SeaWorld launches campaign to repair tarnished image after damaging Blackfish documentary hurt revenue

SeaWorld is mounting a public defence of its animal handling in a new advertising campaign after a highly critical 2013 documentary left the park with declining revenue and attendance.

The print and YouTube campaign focuses on the US theme park's efforts to care for animals in captivity and in the wild. Revenue and attendance at SeaWorld have fallen since the release of the documentary Blackfish, which examined what led a killer whale to drown a trainer in 2010 at SeaWorld's Orlando park.

The YouTube campaign shows videos of behind-the-scenes caring for SeaWorld's marine mammals by the company's veterinarians. The print campaign features the company's top veterinarian saying the animals' "health and well-being is my priority every day."

The print ads will appear in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and also in newspapers in Orlando, San Diego and San Antonio where SeaWorld has parks.

SeaWorld senior corporate affairs officer Jill Kermes wouldn't say how much the advertising would cost. But she said the new campaign "will continue to grow and evolve."