Stephen Colbert's Take on Discovery Channel's 'Shark Week'

BioHazard

Here and There
Mar 15, 2009
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Short clip of the show...
http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/240785/august-05-2009/human-week

Although many people love a good scare or horror movie, it's important to realize that sharks are no more dangerous than any other wild animal, they are an important part of the ocean ecosystem and many species are endangered. Although I enjoy many of Discovery Channels programs, I have to agree with Stephen on this one. 'Human Week' would be much more appropriate.
 
I love sharks, and shark week, and the colbert report. I'm so torn.

But, shark steak is tasty, and I like scuba diving with them, so I think the thing to do is save the sharks from the ignorant masses by continuing the undo the damage that was done by the JAWS series.
 
the point of shark week is to shop people that sharks arent the mindless killing machines people think they are. plus, this year they are running a campaign to have a petition signed by as many people as they can to try to ban shark finning forever.

that said, im not sure if certain countries would abide by these laws, seeing as these certain countries also still catch whales to sell for food, but still its an attempt.
 
the point of shark week is to shop people that sharks arent the mindless killing machines people think they are. plus, this year they are running a campaign to have a petition signed by as many people as they can to try to ban shark finning forever.

that said, im not sure if certain countries would abide by these laws, seeing as these certain countries also still catch whales to sell for food, but still its an attempt.

I like those adds.
Shark Week also gives people an idea of how powerful they are and the respect that they deserve.
 
I love sharks, and shark week, and the colbert report. I'm so torn.

But, shark steak is tasty, and I like scuba diving with them, so I think the thing to do is save the sharks from the ignorant masses by continuing the undo the damage that was done by the JAWS series.

I'm not saying that sharks should never ever be hunted, I mean, I like to fish too. I just think it needs to be monitored. My big thing though, is that Shark Week tends to overstate and focus on the shark fear that gets whipped up. I would like them to do more shows on the biology and natural history of the shark. There are some really amazing prehistoric shark species out there!
Look at these prehistoric sharks...

Stethacanthus
Stethacanthus_BW.jpg




Falcatus
Falcatus_male.jpg



Helicoprion
helicoprion23d.jpg


Iniopteryx
gal_image7_zoom.jpg


Echinochimaera
gal_image2_zoom.jpg



Belantsea
Belantsea_montana.JPG




Edestus
edestus.gif



...and that is just a sample!
And yet... not one show on the evolution of sharks. Not one show on the prehistoric species.
I feel like all Shark Week is about is playing up the JAWS fear of sharks.
 
the point of shark week is to shop people that sharks arent the mindless killing machines people think they are. plus, this year they are running a campaign to have a petition signed by as many people as they can to try to ban shark finning forever.

that said, im not sure if certain countries would abide by these laws, seeing as these certain countries also still catch whales to sell for food, but still its an attempt.

I really feel you are wrong on this. If the 'point' of Shark Week was NOT to tell people that sharks are mindless people killers, they would not have the line up that they do. Here is the lineup of shows for Shark Week, according to their website.

Blood In the Water – 2 hour premiere!
The true story behind the bloody shark attacks of 1916 that inspired the movie "Jaws." A 9 foot long shark cruises just off the New Jersey beaches. For centuries its ancestors have done exactly the same. But today there’s unusual company. Swimming in the sea has recently become popular amongst a species the shark has never encountered in his world before: human beings. For the shark it’s a novel feeding opportunity. For the humans it’s the beginning of a new relationship between themselves and the ocean, terrifying and fascinating in equal measure. It's the first multiple shark attack in American history, and the reason we fear sharks to this day.
Deadly Waters
Survivorman’s Les Stroud is back for more nail biting - shark chomping action, and this time, he’s taking on the deadliest waters around the world. His quest is simple – which water is the deadliest? Starting from historical data from the Florida Museum Of Natural History’s famed “Shark Attack Files”, Les will begin his journey to test the waters in the world’s sharkiest “hotspots”. Les will work with a team of experts to compound the “count-down” format as he circumnavigates the globe to initiate a series of intense immersive experiments in an effort to determine why the waters are among the deadliest on Earth!
Day of the Shark 2
See what happens in this harrowing hour, when a great white breaks through a 300-pound aluminum shark cage and traps the divers inside. Another shark tackles a former Navy Seal in shallow waters off the coast of St. Petersburg, Florida. And a bull shark invades a spear-fishing trip in the Bahamas. When you’re a visitor in the vast and complex ocean, any day could be the “Day of the Shark.”
Sharkbite Summer
The bite-by-bite account of America's notorious "Summer of the Shark" in 2001. Were the Ocean's apex predators really taking back America's shores? Sharkbite Summer revisits the attack sites and -- using news archive, interviews with victims, witnesses, surgeons, family members and shark experts -- builds an exact picture of the bloody summer of 2001.
Great White Appetite
The Great White is one of the most of the most feared predators on earth as well as one of it’s most efficient hunters. The Great White Shark patrols the shores of more than fifty percent of the world’s inhabited coastlines, and yet, besides the fact that they’ve killed hundreds of people, we know almost nothing about them. Its incredible appetite is more of a mystery than anything else about the shark. Remarkably, scientists don’t have any accurate data on the Great White’s population, mating, traveling or even what drives their feeding behavior. Observe first hand the experiments that let us uncover the Great Whites unique eating habits. We will travel the globe, stopping at three major Great White feeding grounds – Seal Island, South Africa; Adelaide, Australia and Guadalupe Island, Mexico and administer incredibly visual experiments in an effort to answer this and many other fascinating questions!
Shark After Dark
Sharks are most aggressive and most active in the dark, but the fact is, we know very little else about the nocturnal nature of these creatures. Now, armed with the latest in infrared thermography cameras and night vision technology, a team of divers travels around the world, and descends into the sharks dangerous after-dark hunting grounds. Their goal is to learn more about how Great Whites, Six-Gills, and Tiger Sharks behave after the sun goes down.

Now admittedly, they have a bit of educational stuff thrown in there, but the focus of each of these shows really seems to be on the horror aspects. All you have to do is look at the words they use!
I think Shark Week is an alright idea, but Ocean Week would be a MUCH better idea.
I want more facts, less fiction.
 
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