Media’s Role in Combating Animal Cruelty in Pakistan: A Survey of Pet Owners
Abstract

Animal cruelty is a global issue, impacting animal welfare and societal value. In Pakistan, abusive sports like dog fighting, cockfighting, and pigeon flying are prevalent. Cultural norms and lack of legal protection contribute to this issue. This study investigates the media's role in raising awareness and combating animal cruelty. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 500 Pakistani pet owners, and a self-constructed questionnaire was distributed among participants. Convenient sampling was used for data collection, and SPSS (Version 26) was used for data analysis. The study reveals that media coverage positively impacts public responses to animal cruelty. Print media, particularly magazines, increase knowledge about animal cruelty, while radio and electronic media raise awareness about animal rights and prevention. Social media, particularly Facebook, is more effective. The study emphasizes the need for strategic media interventions to foster a more compassionate society, and recommends the government to ensure proper implementation of laws in Pakistan.
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