Forrest Galante, Cretin!

Who, exactly, thought that this was ever gonna be funny? Source.

Read this - pretty disgusting huh.

But of course nothing of it is in any way surprising.

It's same old same old, just yet another piece of deception, featuring yet another unethical self promoting media whore.

Obviously, the real problem is not Galante.

He's just yet another disrespectful moron parading himself on television - dime a dozen, and more turn up every year for ever more bizarre shows that are just mindbogglingly idiotic. His mother who knows him best calls him a cretin, and is likely 100% correct - and I can most certainly leave it at that.
 

Because the real problem are the American networks.

One would think that at least the corporate entities would care about such archaic and obscure concepts as telling the truth, or behaving ethically, be it only to safeguard their own reputation - but no such luck.
Every year, we get asked  to partake in some of their shitty, exploitative shows - and every year, we inevitably turn them down as soon as they show us their idiotic scripts. Sometimes, I really wonder where that relentless race to the bottom is gonna lead us - but then again...

And talking of which.

If you thought that Shark Week was being reformed and getting "better", think again - and increasingly, it's not only the idiotic fabricated scripts with their gratuitous drama, and the insufferable idiotic anchors and cameramen.
Having had the misfortune to watch a few recent shows whilst in New Zealand, they did feature several prominent Shark researchers for whom I've now lost every last shred of respect.  Seriously, what a bunch of pathetic hypocrites - and folks, never, ever claim that you got conned into participating in that shit because you knew, and chose to totally sell out! 

And this year?

Trust me, nothing whatsoever will change, zero. 

Having checked, it will be the same tired lineup of media whores from producers to anchors to cameramen to researchers aggregating for their pathetic yearly meal ticket and regaling us with the same old tired pathetic lineup of boring, contrived and exploitative programs. 
Luckily it does not impact Shark conservation one way or the other - but considering how much better it could be, it remains highly irritating never the less.

Incidentally, for us that continued fiasco has been great.

Our steadfast refusal to prostitute ourselves has earned us a reputation for integrity and as a consequence, the great, respectful shows with honest, credible people tend to gravitate towards us - and guess what, those folks even pay their bills!

But I'm digressing as always.

Read the article at the top - and as a minimum, stop believing those media, and stop admiring those horrible people!
It's all staged BS, and those folks are in it only for the $$$, with the animals being abused as props - and no brazen greenwashing will ever change that.

Oh and... cinema science my ass!  You know who you are!
 

Anyway.

Let's go Shark diving - respectfully!

 

Ronda Rousey - Mental Midgetry?

Shark conservation messaging, or whatever, by fucking Shark GENIUS PdG - source.

And I cite,

It is a good, well constructed show with professional and scientific insight 

Right.

That was good old Riley who STILL desperately wants to be somebody in Sharks, or whatever, and STILL just does not get it and STILL publicly pals with human garbage.

Anyway, along with many reputable presenters, experts and shooters, we did obviously turn it down as we will categorically not host any shoot for Shark Week as long as they continue to air those horrible exploitative programs, and showcase those pathetic self promoting media whores and their pathetic feats.

Back then I called it mental midgetry. 

But I was wrong. It is so much worse than that.

Watch.

See what I mean?

No blame goes to poor naive Rousey and husband  who have been obviously conned into believing that any of that is in any way an accomplishment. 

But seeing how all that fabricated gratuitous and misleading hype by those fucking self important morons is portraying sweet old Blunt, Gillette, Crook and Granma as lethal killer machines really gets my blood boiling. How dare they!
And no you fucking hypocrite: it is not epic, it is fucking pathetic!

And the bloody operator?

Need I really point out the idiocy of publicly allowing a total beginner to feed your Sharks on your dive - and of allowing another total amateur and untrained ignoramus to pose as a feeding expert? 

Is this maybe the reason why Aqua Trek have shortly thereafter fired Brandon their fucking GENIUS Shark whisperer, and this apparently with cause? Hardly - but here's to that, and good riddance; and here's to the guys down the road using this as an opportunity for some fucking reflection, and to them and others (...) stopping to enable all those revolting Shark porn media that are ultimately harming Fiji's reputation as a Shark ecotourism destination!

Anyway.

Like an old broken record, let me repeat - over and over and over again.

Here are my own questions to fellow Shark diving operators and conservationists.

• Are we gonna continue to pretend this (read!) is not happening?

• Are we gonna continue to watch that shit?

• Are we the operators gonna continue to enable it?

• Are we gonna continue to give our business to operators who do?

• Are we gonna continue to admire and to associate with those people?

Questions questions!

PS - Comments: please post them here & not on Facebook. Thanks!

Not a Shark Cage?

Right - click for detail!

Read this.

Those are Western Australia's Rules for Shark interactions by Aquatic Eco Tours. “Aquatic eco-tourism” is defined as tourism relating to fish in their natural environment and includes the viewing or feeding of fish but does include the taking of fish.

And these are the rules pertaining to fishing. 

And now watch, and read about this fucking fiasco. 

Yup that would be yet another production for Shark Week barging in and rubbishing yet another location. And surprise surprise: like he has e.g. already done in Fiji, the Bahamas, Guadalupe and New Zealand, the hypocritical  king of Shark porn is once again smack in the middle of it all.

Just great isn't it.

And let's be crystal clear about it: this is not fucking CinemaScience (I mean, seriously!!!) or environmental filmmaking let alone conservation = this is illegal, unethical and exploitative rubbish perpetrated by human garbage - and let there be no doubt that Discovery Channel is certainly an accomplice, too!

Anyway, not surprised - but it sure is a crying shame seeing Charlie's name associated with that shit!

And like an old broken record let me repeat

Here are my own questions to fellow Shark diving operators, researchers and conservationists.

• Are we going to continue pretending this aint happening?

• Are we going to continue watching that shit?

• Are we the operators going to continue enabling it?

• Are we going to continue giving our business to operators who do?

• Are we going to continue associating with those people?

Questions questions - you know who you are!

Totemic Sharks?

Hah - and I cite,

In a decade or two (~1995–2010), an unusual transformation occurred in the perception of sharks.
In the society, sharks went from being feared animals to protected and even totemic animals. In the shark-enthusiast community, the combination of interest or mild obsessions with sharks, the desire to do something and protect sharks, and mysticism, resulted in sharks becoming totemic animals. Even for some in the field of ichthyology, sharks ceased to be “fishes” and became totemic animals...

Shark Biology Becomes Shark Advocacy

When sharks ceased to be “fishes” and became “totemic animals,” much of shark biology evolved into advocacy.
Although there were sufficient scientific, ecological, and economic reasons to protect sharks, a totemic relationship requires that the totem be protected and be a protector of the clan. Thus, it was necessary, in the advocates’ view, to dispel “the myths created by Jaws,” or the idea that sharks are, or could be, man-eaters.
The notion of sharks as man-eaters was not compatible with the relation-ship desired with the totemic animal. Furthermore, if sharks were man- eaters, or potential man-eaters, they would not be tolerated and could not be protected in a society where most people are not aware of the differences among domesticated, tamed, and wild animals. So, in the advocates view, totemic sharks could not be man-eaters. Thus, a change in perception was needed, and sharks had to be portrayed as harmless to humans...

Shark Television

The movie Jaws also engendered a new television genre.
In 1988, the public fascination, or obsession, with sharks caused by the movie led the “Discovery Channel” to produce “Shark Week,” a week-long series of programs based on sharks. The shows were instantly successful. In time, “Shark Week ” would become the longest-running program on cable television, having lasted 28 years as of 2016.

In the early years, the shows were loosely based on natural history or conservation of sharks and were fairly realistic. Perhaps catering to what was attractive to the audience, programs soon became centered on white sharks or bull sharks, Carcharhinus leucas , and their attacks on people...

As satellite tags were developed and became widely used, filmmakers turned to shark tagging to replace the superannuated shark attack programs.
The tagging of a large shark is always an exciting event and could produce the action footage that the networks loved. Because of the high cost of satellite tags, film producers could always find a willing researcher lacking funds or seeking publicity, although most of the time the “researchers” were usually unknown to those actually studying sharks. The “researcher” could assume heroic poses in the tagging film, which could be finished with the perennial “high fives” of such films.
The networks loved it!

And then, there's this.

Like any passionate shark lover, I once adored shark flicks. 
The brave scientist pressing into the unknown, the cool gadgets, the thrashing of a hippo-sized toothy fish from the deep that quickly returns from whence it came – this is the stuff of obsession for any nerdy 11-year-old kid.

But today, most of these movies make me want to wretch.
It’s not just the puffy-chest posing and the gravely-voiced narrators, it’s the whole vibe. Sharks on Shark Week aren’t really animals anymore, they’re props. And increasingly the stars aren’t scientists, they’re stuntmen like Dickie Chivell, who gets on surfboard-like things to see if he can tempt a white shark to bite him or Micheal Phelps, who … I honestly don’t know what the hell that guy has to do with sharks.

This isn’t David Attenborough, this is Jackass. Danger porn. 

Proponents of Shark Week claim that the program helps bring awareness to sharks and promotes conservation. But let’s get real, no one walks away from Shark Week saying, “Wow, I really want to donate to conservation efforts.”
Twenty-nine million people tune in to Shark Week with an average of 2 million per episode and yet no conservation NGO I know of sees a bump in donations. If anything, shark populations have plummeted during the 27 years Shark Week has been on the air.

Bingo.

Before watching Shark Week, you should really read this splendid tour de force about bullshit Shark science and researchers, bullshit Shark conservation and bullshit Shark movies by the venerable José Castro; and check out this little pearl by Eric Vance.
And then, by all means, feel free to go ahead and watch that shit as it is utterly irrelevant anyway.

Enjoy.

The articles and the stupid Shark shows!
 

Shark Porn in New Zealand!

Watch the video - nothing has changed! Source.

And I cite.

Discovery's angle seems to hinge on the fear people have of the unknown, and especially the unknown in the water where they swim. Shark Week has been so good at tweaking and magnifying this fear, that generations of viewers who grew up watching the show are afraid to go in the water...

The problem is not only that there is a fatal prejudice against sharks, but that it is not even recognized.
In the case of other animals, such as snakes, everyone knows that there is a deep bias against them, but in the case of sharks, the stark contrast between sharks as they are portrayed, and sharks as they really are is unseen.

The public actually believes that sharks behave the way they are shown on Shark Week.

Indeed, and bravo Ila!
 

Watch what these people do to New Zealand's GWS.

Think that those Sharks are behaving naturally around boats, or have they been amped up intentionally in order to create all that idiotic drama - and how does this disrespectful rubbish adequately illustrate those past 10 years of stellar research by NIWA and DOC?

Yes it's same old same old, pure Shark Porn.

Have you read this comments thread?

Pitchforks and Flaming Brands is obviously an insider, and she knows what she is talking about. Shark Week is not some amorphous entity, it is people - and together with Sorensen's small team who defines the overall direction (= ever more exploitative garbage), those folks she calls out are definitely some of the worst serial perpetrators.
 

And like an old broken record, let me repeat.

Here are my own questions to fellow Shark diving operators and conservationists.

• Are we gonna continue pretending this aint happening?

• Are we gonna continue watching that shit?

• Are we the operators gonna continue enabling it?

• Are we gonna continue giving our business to operators that do?

• Are we gonna continue associating with those people?

Is anybody, ever, gonna learn the obvious lessons?

The good news?

From a conservation point of view -and here I differ with Ila- it thankfully matters not!

Does Shark Week harm Conservation Efforts?

Maybe!

But IMO it's more of an ethical than a practical issue.

This new article in Scientific American echoes the known reservations by Chris Palmer and many others about the widespread fakery in wildlife films that has just reached a new ignominious peak in the Megalodon fabrication. I've already blogged about this topic years ago and invite you to go and read it here - and here is one of several posts about the best way to go about when producing advocacy films, that is to showcase the positive and fascinating aspects instead of trying to shock the audience, especially if we wish to reach out beyond our own circles and not continue to preach to the choir. Love not Loss!

That's the theory, and the arguments are I believe impeccable.

But what about the practical implications?

Will people who love the film vote in a positive way for senators and congressmen who will vote in a more sustainable manner like Palmer asserts? Yes, maybe - but if so, that would be a tiny interested minority, the more as I don't recall one single political campaign focusing on marine conservation, let alone on the conservation of Sharks?

Like I said, it's more of an ethical debate.

And in that sense, those programs are a total abomination!

para_sight is of course absolutely correct in his observation that as long as the ratings remain so stellar, Discovery couldn't give a shit and will continue laughing all the way to the bank. But what about those fake conservationists who enable and endorse that shit - think they are equally impervious to criticism?

We shall see - and I may add, so far so bad!

And in the big scheme of things?

There, I would surmise that this conversation is totally irrelevant!

I can promise you that the thousands of fishermen in Indonesia, India, Spain, Taiwan, Argentina, Mexico, United States of America, Malaysia, Pakistan, Brazil, Japan, France, New Zealand, Thailand, Portugal, Nigeria, Islamic Republic of Iran, Sri Lanka, Republic of Korea and Yemen do not kill those Sharks because they hate them owing to having watched Jaws or for the matter, the Shark porn on Discovery! And by the same token, I can equally promise you that they will not stop killing them because of the latest inane video clip of the token bimbette swimming loops around a perplexed OWT!

I mean, seriously - that argument is so stupid, it is frankly embarrassing!

I'm not saying that good wildlife programming is not beneficial.

It is very much so, especially in the long term. It may indeed sway voters and possibly change the political discourse - tho considering that An Inconvenient Truth failed to spark any substantive policy despite of an Oscar, plus a Nobel Prize for Gore and the IPCC I'm alas rather skeptical. 

But those excellent productions will undoubtedly again arouse a new generation of advocates, conservationists and researchers, and those will hopefully make a contribution for the better. As an example, I'm convinced that we would be still condoning the killing of the big cats for trophies and fur coats, and that we would still be purchasing ivory trinkets and tortoise eyeglass frames were it not for those past stellar wildlife documentaries!

So by all means, keep at it!

But can we please stop those stupidities.

All those pathetic shark videos by those desperate self promoters with big cameras and small talents that are being pushed around the film festival circuit, to be acclaimed by the vegan organic cotton and Birkenstock mob. All those atrocious Shark conservation edits on YouTube that are an insult to one's intelligence. 

And especially all those media featuring those Shark-molesting scantily clad bimbos who are doubly pathetic once one realizes that they are merely being pimped, for profit, by those very same producers and camera-toting dudes! Seriously, conservation is literally awash in incredibly smart, committed, hard working and emancipated women who are quietly doing terrific work for Shark conservation, largely away from the public eye - and not a single one would demean and embarrass herself in that way, ever! 

Any names come to mind?

And if so, why are we tolerating all that bullshit?

And Shark Weeek?

Meh. Up to you. 

Watch it, or don't - it doesn't really matter one way or the other.

Weasel weasel....

Remember our question to Discovery Channel?

A shame that WhySharksMatter did not find it worthy of being asked but digressed into Whale wars instead. But no worries mate: no harm done. Thanks for the effort.

It's pretty obvious that Gasek never meant to truly engage with the Shark community anyway.
Like any good politician, he managed to deftly dodge the issues and obfuscate, befuddle and bedazzle whilst promoting the Corporation he works for.
That's what he's paid to do and he did a good job at it.

But whatever the exercise in smoke&mirrors, Discovery remains profoundly anti-Shark.
Their own description of this year's Shark Week Program is a case study in sensationalism, scaremongering and evil demonizing of a group of animals. Just like Animal Planet.

"We pride ourselves on telling compelling and accurate stories. Shark Week is no different. Two of our shows this year are based on actual historical events" - right, Sharkbite Summer and Blood in the Water are all about historical education!

Paul: yeah, whatever...

Keep signing the petition please.
Yes after what I've just read, Discovery won't likely give a rat's behind - but still, it demonstrates that we have a voice. And somebody please tell Sonja Fordham to stop lending her authority to this travesty - especially not via an obviouly fake blog where the last entry dates back nearly one year. That's called greenwashing and is unbecoming of the Ocean Conservancy.
Yes I'm repeating myself!

Enough said

In Norwegian!

Did you notice?

Suddenly, there's plenty of Norwegian signatures on the petition!

The reason:
Årets programmer i Shark Week inneholder derimot titler som "Deadly Waters" og "Sharkbite Summer", som blant annet dramatiserer og "normaliserer" blodige angrep på mennesker. Programmene i Shark Week bidrar dermed til fortsatt å skape frykt, slik som Haisommer-filmene begynte med, og skremte vettet av en hel generasjon - for 34 år siden. Forskjellen er bare at mens Haisommer-filmene ble markedsført som en fiksjon/skrekkfilm, presenterer Discovery sitt "skrekkshow" som vitenskapelig sannhet.

Well, I don't understand it, either - but I love the unusual letters!
Anyway, this is from a piece about Discovery's Shark Porn that Lill has published in Dykking (which I believe means "Diving"), Norway's dive magazine.

Thank you, Lill (again!) - you may keep your place in the pit!

Not good enough!

Yes, I'm talking about the Discovery Petition!

It was ticking along nicely, with about 100 new signatures a day. Then, it went mysteriously offline - and ever since, the daily signatures have slowed significantly, to not more than 20-30. Last time I looked, the total was 854: respectable but a far cry from the goal of 10,000.
In order to achieve that, the whole thing needs to go viral with "everybody" pitching in and above all, with the "big guns" signing on and then mobilizing their followers.

Having searched for "names" and having looked at the websites of the plethora of self-professed Shark lovers, savers and protectors out there, I'm starting to wonder: where are they? Why is it that I've failed to find a single major website posting a link to the petition?

Where are, to name but a few, the Funds, Allies & Alliances, Societies, Foundations, Initiatives, Conservancies, Institutes, Projects and Trusts, the Backbiters, Savers, Preservers, Spotters, Angels, Shepherds, Aiders, Stewards, Researchers and all of those other orgs that solicit donations from the public for safeguarding Sharks - and that incidentally, each run their very own, undoubtedly unique and original petition to stop Shark finning?
Where are all those prominent photographers and cameramen that draw their sustenance from taking images of Sharks?
Have the Shark diving operators and the Travel agents that book them bothered to mobilize their clients?
Where is the scientific community, especially those guys that always profess that their imput and research are being abused?

Does this mean that the majority of us Shark people agree with the way Discovery is depicting the animals we profess to love?
Or is this a reflection of how hopelessly unorganized, inefficient and fragmented we are, and of how our notorious infighting is ultimately condemning us to be pathetically irrelevant as a group?

Questions questions...

My very personal position is this.
I'm actually not a lover of "activism" and of petitions and I'm also rather skeptical about their ultimate effectiveness. Had I been asked, my call would have been to try and embark on a less confrontational route (and yes, I know this has been tried before with little success) that would have shown alternatives on top of condemning the status quo. And quite frankly, I cringe when I read some of the emotional tree-hugging posts on that website.

But this petition is a fact and because of that, I'm willing to support it, if only because I believe that one must show solidarity.
Also, it has been started by a group of people who have the important ethical advantage of doing it for one reason only, because they truly love Sharks - and not because of any other hidden agenda, commercial or otherwise.

To me, the petition is but one, albeit important element in how we should try and tackle the problem of Shark-related media. Some of the others are already on the table: dialogue, educating and holding the operators accountable, alternative media productions - and the list is by no means exhaustive.
Suggestions welcome!

But having said this: guys, c'mon, show the support!

Our Question to Discovery Channel

From today's dive - bravo Lill!

WhySharksMatter has landed quite a coup.

He has managed to convince Mr. Paul Gasek, an Executive of Discovery Channel, to answer 10 questions relating to Discovery's Shark Week. Here is the background to that serendipitous opportunity.

So there - here's our question.
David, my heartfelt thanks for the chance of hearing it directly from the horse's mouth!

Dear Mr. Gasek

As you may know, one of your forthcoming programs, “Deadly Waters” has caused quite a controversy here in Fiji.

We are one of Fiji's pre-eminent Shark diving operators and were contacted by Joshua Puga of Gurney Productions who wanted to come and film our Bull Sharks for the aforementioned show.
After having seen the program's "Experiment List", we declined their request, this based on the following aspects of the planned show.

• The depiction of Sharks as man-killing monsters
• The untrue allegation that Fiji is a hot spot for Shark Attacks
• Above all, the damage such an allegation would cause to the fragile tourism industry of a small island country

Gurney then tried coming back via the "back door", by having a local live-aboard vessel contact us asking whether we would host them and a video team shooting for Discovery's Shark Week.
Having asked for further clarifications, we were told that the show "hadn't yet been named" - but we soon noticed that the producer and the host, Les Stroud, were the same as in January . Once again, we declined to cooperate and informed the vessel about the production team's true intentions.

The shoot was finally hosted by our local competitors who however claim that they had no idea about its true nature as they were told by Gurney that it was a scientific program for Animal Planet.

If true, this would mean that after having unsuccessfully tried to mislead us, Gurney Productions only succeeded in filming the show's Fiji segment by deceiving the Shark diving operator who would have otherwise opposed the production like we did.

I assume Discovery Channel care about their reputation for being factually and scientifically accurate and thus credible. I also assume they they pride themselves in following impeccable ethical standards.

With that in mind - and assuming that your own independent verification would lead you to conclude

• That the allegation that Fiji is a "high-fatality hot spot" is a complete fabrication and that there are no data whatsoever supporting it
• That such an allegation would cause substantial damage to Fiji's tourism industry
• That Gurney Productions used deceit in order to film the Fiji segment of "Deadly Waters"

Would you then be willing to completely scrap "Deadly Waters", or at least remove the segment that was filmed in Fiji?

We look forward to your reply and would be happy to provide you with copies of all correspondence and corroborating evidence if so wished. You can reach the dive shop's manager, Andrew Cumming at Beqa Adventure Divers.

Thank you very much for your kind consideration.

Clowning around

I really had to restrain myself from choosing a title like "Discovery Channel - nothing more than a bunch of effing Clowns", or the like. But quite frankly, in the face of this, I feel kinda deflated and ranted-out.

The picture is advertising the Shark Week episode "How not to become Shark Bait". Guess it's true when they say it's worth a thousand words.

Well, the writing has been on the wall for quite some time.
And, you may want to check out this excellent review by Grant Butler.

Enough said.

Shark Week - frightening swimmers right back out of the water

From the 2007 New York Daily News Entertainment Guide:

"The folks a Discovery Channel are at it again!
Just as the weather heats up, sending throngs to the beach, Discovery Channel kicks off its annual "Shark Week," which is sure to frighten some swimmers right back out of the water.
In keeping with that theme, the week-long bite fest begins tonight at 9 with "Ocean of Fear: Worst Shark Attack Ever," a two-hour special. (........)
"I get on the back of a hammerhead shark and get rammed by a great white shark," he says. "Wow, for me, it's almost euphoric. You think you're touching a beast that if it really wanted to could rip you apart.
"That, of course, is the concept of "Shark Week," playing off that fear."

Last year, we blogged about an open letter to Discovery addressing the principal grievances of the Shark Conservation community. It was an excellent letter (and one of my better posts) and quite frankly, I was encouraged and hopeful that something would change.

Has it? - You be the judge

Mithbusters: Do dogs attract sharks? Do the vibrations caused by a flapping injured fish attract sharks? Does chili powder repel sharks?

Surviving Sharks: While in South Africa, Les and marine biologist Jeremiah Sullivan conduct an analysis of the great white's bite, and test whether kicking and splashing attracts sharks, and if it's safer to stay in a group or tread water alone if stranded in the ocean.

Day of the Shark: Do shark encounters happen more frequently in the morning or night? This special chronicles six recent shark attacks that took place at different times of day. Top shark experts weigh in on what time of day is better or worse for avoiding sharks.

How not to become Shark Bait: In the process, viewers learn strategies for staying safe when in the water.

So, it's still all about Them versus Us.
Not about how We kill them by the millions, but about how They are lurking just off the beach waiting to devour us. And sorry, the fake Shark Conservation Blog by the Ocean Conservancy isn't fooling anybody - but nice try guys...

It's gonna be just like in 2007: playing off the fear and frightening some swimmers right back out of the water.

Enjoy........