Shark After Dark
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Shark Week is an annual week-long
programming block Block programming (also known as a strand in British broadcasting) is the arrangement of programs on radio or television so that those of a particular genre, theme, or target audience are united. Overview Block programming involves scheduling a ...
on the
Discovery Channel Discovery Channel, known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery, is an American cable channel that is best known for its ongoing reality television shows and promotion of pseudoscience. It init ...
focusing on
shark Sharks are a group of elasmobranch cartilaginous fish characterized by a ribless endoskeleton, dermal denticles, five to seven gill slits on each side, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the ...
-themed programming. It originally premiered on July 17, 1988. The block is featured annually in the summer, and was originally devoted to conservation efforts and correcting misconceptions about sharks. Over time, it grew in popularity and became a hit on the Discovery Channel. Since 2010, it has been the longest-running
cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with bro ...
programming event in history. The block is owned by
Warner Bros. Discovery Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media and Outline of entertainment, entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It was formed from WarnerMedi ...
, and is broadcast in over 72 countries. Shark Week is promoted by the Discovery Channel heavily via
social network A social network is a social structure consisting of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), networks of Dyad (sociology), dyadic ties, and other Social relation, social interactions between actors. The social network per ...
s such as
Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
and X (formerly Twitter). Episodes are also available for purchase on services such as
Google Play Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store, Play Store, or sometimes the Android Store (and was formerly Android Market), is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certifie ...
/
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
,
Amazon Prime Amazon Prime (styled as prime) is a paid subscription service of Amazon which is available in many countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services inclu ...
, and Apple TV. Some episodes of the shows on Shark Week are free on the over-the-top streaming services
Max Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...
,
Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...
(owned by Disney), and
Discovery+ Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discov ...
.


History

The first Shark Week premiered in July 1988, with the first show to air being ''Caged in Fear''. A total of 10 episodes aired. Other shows included ''Sharks: Predators or Prey'', ''The Shark Takes a Siesta'', and ''Sharks of a Different Color''. Due to the success of the block, Discovery decided to continue it. In 2000, Discovery Channel aired ''Shark Week Uncaged'' presented by well-known zoologist
Nigel Marven Nigel Alan Marven (born 27 November 1960) is a British wildlife TV presenter, naturalist, conservationist, author, and television producer. He is best known as presenter of the BBC miniseries '' Chased by Dinosaurs'', its sequel, ''Sea Monsters' ...
as a host. Six million 3D Pulfrich glasses were distributed to viewers in North America for an episode featuring an extinct giant shark, which had 3D segments. Starting in 2000, programming has been hosted by notable personalities from other Discovery series. In 2005,
Adam Savage Adam Whitney Savage (born July 15, 1967) is an American special effects designer and manufacturer, fabricator, actor, educator, television personality, and producer, best known as the former co-host, with Jamie Hyneman, of the Discovery Channe ...
and
Jamie Hyneman James Franklin Hyneman (; born September 25, 1956) is an American special effects expert who was co-host of the television series ''MythBusters'' alongside Adam Savage, where he became known for his distinctive beret and walrus moustache. He ...
of ''
MythBusters ''MythBusters'' is a science entertainment television series created by Peter Rees (producer), Peter Rees and produced by Beyond International in Australia. The series premiered on the Discovery Channel on January 23, 2003. It was broadcast in ...
'' hosted Shark Week, which premiered with a two-hour ''MythBusters'' " Jaws Special". In 2006,
Mike Rowe Michael Gregory Rowe (born March 18, 1962) is an American television host and narrator. He is known for his work on the Discovery Channel series '' Dirty Jobs'' and the series '' Somebody's Gotta Do It'' originally developed for CNN. He hosted ...
of ''
Dirty Jobs ''Dirty Jobs'' is an American television series that originally aired on the Discovery Channel in which host Mike Rowe is shown performing difficult, strange, disgusting, or messy occupational duties alongside the job's current employees. The sho ...
'' hosted Shark Week, and two ''Dirty Jobs'' episodes were produced to tie-into the programming, titled "Jobs that Bite" and "Jobs that Bite...Harder". That year, a inflatable great white shark named Chompie was hung from the Discovery Channel's
Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially Unincorporated area, unincorporated, it is an edge city with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 ...
headquarters. In 2007, the Discovery Channel celebrated ''Shark Week's 20th Anniversary'' hosted by
Les Stroud Les Stroud (born 20 October 1961) is a Canadian survival expert, filmmaker and musician best known as the creator, writer, producer, director, cameraman and host of the television series '' Survivorman''. Stroud was named Chief Scout by Sco ...
, host of ''
Survivorman ''Survivorman'' is a Canadian-produced television program, broadcast in Canada on the Outdoor Life Network (OLN), and internationally on Discovery Channel and Science Channel. The title refers to the host of the show, Canadian filmmaker and sur ...
''. The 20th anniversary included the launch of '' Sharkrunners'', a
video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
that uses
GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based hyperbolic navigation system owned by the United States Space Force and operated by Mission Delta 31. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide geol ...
data from tagged sharks in the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
. The program '' Ocean of Fear'' aired on July 29. In 2014,
Deep Blue Deep Blue may refer to: People, figures, and characters * Deep Blue (musician), electronic and drum and bass musician * Deep Blue (DC Comics), a superhero in the post-Crisis DC Universe * Deep Blue (''Tokyo Mew Mew''), a character from ''Tokyo ...
, a large great white shark estimated to be twenty feet long was featured in an episode of Shark Week; she was seen traversing the waters off the coast of Guadalupe Island. In 2021, the events began streaming on
Discovery+ Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discov ...
along with its telecasts on the Discovery Channel.


Shweekend

In early 2015, Discovery announced a new, shark-themed weekend that would air on the Discovery Channel. The weekend took place in late August 2015, and contained three different programs. The first program, which aired on Saturday, August 29, was '' MythBusters vs. Jaws'', followed right after by ''Shark Alley: Legend of Dynamite''. The next day, Sunday, August 30, one program aired, called '' Air Jaws: Walking with Great Whites''. The purpose of Shweekend was to increase the shark-related content from past years and to prolong the summer's shark coverage.


Criticism

Since its early days, Shark Week evolved into more entertainment-oriented and sometimes fictional programming. By the 2010s, it attracted much criticism for airing dramatic programs to increase viewers and popularity. This fictitious programming, known as
docufiction Docufiction (or docu-fiction) is the cinematographic combination of documentary film, documentary and fiction, this term often meaning narrative film. It is a film genre which attempts to capture reality such as it is (as direct cinema or ciné ...
, has been produced in the last few years. Examples of such programs include '' Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives'', ''Shark of Darkness: Wrath of Submarine'', ''Monster Hammerhead'', ''Lair of the Mega Shark'', and ''Megalodon: The New Evidence''. This strategy was successful, especially for the program ''Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives'', as it became one of the most watched programs in Shark Week history, primarily for the controversy and backlash it generated. The
mockumentary A mockumentary (a portmanteau of ''mock'' and ''documentary'') is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a Documentary film, documentary. Mockumentaries are often used to analyze or comment on current event ...
was based on an ancient giant shark called
megalodon ''Otodus megalodon'' ( ; meaning "big tooth"), Common name, commonly known as megalodon, is an extinction, extinct species of giant mackerel shark that lived approximately 23 to 3.6 million years ago (Mya), from the Early Miocene to the Earl ...
, which is now long extinct. The airing of this program fueled criticism by the professionals in the science blogger community, as well as science-advocacy bloggers like actor
Wil Wheaton Richard William "Wil" Wheaton III (born July 29, 1972) is an American actor and writer. He portrayed Wesley Crusher on the television series ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', Gordie Lachance in the film ''Stand by Me (film), Stand by Me'', ...
, and resulted in a boycott of the network. Since then, Discovery has increasingly been accused of using
junk science Junk science is spurious or fraudulent scientific data, research, or analysis. The concept is often invoked in political and legal contexts where facts and scientific results have a great amount of weight in making a determination. It usually con ...
, pushing dubious theories, creating false stories, and misleading scientists as to the nature of the documentaries being produced. In early 2015, Discovery President
Rich Ross Rich Ross is the former Group President of Discovery Channel and Science Channel. Earlier in his tenure at Discovery he also oversaw Animal Planet and Velocity (TV network). Previously he was the Chief Executive Officer of Shine America, respon ...
vowed to remove this type of programming from future Shark Week lineups. There has also been criticism from scientists that have been featured in episodes of Shark Week. Jonathan Davis, a 29-year-old marine biologist was featured in an episode of Shark Week called Voodoo Shark. The episode is meant to discuss the legend of the 'Rooken', and suggests that Davis strongly believes in said legend. Davis had believed he was being featured to talk about his research, but instead was blindsided by this portrayal. He also recounts that while filming, "One of the guys was like, "Oh, maybe you should just let it bite you, that would be so exciting.' And I was just thinking to myself, 'Are you kidding me? You really think I wanna let the shark bite me just for ratings? Are you serious?'" More criticism was leveled at Discovery in 2017 when the network heavily promoted a race between Olympic gold medal winner
Michael Phelps Michael Fred Phelps II (born June 30, 1985) is an American former competitive swimmer. He is the most successful and most decorated Olympian of all time with a total of 28 medals. Phelps also holds the all-time records for Olympic gold me ...
and a great white shark that turned out to be computer generated, but based on actual speeds of such animals, and Phelps wearing illegal swim gear.


Content analysis

A 2022 study reviewed trends in the content covered by Shark Week. Of the 272 Shark Week programs produced, 43% had titles using words with negative connotations in context (such as "attack", "fear", "deadly"). The relative proportion of in-context negative titles is stable through time, rising at the same rate as the overall number of shows. Of the 201 shows that could be viewed by the authors, around 74% referenced shark bites or other negative portrayals of sharks. 63% of shows used positive language in reference to sharks, though this language was often only used briefly. About 37% of shows are research-oriented, though in some years (2009–2012, 2020) less than a quarter of shows involved research. Research methods are skewed towards expensive and television-friendly techniques such as satellite telemetry tagging, drones, and ROVs. In contrast, actual shark science is oriented more towards methodical research related to life history and reproduction, which are more practical for conservation work. Uncertainty and repeatability are frequently eschewed in presentation, in favor of controversy or authoritative results. Of the people labelled as "experts" or authorities by Shark Week programs, 41% have over 26 peer-reviewed publications, while 23% lack any contribution to the scientific literature. Little distinction is made between experiential (non-scientific) and scientific experts. The demographics of Shark Week "experts" mirrors the underrepresentation of
women A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functional u ...
and
people of color The term "person of color" (: people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is associated with, the United States. From th ...
in STEM fields. 94% of "experts" featured by Shark Week are white, and 79% are male. 24 shows featured at least one non-white "expert" and 60 involved at least one woman "expert". Several non-doctorate men were referred to as "Dr.", and several doctorate-holding women were not labelled with their title. The most commonly featured country is the United States (24.2% of episodes, with California, Florida, Hawaii, and Massachusetts as the predominant states), followed by the Bahamas (15%), South Africa (15%), New Zealand (10%), Australia (10%), and Mexico (10%). Black researchers are rarely featured despite the fact that both the Bahamas and South Africa are majority-black countries. 79 living species of sharks have been featured in Shark Week, along with several species of
batoids Batomorphi is a division of cartilaginous fishes, commonly known as rays, this taxon is also known as the superorder Batoidea, but the 5th edition of ''Fishes of the World'' classifies it as the division Batomorphi. They and their close relati ...
(rays and kin),
chimaera Chimaeras are Chondrichthyes, cartilaginous fish in the order (biology), order Chimaeriformes (), known informally as ghost sharks, rat fish (not to be confused with rattails), spookfish, or rabbit fish; the last two names are also applied to B ...
s, and extinct forms. The most common species to be featured are
great white shark The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large Lamniformes, mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major ocea ...
s (''Carcharodon carcharias'', 18.4% of episodes),
tiger shark The tiger shark (''Galeocerdo cuvier'') is a species of ground shark, and the only extant member of the genus '' Galeocerdo'' and family Galeocerdonidae. It is a large apex predator, with females capable of attaining a length of over . Popula ...
s (''Galeocerdo cuvier'', 12.2%),
bull shark The bull shark (''Carcharhinus leucas''), also known as the Zambezi shark (informally zambi) in Africa and Lake Nicaragua shark in Nicaragua, is a species of requiem shark commonly found worldwide in warm, shallow waters along coasts and in riv ...
s (''Carcharhinus leucas'', 9.6%), and
hammerhead shark The hammerhead sharks are a group of sharks that form the family Sphyrnidae, named for the unusual and distinctive form of their heads, which are flattened and laterally extended into a Hammerhead shark#Cephalofoil, cephalofoil (a T-shape or " ...
s (Sphyrnidae, 8.4%). Some species with extensive scientific literature are rarely featured, such as
bonnethead The bonnethead (''Sphyrna tiburo''), also called a bonnet shark or shovelhead, is a small member of the hammerhead shark genus ''Sphyrna'', and part of the family Sphyrnidae. It is an abundant species in the littoral zone of the North Atlantic a ...
s (''Sphyrna tiburo''),
sandbar shark The sandbar shark (''Carcharhinus plumbeus''), also known as the brown shark or thickskin shark, is a species of requiem shark, and part of the family Carcharhinidae, native to the Atlantic Ocean and the Indo-Pacific. It is distinguishable by i ...
s (''Carcharhinus plumbeus''), and the
spiny dogfish The spiny dogfish (''Squalus acanthias''), spurdog, mud shark, or piked dogfish is one of the best known species of the Squalidae (dogfish) family of sharks, which is part of the Squaliformes order. While these common names may apply to several ...
(''Squalus acanthias).'' Threats to sharks are alluded to by a majority (53%) of shows, with 14% mentioning the fin trade, though only 3% identify particular measures that viewers could take towards shark conservation. No Shark Week shows have recommended government action or donations to shark conservation groups.


Programming information


Home media


See also

* '' Air Jaws'' * '' Ocean of Fear'' * '' Blood in the Water'' * '' Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives'' * Sharkrunners


References


General references

*


Inline citations


External links


Shark Week
on the Discovery Channel website
Shark Week
at the
Internet Movie Database IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

It's time for Shark Week to redeem itself
Boston Globe
Shark Week's ratings show there's blood in the water
, Discover
More proof a Megalodon did not swim with the Nazis
Arstechnica {{Discovery Channel programming Television programming blocks in the United States Discovery Channel American annual television specials Sharks Recurring events established in 1988 June July August Week-long events Television series about sharks