfully convinces it's readers to entertain and think about the idea that “Blackfish” might indeed be manipulative propaganda. Their statement
The article attempts to discredit "Blackfish", stating that “Sea World does not collect Killer Whales in the wild, and has not done so in over 35 years”, which has a couple of slight problems. Sea World just states it does not collect killer whales from the wild; however, their statement that they have not done so in over 35 years implies that at one point, over 35 years ago, they actually did collect killer whales from the wild, which means their first part of the statement is a lie! As a result they have are now losing credibility with their readers and should act fast to rebuild some credibility with the reader. However they fail to do so with their next statement. Next they state “Tilikum was not collected by us. And the collections four decades ago were conducted in compliance with federal laws”. This statement raises multiple issues with their argument. Sea World might not have been the ones to capture Tilikum out of the wild but they did buy him for their amusement park and directly supported the killer whale catching industry with their purchase. Secondly they just stated that forty years ago they did capture killer whales from the wild and are defending themselves stating that it is okay because it was legal at the time. Just because something is legal does not make it morally right. Sea World attempts to manipulate the truth
Sea World in their next argument spends all of its time trying to discredit “Blackfish” sources. They actually make a reasonable argument, noting “The film’s “cast” is completely unfamiliar with current conditions and techniques at Sea World”. Unfortunately they don’t go into more detail showing the reader how exactly they are different now compared to before. They missed a good chance to really make a solid argument. By not providing this information, the readers are left wondering if the reason they did not include the information is because there are no improved conditions and techniques. This creates doubt in the mind of the reader, calling into question the honesty of the article and Sea World. Next they attempt to discredit the scientists on “Blackfish” by calling them “animal rights activists masquerading as scientists” because they campaigned against marine animal display for decades. However this is not a strong argument because anyone can be an animal rights activist. Doctors, scientists, teachers, and people from all parts of society. Sea World does not go into detail in explaining how exactly they are not scientists. Sea World also fails to take the opportunity to at least attempt to disprove the scientists claim in "Blackfish" with scientific research of their own, but unfortunately they don’t. Leaving their readers with possibly a valid argument