Study: Just 2% of MeatEater’s Blog Content Addresses Fair Chase

By Mountain Pursuit

Mountain Pursuit completed a study this week examining how much hunting industry media company, MeatEater, promotes Fair Chase.

The study, "Deep Dive: Assessing Meateater's Promotion of Fair Chase" found that Fair Chase isn’t a part of MeatEater’s corporate identity, and the principle appears in only 2% of it's blog content. 

“We were super disappointed in Meateater's lack of attention to Fair Chase," said Rob Shaul, Mountain Pursuit Founder.

The study analyzed 191 blog posts at the meateater.com website between July 2020 and July 2021.

"Taking a strong position on Fair Chase is critical for the future of hunting, and like it or not, Meateater is the first introduction to hunting for many non-hunters." 

Earlier this year, Mountain Pursuit identified the top 25 Hunting Industry Self Promoters. Meateater founder, Steven Rinella, topped the list. 

"We believe MeatEater avoids taking a strong position on Fair Chase because Rinella and others want to avoid offending hunters who might disagree and therefore losing those potential sales,” said Shaul. 

According to Shaul, MeatEater’s results aren’t surprising. Mountain Pursuit just completed a hunting industry-wide study that showed few hunting industry companies give Fair Chase much attention, “especially if they stand to make money from having the widest possible audience,” Shaul says. 

Among the hunting industry blog content studied, less 5% of content mentions or entertains the principle Fair Chase, and 95% of that slice comes from hunting non-profits. Even among the non-profits though, Fair Chase only appeared in 7% of blog content.  

The results of Mountain Pursuit’s industry-wide and MeatEater studies matter because American support for legal hunting is at risk. 

A recent study showed that only 80% of American’s approve of hunting as a legal activity, and only approve when hunting is in accordance with Fair Chase principles. 

“When MeatEater—a big influencer in the Hunting Industry, with a million or more followers—posts content that doesn’t explicitly promote Fair Chase, the risk that non-hunters see it and misinterpret what modern hunting is about,” Shaul says. 

Shaul says an example can be seen when non-hunters see extreme long range kill shots, or private ranch hunts on shows like Meateater “When non-hunters see this stuff they rightly question whether or not the game has a chance, and this leads to a negative view of hunting and hunters. Nothing guarantees the future of hunting, and we hunters are in a fight with anti-hunters over the non-hunter votes at the ballot box.” 

So what was MeatEater blogging about, if they weren’t talking about Fair Chase? The study found that 60% of MeatEater’s blog posts over the past year were “how-to” content for hunters or stories and opinions about hunting. 

“That kind of stuff creates a sticky funnel to pull MeatEater’s hunter audience in close and get them buying gear from the MeatEater store, First Light, FHO, Phelps, or other featured products from Rinella or his industry partners,” Shaul says.

Shaul encourages hunting industry media companies, gear companies and non profits to take Mountain Pursuit’s “Protect the Hunt Pledge” which includes a commitment and promotion of Fair Chase, and social media guidelines. 

"Ignoring Fair Chase, publishing kill shots and gore, and promoting extreme range hunting are all political suicide for the future of hunting," says Shaul. The hunting industry needs to clean its act up and get a clue about the political climate we're living in," he concludes.