#FREETOBECUTE: An Introspective Look on Primate Representation and how New Media can Protect Primates from the Illegal Pet Trade Madeline Carlson Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Boulder 16 March 2020 Thesis Advisor: Dr. Herbert Covert, Department of Anthropology Committee Members: Dr. Douglas Bamforth, Department of Anthropology Dr. Jolene Fisher, Department of Advertising, Public Relations, and Media Design ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my thesis committee, professors, classmates, family, and close friends for all of their great support with this research journey. To my wonderful thesis committee – Dr. Herbert Covert, Dr. Jolene Fisher, and Dr. Douglas Bamforth – that made this research and writing possible, for always being available to answer questions, and guide me through this process, thank you. To my thesis classmates and professor, Dr. Alison Cool, thank you for all of the collective moral support and being a great resource of positivity; making Thursday mornings from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. one of my favorite times of the week. To my mother and deceased father, who always believed in my writing and support my passions, thank you. To my brothers who helped me find a grounded research idea and be there for me as well, thank you. To my mother’s cats – Thomas, George, and Fiona – who are always willing to give me company when I return home, sitting on my lap while I write, or chewing on my notes – somehow saying they agree that they are better pets than a non-human primate. To my close friends and coworkers who had to deal with constant texts consisting of diatribes with social media posts supporting the pet trade at 2 a.m., thank you. To my roommates, Hannah and Erin, who helped me step away when things became hectic and focus on the greater goal and revitalize my passion for the subject material. To Corinne, who I worked for in the laboratory, and Izzy, my coworker, thank you for always listening to my ideas and helping me plan out what to focus my research on. I am so thankful for all of these amazing people (and cats) in my life who supported me every step of the way. 2 ABSTRACT The trade of non-human primates as pets has become normalized on social media through saturation. Factors of this saturation include the passive support of posts by content viewers, a lack of conservation education, and the non-existence of a system to report these posts that participate in the trade. Data collected includes analyzing representations online that depict the anthropomorphizing and unsafe handling of primates as well as risky tourism actions such as selfies with primates through a screenshot and term analysis on social media platforms. The dissection of representation in traditional media through lingual and visual research to make meaning to stereotypes related to the support of non-human primate ownership, such as the cute trickster, was also conducted. On social media, Instagram and YouTube had more posts of pet primates than did Twitter and Reddit. Representations of non-human primates that are favorable to conservation efforts can be created in new media through social media hashtag campaigns and cooperation with brands, influencers, and non-profits. 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................................................. 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................................................................... 6 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................................ 7 RESEARCH QUESTION ................................................................................................................................................ 8 BACKGROUND .......................................................................................................................................................... 10 Background: Conservation ................................................................................................................................. 12 Background: Law ............................................................................................................................................... 13 Background: Media ............................................................................................................................................ 14 HYPOTHESIS ............................................................................................................................................................. 16 DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS ......................................................................................................................... 17 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................................................ 21 CHAPTER 1: 21ST CENTURY PRIMATES .................................................................................................................................... 24 GLOBAL LEGISLATURE ............................................................................................................................................ 25 U.S. LEGISLATURE AND ENFORCEMENT .................................................................................................................. 26 COMMUNICATION AND ORGANIZATION OF ENFORCEMENT ..................................................................................... 27 LAW ENFORCEMENT IN DEVELOPING NATIONS ....................................................................................................... 28 THE FIVE FREEDOMS................................................................................................................................................ 29 TRAFFICKING AND POVERTY.................................................................................................................................... 30 TRADE AND CRIMINOLOGY ...................................................................................................................................... 31 MARKET DEMAND ................................................................................................................................................... 33 EDUCATION AND COMMUNICATION FOR CONSERVATION........................................................................................ 34 ACCOUNTABILITY IN CONSERVATION ...................................................................................................................... 36 SHIPPED AND BRED .................................................................................................................................................. 38 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................................................ 39 4 CHAPTER 2: ART AND PRIMATES: PORTRAITURE AND CARICATURE IN LITERATURE AND FILM .................. 41 A TEMPORAL APPROACH ......................................................................................................................................... 42 Archaeology and Mythology: Europe and Africa............................................................................................... 43 Archaeology and Mythology: The Americas and Colonialism ........................................................................... 44 Archaeology and Mythology: Asia ..................................................................................................................... 45 LITERATURE, FILM, AND TELEVISION: DATA COLLECTION ....................................................................................... 46 LITERATURE, FILM, AND TELEVISION: TERMINOLOGY .............................................................................................. 47 LITERATURE, FILM, AND TELEVISION: ANALYSIS ...................................................................................................... 49 MEDIA AND CRUELTY .............................................................................................................................................. 54 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................................................ 55 CHAPTER 3: THE PRIMATE INFLUENCER .............................................................................................................................. 57 SOCIAL MEDIA: THE SELF, THE POSTS, AND THE ALGORITHM ................................................................................ 58 UNDERSTANDING PRIMATES THROUGH MEMES ...................................................................................................... 60 ANIMAL ABUSE IN SOCIAL MEDIA CULTURE ........................................................................................................... 62 SOCIAL MEDIA AND PRIMATE POPULARITY ............................................................................................................. 63 DATA COLLECTION .................................................................................................................................................. 64 Data Collection: Methodology and Theory 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