Photo via Discovery Channel/Shark Week/"Island of the Mega Shark"
Photo via Discovery Channel/Shark Week/”Island of the Mega Shark”

The Discovery Channel’s “Shark Week” has become a staple that thrill-seeking audiences look forward to every summer, but in recent years, its sensational turns have left many cold, especially scientists.

This NPR report takes a closer look at the “Super Bowl of the ocean” — “Shark Week” attracted more than 40 million viewers in 2014 alone. And while 2015’s “Shark Week” started over the weekend, with such titles as “Island of the Mega Shark” and “Return of the Great White Serial Killer,” (and that’s just today’s programming), the scientists who work with sharks still aren’t sure that they’re getting such a good rap from Discovery.

Marine biologist Jonathan Davis told NPR that he was being filmed for a show called “Voodoo Shark” a couple years ago in which a producer made the following suggestion: “One of the guys was like, ‘Oh, maybe you should just let it bite you, that would be so exciting,’ ” Davis told NPR. “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?’ ”

Of course, Discovery hit a new “low” according to shark experts two years ago with Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives,” a “mockumentary” about a 100-foot, 80-ton shark they called “the serial killer of the seas” — that has been extinct for over a million years. NPR reports that it was the highest-rated show in “Shark Week” history.

But this year is supposed to be different. “Shark Week” producers told NPR that the channel is focusing on “research and science,” and said there would be no more fake shows like “Megalodon.”

Of course, Discovery still needs to up the “wow” factor each year with “Shark Week.” This year? They’re focusing on finding the biggest great whites around Cuba, especially an “allegedly a 21-foot, 7,000-pound great white,” that is cruising its coasts.

With shark attacks on the upswing, especially along the Carolinas with 11 attacks as of Friday, according to CNN (researchers are saying the increased attacks are due to warmer water and drought conditions, bringing feeding patterns closer to shore), and with shows like some on “Shark Week,” many experts still fear that all the publicity is “demonizing” sharks. They’re hopeful that Discovery’s new turn toward more science/less flash is a step in the right direction.

It’s a good report on the battle between perception and reality with one of nature’s mightiest creatures that’s also in danger of becoming extinct. Just remember to keep your shark facts separate from shark fiction and you’ll be fine.

And speaking of shark fiction, here’s the new trailer for Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!, out July 22 on Syfy:

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