{
  "id": 2336110,
  "title": "Should Korea cull stray cats to save birds?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/21/should-korea-cull-stray-cats-to-save-birds",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-21T08:22:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/environment-animals/20260821/should-korea-cull-stray-cats-to-save-birds"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A YouTube campaign to ban the feeding of stray cats and reduce their numbers by culling has sparked intense debate in South Korea. Choe Jae-chun, a prominent ecologist and professor at Ewha Womans University, has strongly criticized the initiative. He warned that the proposal lacks scientific evidence to support its claims that culling stray cats helps protect endangered bird species or improve the environment.\n\nSpeaking on his YouTube channel, Choe acknowledged that the government should address the issue following a petition seeking to ban feeding of stray cats, which has garnered over 50,000 signatures. He also noted the existence of a counter-petition with more than 50,000 signatures opposing the ban. The YouTube user behind the campaign, Korean Birder, submitted the petition on July 10. The petitioner argues that stray cats pose a threat to bird species designated as natural monuments under Korea's heritage protection system. They claim that trap-neuter-return programs, or TNR, should be replaced with culling to safeguard these birds.",
  "summary": "As debate intensified over a YouTuber's campaign to ban the feeding of stray cats and reduce their population through culling, Choe Jae-chun, a chair professor at Ewha Womans University and one of Korea's leading ecologists, publicly rejected the proposal. Choe warned that the campaign lacks academic evidence applicable to Korea's ecosystem, making it impossible to conclude that reducing the…",
  "key_points": [
    "YouTube campaign proposes culling stray cats in South Korea.",
    "Ecologist Choe Jae-chun criticizes initiative, lacks scientific evidence.",
    "Counter-petition opposes ban, signed by over 50,000 people."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Should Korea cull stray cats to save birds?",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/21/should-korea-cull-stray-cats-to-save-birds-2337902",
        "published": "2026-08-21T08:32:03.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}