Cruelty for Clicks

Cruelty has gone viral on social media, and even animal lovers are fooled. This is the fight to end the nightmare.

As the founder of Lady Freethinker, I have spent years investigating animal abuse across the globe, and the worst cruelty I have ever seen is taking place on today's biggest social media platforms and in encrypted chats. less...more...

This documentary was born from a deep urgency to expose the dark reality behind viral animal videos and to confront the systems that allow exploitation to run rampant.

Our team has uncovered networks of content creators who deliberately harm animals for entertainment and profit, including staged dog rescues, captive exotic animals used as props, and torture videos sold through illegal rings.

While developing Cruelty for Clicks, I learned how far content creators will go for views and profit, deceiving caring people and eluding social media moderators. more...less...

Abusers sometimes prey on our compassion with staged rescues designed to tug on our heartstrings at the animals' expense. What looks like kindness can be something much more sinister.

SYNOPSIS

The images are shocking. From puppies tied up for fake “rescues” to baby monkeys tormented for pleasure, a flood of animal cruelty videos have swept over social media and are being shared across the globe. True crime meets animal advocacy in this documentary from award-winning director Kirk Murray and international nonprofit Lady Freethinker.

Following the efforts of Lady Freethinker founder Nina Jackel and others fighting to rid the internet of this horrific, often well-masked content, Cruelty for Clicks reveals the scope of abusive posts as well as the hidden truth behind content that appears “cute” on the surface but involves extreme suffering behind the scenes.

Does Big Tech care? Despite protests, petitions, and even a lawsuit filed by Nina against YouTube, the abuse remains rampant.

The most evil of all – “crush videos” – are bought and sold illegally on encrypted chat apps like Telegram.

Along with following Nina’s story, the documentary features interviews with citizen investigators; the attorneys who took on YouTube; and leaders of nonprofits across the globe who are joining forces to help hold social media giants accountable. The truth is dark, but hope shines through.

We meet Mini, a young monkey who was once brutally abused as a YouTube “star” but was rescued and released to freedom in the wild. We visit a big cat sanctuary where once-exploited tigers and other exotics now live in peace. And we see how, following the investigative work of Nina and other advocates, dozens of perpetrators have been apprehended and sent to prison. Now, it’s time for social media companies to stop the cruelty for good.