23 June 2008

Can You Murder a Gorilla?

Murder: "the unlawful premeditated killing of one person by another." (Oxford Dictionary)

"Who Murdered the Virunga Gorillas?" (National Geographic Magazine cover, July 2008)

Yes, this was truly a horrific abuse of God's creation, but National Geographic magazine is guilty of an embarrassingly imprecise use of language, from a journalistic perspective. From my experience in planning and executing magazine covers, however, this was not an unintentional gaffe, but a calculated use of the word "murder." I wonder what they're trying to say ...

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