FRONTIERS HONORED BY ANIMAL-PROTECTION GROUP
Awards ceremony to air on Animal Planet May 25 at 12pm (ET)

		FRONTIERS Senior Producer David Huntley (center) accepts the Ark Trust Genesis Award for the episode "Chimps R Us." On the left is Jessalyn Gilsig of the TV series "Boston Public;" on the right is Victor Webster of "Mutant X."

WATERTOWN, MA, May 3-- SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN FRONTIERS was honored by The Ark Trust, Inc., a non-profit animal-protection organization, for its episode "Chimps R Us." The episode received an Ark Trust Genesis Award, which recognizes outstanding efforts by the media to communicate animal-rights and animal-welfare issues.

"Chimps R Us" premiered on PBS in April 2001. It explores humans' closest genetic cousin--the chimpanzee--and offers one of the first in-depth reports of the illegal African bushmeat trade to air in the United States. The segment contains undercover footage by activist photographer Karl Amman showing smoked chimpanzee heads, hands and arms being sold alongside meat from elephants, gorillas and other protected species.

Though U.S. awareness of it is low, the illegal bushmeat trade is pushing chimps, gorillas and monkeys perilously close to extinction. Renowned primatologist Jane Goodall believes that wild chimps could be extinct within 10-15 years if the poaching continues.

The Ark Trust, Inc., founded in 1991, funds activist campaigns which raise public awareness of animal rights. The group's primary focus is to promote extensive and positive coverage of animal topics by the major media.