people for the ethical treatment of Animals (peta) Profile 2010

After the documentary The Cove won the Academy Award for documentary in 2010, bringing international attention to Japanese whaling practices, the Japanese public was confronted with unexpectedly vociferous and widespread criticism.  Animal rights activism is not seen very favorably in Japan, resulting in one of the few fundamental values clashes with western societies. 

Timing and logistics made a possible project with obvious options like Sea Shepherd or Greenpeace difficult. Although their active involvement in disrupting Japanese whale hunts at the time made their work of great interest in Japan, they were in the open South Pacific Ocean off Australia, and our budgets weren't going to get me there from NYC. So I thought the largest animals rights organization, PETA, who also had a high profile in Japan for their sometimes audacious advocacy campaigns, would be able to articulate and explain the values of the other side of this cultural divide with authority. And with its more accessible headquarters in Norfolk, VA, I was delighted when they accepted my proposal to profile the organization's work, which also made us the first ever Japanese media to bring cameras inside PETA headquarters, a fact noted prominently in the program's banners and graphics.