Saturday, August 07, 2010

Craig Ferguson and Shark Week


Craig Ferguson is totally, and I mean TOTALLY funny!





He is also a genuinely great guy.
This is not acting. The man has obviously had a wonderful, mind changing experience and has also got the talent for communicating it in simple and moving words.
Check it out – it very much reflects the reaction of many of our clients which is certainly one of the most gratifying aspects of our job.



See what I mean?

Just a couple of thoughts.

This is not what “Sharksare.
In fact, this is not even what Caribbean Reef Sharks are!
Shark feeding dives got nothing to do with a natural situation. This is very obviously a highly conditioned group of animals that despite of all the pushing and wrangling for position are extremely docile because they are comfy with the presence of humans and intimately acquainted with the routine.

And yet, the feeders are fully garbed in steel mesh and wear protective helmets, and for good reason!
They do this because that’s the only long term sustainable way of doing this safely. Caribbean Reefs and their Indo-Pacific cousins, the Grey Reefs are the poster children for Shark feeding frenzies and consequently, feeding them is extremely risky. Yes they are strictly piscivorous and will not, ever, attack anybody with the intent of devouring him: but they are highly competitive and when presented with the scent of Fish, they can just simply go berserk and snap at anything they may take for food and possibly, for a competitor. I’ve seen this happen many times, mostly with non conditioned and totally wild animals – not nice!
Do not try this at home - Seriously!

And then, there’s this.
This it how you do it. Forget the romantic drama, the stupid pseudoscience, the gory scenes of finning, the ever raised index finger, the soap box and the pontificating. This is how you reach out to millions by portraying a famous but apart from that, completely ordinary dude doing something special and understanding something important in the process. So much like those stellar BBC clips I posted a while ago. And yes, I’m repeating myself!
Think about it.

Finally, and grudgingly! kudos to Discovery Channel.
I fully agree with Patric, this is great pro-Shark programming.
Let’s just hope this is the start of a learning curve about re-gaining the trust and the respect of their audience and elevating the brand to where I ought to be positioned.

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