Fact Check on OPB’s “Think Out Loud” Program

OPB recently broadcasted a program on Chendra and conservation of Borneo elephants. Although we appreciate the mention of FOZE in the very last paragraph, there are several fact-checks that we felt needed to be addressed:

• The guest, a zoo employee, said Chendra was sent to Oregon Zoo due to lack of facilities in Borneo. This is patently false and went unchallenged. Chendra’s contract explicitly states that the purpose is breeding.
• The program dealt with elephant conservation, a term Oregon Zoo uses as cover to indulge in captive breeding. Sadly, breeding went unaddressed in the program. Chendra, a Borneo elephant, was bred by the zoo with Asian elephants Samson & Samudra against scientific advice. Predictably and sadly, she suffered a miscarriage. As an aside, the uncritical coverage of the new elephant Tula-Tu’s birth is also regrettable, as there are deeper issues that are being papered over.
• The program also did not challenge the unquestioned assumption that elephant captivity in zoos is somehow good for the individual elephants. Chendra, for example, has a long list of captivity induced medical issues, as well as injuries from bullying by the other elephants at the zoo. This, when their own program mentions Borneo elephants needing to walk 25 miles a day — something this zoo cannot provide.
• Finally, the program took the zoo’s word on Sabah Wildlife Department, the Borneo organization they are funding. This organization was in the news for financial misconduct and sexual misconduct. The disgraced (and fired) chief veterinarian was one who worked closely with Oregon Zoo, even writing an op-ed laden with misinformation.