Kid Nation

Kid Nation was already in firestorm of criticism for its controversial treatment of the kids. With the second episode, and the slaughtering of the chicken, it was only a matter of time before the criticism started from another quarter.

And it has: on Friday, an animal-right organization called Last Chance for Animals (LCA) “strongly criticized CBS for staging the killing of a chicken for entertainment.” YouTube also received part of the criticism for allowing that clip to remain on the site.

CBS has claimed this killing was necessary, saying on its website, "The Kids come closer to the realities of the food pyramid when they realize they'll have to kill town livestock if they want protein in their food."

This statement has left LCA, vegetarians, vegans and even those without the same animal rights views scratching their heads. After all, people have lived and been healthy both with and without eating meat. Eggs, dairy, and non-animal sources of protein are alternatives that have been mentioned as reasonable and realistic options that would have allowed both the chicken – and potentially the children's psyches – to emerge from the experience unscathed.

LCA's president Chris DeRose says that the lack of a real factual basis for CBS's claim that the killing was necessary calls into question the true motivation for the slaughter. Was this chicken killed for ratings?

DeRose believes it was, and thinks that's ethically wrong. "The more pressing issue is whether the killing of animals can ever be staged purely for entertainment, as it was on Kid Nation. We find that entirely unacceptable. And YouTube has magnified the problem by allowing the video to be posted on its website. As with CBS, YouTube is using animal suffering for entertainment and profit."

Regardless of an individual's position on this issue, one fact remains clear: CBS is certainly taking a bold route with Kid Nation.


- Leslie Seaton,BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Sys-con Media
(Image courtesy of CBS)